I just recently sold my studio and packed up its contents, It was a lot harder than I anticipated. It wasn't as much the physical demand, as it was the letting go. Each tool was so familiar to me. Over the decades and thousands of hours of use they had become extensions of my hands, companions in honing the craft and partners overcoming the challenges that came through my studio. It was like saying goodbye to old friends. Still, it feels good to turn the page and move on, to face new challenges and head into the unknown. I guess letting go is just part of the process.
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How sad that seems, Shane. I remember well how your space reflected your spirit. Keep in touch, I love reading your thoughts. Not only is your work visual poetry, your writing is melodic as well. I hope the road ahead is kind to you and the future fills the need for change that haunts you.
-------------------- “Did you ever stop to think, and forget to start again?” -Winnie the Pooh & A.A. Milne
Kelly Thorson Kel-T-Grafix 801 Main St. Holdfast, SK S0G 2H0 ktg@sasktel.net Posts: 5496 | From: Penzance, Saskatchewan | Registered: May 2002
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Thanks for the vote of confidence Raymond, it's too bad we didn't get to meet at Dan's last year. It was this close.
Thanks Kelly, It was great getting to know you, Let's definitely keep in touch. My studio was a comfortable space, it was a sanctuary of sorts. The hardest piece to let go was my easel I learned to carve on. I spent thousands of hours at that table. I'll continue to design while I make my way through the lengthy recruitment process.
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You'll do well Shane, when ever the 'sign blues' hit ya, give me a buzz and if you come to Ottawa for any reason, come on over, I can always fit one more beer !
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Fine tools are like good friends. Hard to find, there when you need them, hard to let them go and difficult to replace. It must have been really tough to let go, but you've got a brand new future and it sounds exciting. By all means keep in touch Shane.
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Man that is so sad to have to read, it was just a year ago when I sat across from you having dinner and you were telling me about your plans... Good Luck Shane.
-------------------- "Keep Positive"
SIGNS1st. Neil Butler Paradise, NF Posts: 6277 | From: St. John's NF Canada | Registered: Mar 1999
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Yesterday at a meeting, we were asked, what three things would we bring with us if stranded on an island?
Answering that question really spoke volumes about what these folks were really made of.
It would be my belief that one thing for you would have been your tools so you could create.
Incidently, my answers were...
Save-On Foods my son a truckload of DIY possibilities so I could create
I wanted a 4th and that would have been friendS with a plural. I also need to surround myself with good like minded people to keep my spirit on high. We all do.
Keep being true to yourself, Shane. I think it's imperative. I wish you well!
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I feel your pain Shane (no pun intended). I'm about to do the same thing and I'm sure I will be faced with the same emotions. Each tool has such special moments, such meaning. I can think about each one and the jobs I used it on and how much money it's made me, how much time it saved me and how nice it was to have it. Without a doubt you will be buying new tools, and making even better decisions this time. Life is like a river; just go with the flow.
-------------------- Ricky Jackson Signs Now 614 Russell Parkway Warner Robins, GA (478) 923-7722 signpimp50@hotmail.com
"If I have seen further it is by standing on the shoulders of giants." Sir Issac Newton Posts: 3528 | From: Warner Robins, GA | Registered: Oct 2004
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-------------------- “Did you ever stop to think, and forget to start again?” -Winnie the Pooh & A.A. Milne
Kelly Thorson Kel-T-Grafix 801 Main St. Holdfast, SK S0G 2H0 ktg@sasktel.net Posts: 5496 | From: Penzance, Saskatchewan | Registered: May 2002
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That's so strange...you couldn't see Shane's picture until Dunc posted it and then you could, when Dunc removed his version you couldn't again and now that I posted it Shane's is visible again. What's with that?
-------------------- “Did you ever stop to think, and forget to start again?” -Winnie the Pooh & A.A. Milne
Kelly Thorson Kel-T-Grafix 801 Main St. Holdfast, SK S0G 2H0 ktg@sasktel.net Posts: 5496 | From: Penzance, Saskatchewan | Registered: May 2002
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I wish you the best in your new endeavors, Shane. I review the notes from your and Sawhatizname's workshops often. If I can get 2% to sink in, I'll be a much better designer.
-------------------- David Harding A Sign of Excellence Carrollton, TX Posts: 5084 | From: Carrollton, TX, USA | Registered: Nov 1998
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You are one crazy weird guy Shane! The sign world will definitely miss you, there's so few good sign designer out there. Maybe you can re-design those OPP car graphics?
Life is so good!
-------------------- Pierre Tardif P. Tardif Inc. 1006 boul. PIE-XI sud Val-Belair QC. Canada G3K 1L2 418-847-4089 pierre@ptardif.com Posts: 800 | From: Quebec city | Registered: Aug 2002
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It would seem weird to some why anyone would give up a craft and profession that they had dedicated so many years to.
The simple answer is ... It's all Dan Sawatzky's fault
Really, as much as I loved crafting signs, it made less and less sense to be involved in that process. As well, I had enough of squirreling away in a studio covered in HDU dust while life passed me by. I also reached a point in my life that some label as a "mid life crises", it's really more like a mid life re-evaluation. There was something else that I always wanted to do and that was to be of service to society and take my place on the front lines making the world a better place. When the request went out from the provincial police service for life experienced candidates, It seemed like the natural next step in the journey.
I kept all my hand tools and a couple of work benches I couldn't part with, they live with me. I'll always find an outlet to work with my hands The recruitment process has so far taught me humility and patience, closing my studio and leaving a 29 year career has been a lesson in letting go, free falling and trusting the process. Meantime I'm reaching out to past clientele and new business as a marketing/sign designer and consultant. It's better profit margin and much less overhead (a desk,chair and computer).
Where and what I'll be in a year from now, I don't know. In the meantime I'll take it day by day and enjoy living in the moment.
This craft, in particular this forum has allowed me the opportunity to make many good friends and acquaintances.
My wish is they continue to grow and I get to meet a few more of you.
I am still disappointed I didn't make it to Dan's workshop last fall. It would have been a great weekend getting to know more of you.
Here is a sign I designed this week for an urban farm project.
Raison d'etre:This design was created for Farm Start, a agricultural facility in Metro Toronto on traditional farm land. I used the vernacular of the historical barn on the property as the inspiration for the sign design and gently played with it's traditional architectural elements. A grounding in tradition with a bit of the unconventional, like the facility it represents. The colours and materials will lend a earthy tactile quality to the sign. The rocks will further ground the design by giving it a visual ballast. The hand piled stone will communicate the connective tradition of working the land by hand. Wild flowers could be planted in amongst the stones complimenting the subtle colour of the sign and creating movement against its static form. The overall sign is simple yet interesting, a subtle play with shadows and textures. However, it's the decorative top that will bring the sign to life. This design will harmonize with the gentle quality of the farm's natural entrance while having a strong presence.
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Hey Shane. I love your redefinition of a "mid life crises", and I'm sure most of us (me for sure) will go through it. Best of luck and keep in touch. Somehow I can picture you in your police car , sketching out designs not writing out tickets
-------------------- Kelly Hall Keltech Signs Fergus, Ont. Posts: 38 | From: Fergus, Ont. Canada | Registered: Jun 2001
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Shane, I also missed meeting you in Yarrow, but would still hope to look you up when on one of my recurring trips to my Fathers favorite place North of Toronto.
I just purged a lot of tools over the last 2 weeks, and felt how much our material possessions can become emotional connections, & how the changes one makes, regarding passing on ownership of those possessions, can intermingle with such seemingly important parts of our being at times, even when we know the possessions themselves do not.
The items I let go of were far far less important tools, because they were some of my least used & newest acquisitions... but it still carried some degree of anxiety (& relief) so I can only imagine what your experience might have been to move forward from such a significant part of your life.
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I will never understand what drives one (myself) to develop a "talent". Nor understand what drives one with talent to steer away from it. I guess maybe one day we will get THAT opportunity to explain it to each other in person. Hoping anyway.
Best of luck Shane, at least I know as "pen pals" you will always be there for myself and others in times of artistic trouble.
Cheers mate.
-------------------- Gregg Sydney Signworks (02) 9837 1198 Schofields NSW Australia Posts: 368 | From: Schofields | Registered: May 2007
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Thanks, A standing invitation to all of you that plan to come up this way. I don't have my sign studio to hang out in, we do however have a pretty little village and a great brewery. I'm just redesigning my website but continue to fill out my new BLOG with stuff. Kelly, nice haircut, looks great. Definitely will be armed with a sketch pad when I get on the job. Gregg, I think it's about balance. Everything in the universe seeks out it's center. I passionately pursued my craft for years forsaking almost everything else, resulting in severe burnout. It'll come back in some form. Still haven't lost my passion for the pursuit of good design though. Dirk Rampling and I have recently about taking another run at a workshop in Australia this year. I've been getting requests for another design workshop recently, as far away as Germany. Hopefully it will translate itself to interest attending one in OZ.
I have many thoughts and opinions on your current direction. I'd love to sit and chat with you for a long while uninterrupted. I know from our discussions in the past that you were struggling with many things in your business and personal life... and questioning the new technology like routers and how they affected you and your business.
I sincerely hope you will be happy with your current direction in life. We all need to embrace change from time to time... we must change without a doubt.
I for one will always wonder what a creative genius like yourself could have done if you had embraced the modern tools (like a router) while still keeping the chisels handy when you needed them. As you well know the high end tools would have taken the grunt out of your work while still leaving the fun and highly skilled work in your very capable hands.
I know when you design you use the latest tools and programs with wonderful result while still allowing the hand strokes to show through.
The workshop we give here in our shop would undoubtably be of great benefit to you - not because of what I could possibly teach you, but rather because of the questions I ask each student to ask themselves - continually as they work. The talks I give are as much about balance in our lives as techniques we may use to create cool signs.
Anytime you can fit one of our workshops into your schedule you are more than welcome to come as our guest. The next one is in about three weeks if you can manage it. The Shane plane sits on a shelf in wait of your arrival.
As far as my opinion of you crafting great signs and art in your future... my bet is you'll be back in full force fairly soon - stronger and more capable than ever.
I wish you well my friend!
-grampa dan
-------------------- Dan Sawatzky Imagination Corporation Yarrow, British Columbia dan@imaginationcorporation.com http://www.imaginationcorporation.com
Being a grampa is one of the the most wonderful things in the world!!! Posts: 8738 | From: Yarrow, B.C. Canada | Registered: Nov 1998
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