I’ve had a somewhat trying year lately and I spent the past couple months preparing for an art show that has completely changed the way that I’m now approaching life.

I called it #CommuteArtShow. Before I get into my epiphany I’d like to explain why I started this project.

When I first moved to NYC I realized that I spent 45 minutes to an hour on the train from Briarwood to Chelsea Market. I found an article that talked about the amount of time Americans wasted commuting. A few days ago I tried to find the article but instead, I came across another that produced this chart:

According to this, I’m wasting ~20 days of my life commuting yearly. The good thing is, we are on public transportation in this city. This means I could potentially fill that time by doing something productive. That year, I knitted 20 hats, 20 scarves and read 87 hardcover books.

Fast forward to a few years ago, I made an effort to fill an entire sketchbook with drawings. I carried my markers back and forth from work via my new location in Brooklyn. I completed the book with 95 drawings. They are displayed here.

Eventually, I found an iPad and got a stylus and started this new thing called metro paintings. That didn’t seem to brand well, being that I also commuted by other means than the metro. So I started using #CommuteArt. It took awhile for others to catch on (now it has been hijacked by other artists—good artists copy great artists steal?). I decided that those artists are indirectly marketing for me so it worked out (being that I own the domain CommuteArt and CommuteArtist).

Today, I’m using an Apple Pencil and an iPad Pro. I’ve started doing work that looks like this.

I walked into Grandchamps a few months ago and saw this photographers work:

She’s from Haiti. I decided to reach out to the coordinator/curator to ask how the artist’s works were displayed. I didn’t realize what I had gotten myself into. I got a response and I got a date: May 31st. Oh boy. I began preparing for the show. I went to a new friend’s show that occurred a month before mine: Terenia Thomas’—I don’t think we are related. She pointed me to the right printer and advised me where to get my command strips!

However, with these women’s work I now want to visit Haiti (it is so much of what the media didn’t show). I even purchased this piece from her:

The thought of getting digital work printed and curating pieces that made sense was a challenge but I had a great support system via online. Some of these pieces were selected:

I got them printed on metallic paper. The displays were welcomed by patrons. I was grateful.

However, I didn’t get here without help. I’m so happy and thankful for Lauren (@_designatwork) for coming out with her iPhone level app and exceptional frame arrangement skills and for my bf Mike for his support. I’m also thankful for the cheerleaders who have purchased pieces and hung the pieces up and sent me photos of them in the real world. I’m extending thanks to Shanna, Lynda, Stalina, Elaine, Ben, Gardenia, Scott G, Ainka, Whitly and I really hope I didn’t miss anyone 🙊 (if anyone purchased let me know!). I was also so shocked that my entire team at work tried making it to my show! The somewhat not funny thing about art is: Artists are called starving artists for a reason. It’s a skill that is necessary for humankind but easily overlooked. I’m very aware of the great fortune I had working on this for the past few years.

The pieces are up for the rest of June so go there, snap some photos and let me know you went.

Now the epiphany. We have limited time. This passion is hopefully what people will remember me by so I’m grateful for everyone who showed up. I made note of that and I made note of those who wished me luck. I decided to be selfish and ignore some time sucks for the past months while I worked on this so now I’m happy to be back! Next stop: moving in with Mike.