Creativity

Maternity, Mary Cassatt, 1890. Cassatt never married nor had children. It would have been impossible in her era to mix her career and a family.
Sorry about the delayed post. I was busy caring for a baby.
Actually, Iā€™m not all that sorry. After all, all other creativity derives from this fundamental beginning of life. The word ā€œcreateā€ derives from the Latin creare: ā€˜to make, bring forth, produce, beget,ā€™ and is related to crescere: ā€˜arise, grow.ā€™ My etymology dictionary also links the latter to the Greek kouros (boy), and kore (girl), but Iā€™ll take that with a grain of salt.
Most of the artists I know are childless, and the ones who do have children struggle to resolve the demands of their careers with the demands of parenting. Not that this isnā€™t true of all careers, but thereā€™s something about the creative impulse that seems to channel in one direction or another. Iā€™m an outlier because not only do I have kids, I have a lot of them.
Breakfast in Bed, Mary Cassatt, 1897. 
My daughter had a difficult delivery and Iā€™m back in Pittsfield helping her until Iā€™m sure sheā€™s recovered.
We Americans have a weird attitude toward parenting. In trying to give women equal access to the marketplace, weā€™ve relegated parenting to the status of a hobby or a part-time job. Done right, itā€™s difficult work, demanding high levels of organization, energy, intelligence and time. My daughter is a well-paid professional, and I donā€™t want to see her dump her career to stay home. But having worked through my own parenting years, I also donā€™t want to see her wandering around in a fog of exhaustion, either.
But enough of this. Junior needs changing and his mom needs her meds before we start the round of doctorā€™s office, visiting nurse, visiting specialist. This baby stuff is a lot of work.
Baby Reaching For An Apple, Mary Cassatt, 1893
Message me if you want information about next yearā€™s classes and workshops.