studio reorganization

I rearranged my studio over the weekend. I do this periodically. I'm not sure why, but I always like to pull things out, clean, reorganize and get ready for the next big thing. I've been doing this for a long time and I remember Ian always teasing me about it when we were in grad school. He would say that I was "nesting".

It just feels good to to get things in order and spend a little time getting the tools in order. A lot of times I use this as a time to build a tool in preparation for starting something new. I need this time; it's personal time with my tools in my space. Anyway, I've been having some other thoughts on trying to explain why I make.

"It's business not personal......"

What is impersonal?

What does it mean to be human?

I've been thinking about the lack of personal connections and understanding what it means to be human in society. I was raised under the premise of always put yourself in other peoples shoes before speaking or acting. This has served me well over the years and has helped me to try and understand what makes the people around me "tick".

In graduate school I wondered about the lack of a personal connection with the objects around us. Is this what has contributed to our consumer based society? Is this why we waste so much? Is this why we don't know how to repair anything? Does it make us weak minded to actually feel? Are our lives so valuable that we can't take the time to have a personal connection with someone or something?

Call me sentimental but the tools that I use in my studio are dear to my heart. There is a personal connection between myself and every tool I own. Each one has a story about why I purchased or bartered for it, were I got it from, what condition it was in when I got it, and what I did to it to make it work better. We know through archaeology that objects tell us stories and explain cultures and civilization. What a power! Everything I own has a history and in most cases my ownership is just one chapter in its entire existence. I often wonder if the things that I create will exist will have such a life or more importantly will they have a personal connection with someone. I sure hope so.....