Author Archives: andreatancrati

There was this book that I read. It made a convincing argument that if you wanted to be an artist, you had to be a confident person. I was young. I wanted to be cool, and confident, and an artist…at least I thought I did. I mean who didn’t? All I knew for sure wasContinue reading “Confidence”

What activities do I lose myself in? Easy question. Anything creative, art related. Research. Staging. Hours fly by in minutes. Is that losing myself? Or finding? I like this question because it hints at the idea of flow state. The falling out of time state. What happens when we lose awareness of our physical bodies,Continue reading “Activities”

I woke up to the sound of repetitive crashing. Something being blown about in the droning wind and rain. A few sideways palm trees, dramatic outside my window At the beginning of the movie Mary Poppins, there’s a bit about the winds of change blowing in, and then Mary shows up with her fanciful umbrellaContinue reading “Stormy March Winds”

It does sometimes pour in California. Just like the song says. “It doesn’t rain in California… but man, it pours…” Today was one of those days. I went out early to walk, but turned around after we started to feel a few drops. By the time I got to my car, I was soaked. TheContinue reading “Its Raining? Its Pouring”

A little something I’m working on. It’s for a Tibetan meditation center. You may have seen prayer flags before. (I’ll find a picture). I’ve seen them and never looked too closely, until this week. There are five images on each flag, each one representing and depicting symbolic details. As I work on this commission I’veContinue reading “Good Fortune”

Went well. Then I went back to staging, then jumped into a funny commission that has turned out to be enjoyable. I like the variety. I like painting or drawing with Netflix in the background (it’s good company) I like helping people make decorating decisions. I like the part of my job that is likeContinue reading “Gallery Night”

In California it’s as though I’m a different person. Today I was starting a design job. After about ten minutes of suggestions, my client looked at me and said wow, I love all these ideas! You’re amazing! Without thinking I just said: Thanks, I’m freakishly good at this. I’d just spent a handful of daysContinue reading “The Real Me ?”

Okay, maybe not ‘never’, but rarely. Some days, I may have wished for a little boredom, in hindsight, I’m glad for all the twists and turns. I’m a little surprised that I’m still here on planet earth. I have no plan, no mission, no big needs. I used to. But it didn’t go at allContinue reading “Never a dull moment..”

There is a swan near our cottage back east. It hangs out in this one little cove that we pass by as we drive into the neighborhood. Two Christmases ago he visited our dock. Strangest Christmas present ever. As I got closer, he swam closer. I thought he wanted to be fed so I ranContinue reading “Swan”

The theme for the March art walk in LaJolla is luck. Luck because it’s St Patrick’s Day month. Hmmm luck… I’m feeling pretty lucky that I’ll have another chance to be part of things there. Lucky to be enjoying early Spring in San Diego. Lucky to be sitting here thinking about printing the names andContinue reading “Luck or”