Julian's 365 Buddhas Follow-up

Julian Cook recently completed his 365 Buddhas project, creating one piece of Buddha themed piece of art for every day in 2015!

What are the biggest lessons/skills you learned from doing your project? I learned a great deal about adding discipline to my artistic life - being on the hook to come up with something every day pushed me to be more organized, more open to new techniques, and to better prioritize my days to make creative work a more important part of my life. Trying to use a different media or style daily exposed me to hundreds of new techniques that I would likely not have ever tried, like needlework and some painting and drawing methods. As my project was centered around depictions of the Buddha, I also ended up studying Buddhist art dating back to the time of the historic Buddha to learn about the diverse symbolism and aesthetic traditions. I learned a great deal about photographing my work for public consumption. And possibly most important, I learned the importance of having connections to other working artists, particularly my partner in crime throughout the year, Vickie Willis, who did daily writing and maintained the website with me.

In what ways did the project change your life? Sharing a piece of art daily pushed me to be less "precious" about my work and to let people in to my creative process in a way I never have before. Surviving sharing a few "duds", and realizing that the pieces I didn't much care for other people often liked a lot, increased my confidence tremendously – and of course coming across the finish line did wonders for my confidence! I can feel that confidence improving my work and pushing me to come up with better ideas with less concern about whether every item will be a "hit" or not.





I also embraced the social media aspect of sharing my work this year, a venue i had previously considered only suitable for birth and wedding announcements, identifying friends on the political fringe and food pictures. Through Facebook and Instagram I was able to connect with not only people i know, but also other artists and art admirers, especially during the month long CreativeSprints sponsored by Noah Scalin. Throughout the year I was pleased to hear about how people reacted to the work, often surprisingly.

Ultimately, 2015 was a difficult year for me personally and professionally at my "day job," and the daily creative work involved in this project was often the high point of the day. I learned that my creative work needs to be a non-negotiable part of my day, and that it pays off, every time.

Now what? I have a few requests to finish, and a few pieces that will likely take longer than a day to make, so the Buddhas certainly aren't done! I plan to switch focus to some longer term pieces, I am working on a "religious weaponry" series that I have high hopes for, along with rededicating myself to music making. And I'm finding myself awaiting the next CreativeSprint already

Read Julian's original 365 interview HERE. 

And see all of Julian's Buddhas HERE.

365 Buddhas

Julian and Vickie are creating Buddha inspired images and texts daily for a year in 365 Buddhas. They explain, "The writings and visuals may match, clash or coordinate...all up to chance!"

Why did you decide to do this project? Looking to break out of artistic boxes by exploring new methods. 

How has doing a yearlong/daily project affected your life?  we are only 2 days in but I am loving how creation is becoming a daily habit rather than a break from habit.

Follow their progress HERE! 

365 Days of Buddha

Diana Estigarribia from New York is creating 365 Days of Buddha.

Why did you decide to do this project? I am a practicing Buddhist, and I was inspired to begin this blog as a way to promote compassion and practice a kind of artistic process-as-meditation.

There was a voice in my head screaming to express itself, but I had no outlet. I’m very engaged with Buddhism and especially with the Tibetan people, but I didn’t have a clue what to do about it. I needed to find a connection between my head and my Buddhist practice and make it physical, because by its very nature meditation and mindfulness is an intangible journey. It begins and ends in your mind. Mindfulness is a daily choice, and it's hard to measure if you're making any progress, especially if you're results oriented (hello, that's me!) rather than process-oriented. In Buddhism it’s about “the path,” and not the destination. You put one foot in front of the other and see what happens, over and over again.

The other real world impetus was enforced change: after nearly a decade at the same company, this recession bit me in the ass and I went from a routine 9 to 5 life to having to figure out how to feed, clothe and shelter myself. So I called up this blog as a way to deal with all that emotional stuff I faced every day, which is why 365 Days of Buddha is both pictures and words that I hope are supportive and helpful.

How has doing a yearlong/daily project affected your life? It's taught me to confront the pre-conceptions I had of being creative. Looking back now, I felt enormous pressure to make something cool or really fantastic—each time it had to be the greatest thing ever. So I'd spend a lot of time thinking about what to make, circling around my living room or kitchen, looking in corners and nooks for inspiration, and sometimes I’d come up with an idea like the 3-D Glasses (on Day 51). I was really happy with that one. But then it was back to, “now what?”

It’s funny to think about today, when before it was all “oh, ha ha, check out the Buddhist looking outside herself for inspiration!” But soon I realized I felt the most free when I could simply sketch or draw the Buddha. Once I made that commitment, it started being fun. By the time I got to Day 195 I was in a real groove, a very odd feeling for me. The groove, especially artistically, has always been very hard for me to locate, and here I was, inside it!

So I've learned to give myself a break, though even at Day 336, I still have to remind myself that I don't need permission to make something, and I definitely don't need approval. I realized how much self-judging there is of what's "good" and what's "crap." But now when I draw a Buddha it doesn't have to look perfect, or professional, it just is.

This is related to a drawing workshop I took a few years ago, a calligraphy class with artist and author Barbara Bash  called “Big Brush.” During a weeklong retreat we created single strokes with an oversized brush, black ink, and poster paper. We were free to take turns coming to the center of the room, kneeling on the floor, and making a stroke. It's meant to capture the mind in that instant: you look down at the paper, pick up the brush, and whoosh! Out it comes. The kicker is once you've made your stroke, you observe it, bow to it, fold up the paper and push it aside. It's finished and that moment is gone. So there's a lot going on about attachment and judgment, and practicing how to be free. I had never approached making something like that before. When I sit down to draw a buddha today, I remember that experience and process.

And I'm also a writer, so I live with The Editor in my brain; the Editor’s favorite tool is The Delete Key, and it’s a very powerful tool. The act of drawing a Buddha everyday is a completely different experience from the other writing and creating I do. There’s no editor, there’s only the drawing, and whatever comes out, I gotta post it that day.

Drawing is hard and I have no training at all in it, though it has been a lifelong wish of mine to be a painter. But having one subject--the Buddha's face--gives me focus. Whatever place I start from, by the time I'm done I feel differently- lighter.

This daily project has re-connected me to things I had put aside for a very long time. I found a black lacquer box and filled it with the dozens of colored pencils and pens, No. 2's, china markers, Sharpies, and highlighters that were lying around the house unused. In the past year I’ve expanded out to an additional two cups that I use to fill with even more pens and pencils. I collect paper and notebooks of all kinds to use. I even bought a cool compact pencil sharpener!

In the beginning it was a struggle to do this every day. Now almost a year later I open my box and shuffle the pencils with my fingers and see which color I want to use today. It's amazing to me that every day the Buddha looks different. It can be purple or green or metallic gold and it's always new. It's a constantly renewing process. I feel like I "get it" now, whatever "it" is.

See all of Diana's Buddhas HERE.