Arts
"Robin Mahaffey comes to as guest courtesy of our producer, Laurie Strickland. I must say that every time Laurie has recommended someone she knows personally for a guest, whether Kerry Lilly or Joey Romer, it has turned out to be a most memorable episode experience. Robin is no exception. Also, like some of our other guests, she has lived several lives, artistically and otherwise. I was in awe of Robin, not only her many accomplishments but also in her attitude towards life itself. She has made dolls and sculptures can knit and sew all sorts of creations, has been a seamstress and even worked in an assembly line for General Motors. Her work is no stranger to whimsy - one of the pieces was inspired by Shel Silverstein - and she has used her artwork to help others in her community. As I said to her she is one of those artists uniquely gifted in creating visually within physical space, and most importantly, being able to see how to create with their own hands for that space, something I have observed to be essential in certain kinds of visual artwork and is little remarked upon or even taken for granted by many. Of course at our podcast we make note of this feature and I can't think of any better representative of this gift than our guest.” Robin’s Biography People often ask me where I get my ideas. I have no real answer for that- they just seem to pop up in my head. Sometimes they come to me in a dream, or in the shower. Never any rhyme or reason, ideas just have their own minds, and come to visit when they feel like it. The key is to be aware of when and how they visit- and- to pay attention. I keep note pads everywhere- so when an idea does show up-I need to be able to write it down- or, it quickly leaves my brain- and goes to live in never-never land. I grew up in Delaware in the sixties on a small farm. My grandparents had 100 acres and gave my parents 1 acre on which my father and mother built the house I shared with a sister and two brothers. It was a wonderful childhood. There was an adjoining farm of 100 acres I was allowed to play on, so my playground consisted of 200 acres of pasture woods, a croc, and ponies. Ah….. The ponies. My grandmother put me up on the first ( which was actually a mule) when I was two. I was smitten by the horse bug- and have been addicted ever since.I rode almost every day- and when I wasn’t riding horses- I was reading about horses- or braiding binder twine into leads, halters, and harnesses for them. When I was inducted into the honor society in school- I received a special award ( a box of quaker oats) for reading every book in the library that had a horse in it. Growing up on a farm made me be resilient. I learned how to amuse myself, make do with what I had, and to be creative with my surroundings and materials available. My grandmother and mother made most of my clothes. They usually had some type of hand work going on at all times- knitting, crochet, rug working. It seemed very natural to be able to create things with my hands. This is a skill I have honed for many years. It is just an inherent part of my makeup, rooted in my DNA. I usually have many different projects going on simultaneously. That way if I hit a snag on one, I hop over to another. When I least expect it, as in the shower, or 3am- the answer to fixing the snag shows up. Sometimes those pesky little ideas have their own mind-and show up hone they are good and ready. One of my favorite sayings I live by and share with others is, is “Sit up straight and pay attention”. More details here: https://www.facebook.com/journeyofanaesthetepodcast/?ref=pages_you_manage --- Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/mitch-hampton/message Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/mitch-hampton/support