Flip Doll as Self Portrait

If I was wise enough to know I needed a break from blogging, I should have known better than to try to complete an art project before J is a month old.

But, you know, I did. And it's probably in part because I want to assure those people who ask if I'm still painting (and look disappointed when I say no) that I'm still an artist and designer even though I stay home with my children. I guess I want to assure myself, too.

This flip doll is the result of several ideas coalescing. With the birth of my second daughter, I was already thinking about motherhood and identity. Also, I was working on a new flip doll pattern (I'll share it when it's done!) when I read my sister's blog about the stories of The Goose Girl and The Seal Wife. Then, I saw the deadline for the Renaissance exhibit approaching, and I knew that if I didn't enter something in this show, I probably wouldn't do anything professional for the rest of the year. I guess it's nicely ironic that my insecurities about being an artist/mother motivated me to make this project about women's identity.

Still, now that I've finished this flip doll, photographed it, and mailed off my entry; I'm really glad to have a little "down" time to be a less distracted mom again. That's a good thing to be, too.