Dear Diary
I began keeping what I call a diary calendar in 1967 during my senior year of high school. My family had moved to London at a time that predated electronic communication. Countless tissue-thin light-blue aerogrammes traversed the Atlantic between me and my besties in the States.
So as to keep track of when I wrote and received letters, and from whom, and so as to keep track of the activities that had taken place since a previous letter, I began keeping a record of daily doings—with no inkling that I’d initiated a practice that would continue to this day!
My collection of diaries is an unbeatable resource for filling in details when, for example, my sisters and I might be reminiscing or when Dave, Meg, Scott, Jay, and I might be debating the details of a bit of family history.
My current scraps diary is a whole different kettle of fish. I am fascinated by the wordlessness of keeping a visual rather than verbal imprint of my days. I am nourished and stimulated both by the visual aspect of committing art to the tiny pages and by the act of using asemic writing to represent conscious thoughts each time I make an entry. What gives the appearance of writing offers just that—the appearance of writing—and does not in any conventional way serve as a record that can be read by others, or by me, for that matter.
For a gal who has been captivated by words and the meaning they represent—words spoken, heard, written, and read—all her livelong days, this riff on writing is often startling and breathtaking. I’m quite smitten.
2.5 x 8″; acrylic, ink, and collage on paper
abstract
2024
=====
7 responses to “Dear Diary”
The daily diary has been a wonderful gift! For years and years I recorded daily. In recent years it has shifted in some ways—I keep track of books I’ve read in a separate document, and my calendar entries are now much more sparse. Correspondence has changed so much with computers/phones now our primary mode, so that no longer goes in my diary either. Mostly, only non-routine events make it to the diary (a medical appointment/symptom, getting together with playgroup friends, in-person get-togethers with friends since they are more singular than, for example, regular phone walks with friends all the time). Vacations, overnight visits with out-of-town family/friends, and similar events get all details recorded : )
I will explain ‘asemic’ more fully in my next post.
This post resonated with me in so many ways. That you have a diary practice that has stuck with you since high school is incredible. I love that it has become a record of your life…and one that you can go back to to settle family debates….that happens all the times with my sisters. What a gift.
And now that you are are reinterpreting it into a wordless art scrap diary is just fabulous. You have such a way with words….but you also have such a way with art. I’m guessing your word diary creates pictures and images in your head….and now your art diary can create words and stories in your mind. Beyond Brilliant….and I too am smitten.
I kept journals for many many years in which I recorded all sorts of self-centered emotional STUFF. I read through them a number of years ago and they bored even me so I recycled all the paper. Buh-bye!
My calendar diaries, however, remain a delightful fixture in my life. Love having them as a reference for all manner of details from 1967 forward. As I mentioned above to Simone, they have shifted to being less thorough than in past years but nonetheless offer up invaluable info.
So happy to hear that this post resonated with you in many ways : )
Your take on the complementary gifts of the calendar diaries and scraps diary is BRILLIANT. Thank you for that insightful observation!
Liked by 1 person
i just love that you’ve kept these diaries for so long…it is the stuff exquisite memoirs are made of! And these new pages in your scraps diary are magnificent – the pieces within the black look like bones to me…a structure to hold the humanness of words and the tangled web of thoughts and memories over decades. Exquisite!!!
I love these pages! The are so clean, calm, crisp, modern. Wonderful palette. The white chunks in the black look like alabaster. The lines, and soft hues perfectly balance the bold black. Each page is complete on it’s own, but the wide view is immersive. Awesome!
Dotty, I love your brilliant idea of a diary calendar! And I am amazed and impressed that you have maintained the habit your whole life. What a treasure to have!
(I kept journals from grade school, until I was married. He used them against me at one point. And I have never picked up the habit again. This was long ago. I’ve been single for decades.)
Happy creative days to you! xoxo
No comments:
Post a Comment