11/12 Weekly creativity contest winner & new prompt
I was struck by the depth of the entries for this week’s contest prompt, “self-portrait.” Our winner is Cathy Coley, whose photograph has a striking, unflinching quality. (Anita Davies and Bec Thomas’s images have the same unapologetic strength.) Cathy also earned extra points for her acrostic, and for braving the wilds of Photoshop. Cathy, your $10 amazon.com gift certificate has been issued.
From Anita Davies: “An old sketch I’m afraid but it’s a start, didn’t know about these little weekly prompts you do…Great stuff!”
From Juliet Bell:
Self Portrait
In solitude like
leaves falling upon still water
she finds herself.
From Bec Thomas:
From Jen Johnson: “A half-serious (but true to life) entry this week. An hour past the deadline, too, but I’ll send it in anyway, just for grins.”
Self-portrait
Too harried, this week,
To even set a timer
And smile for the lens.
From Kelly Warren:
When I look in the mirror,
I see my mother.
When I look at my children,
I see my self.
My green eyes turned blue,
my blonde hair turned red,
yet the same little twinkle,
the same little spunk,
the same great wonder,
the same boundless spirit.
building the courage to become…my self.
From me (Miranda): A pencil drawing from 20 years ago — back when I habitually drew eyes larger than they should be — and a photograph from yesterday. I admit that I was already moved by the honesty of this week’s entries when I began contemplating my own. I wanted to accomplish the same starkness. I’m not sure I did, but the photo I ended up selecting was the only one I could stomach. It was an oddly interesting exercise — and I felt very adolescent, photographing myself in the bathroom — but I’m glad for the experience. (Unfortunately, my new red hair doesn’t look very red here. I’m going to have to go a shade brighter, next trip to the salon!)
This week’s prompt: “Quilt”
Use the prompt however you like — literally, or a tangential theme. All media are welcome. Please e-mail your entries to creativereality@live.com by 10:00 p.m. eastern time (GMT -5) on Tuesday, November 18. The winning entry receives a $10 gift certificate to amazon.com. Writers should include their submission directly in the body text of their e-mail. Visual artists and photographers should attach an image of their work as a jpeg. Enter as often as you like; multiple submissions for a single prompt are welcome. There is no limit to how many times you can win the weekly contest, either. (You do not have to be a contributor to this blog in order to enter. All are invited to participate.) All submissions are acknowledged when received; if you do not receive e-mail confirmation of receipt within 24 hours, please post a comment here. Remember, the point here is to stimulate your output, not to create a masterpiece. Keep the bar low and see what happens. Dusting off work you created previously is OK too. For more info, read the original contest blog post.
Studio Mothers: Life & Art 
thanks for being too busy, jen! gave us all a chance this week! (KIDDING!) ms 3-in-a-row, i think your poem is telling for us all. i know cathy jennings was working on one and stuff came up before she could finish it.
thanks, i am honored amongst these. juliet’s poem is surprising from the usually beautiful visual pieces, and surprisingly simply moving.
anita, doesn’t matter if it’s old, it has a wonderful unabashedness.
bec, a great impishness is captured in yours!
kelly, i love how you got to the heart of how we seek ourselves in our children – and find!
miranda, i love how there’s a similar quality of person present in your old sketch and your new photo – presence.
Hurrah for these brave, honest entries! Loved them all and fun as always to see what folks come up with. Thanks for including my late little bit amongst these thoughtful, insightful pieces.
Great entries! I agree with Jen that it’s always so fun seeing what everyone comes up with. Congrats Cathy! You look remarkably like someone else I know in that picture and I love how your worked your named into your poem.
Looking at the entries, I’m glad I didn’t include my silly self-portrait trio that Miranda used for my Breakfast interview. When I thought about this one, I just couldn’t see sending in a real photo self portrait but I love the honestly exhibited in each of yours. I actually wasn’t going to submit anything this week until I happened to catch that shot of my girls yesterday visiting Ft Caroline on Veterans Day and I realized how much of me I see in them.
Facinating entries this week – warented revisitings. Cathy, I’ll confess you sent me to the dictionary. I’m astounded that you could create the acrostic and maintain such a smooth and coherent poem – quite intriguing.
thank you! too bad i couldn’t come up with something better for Y, tho! and i cheeated a little here and there, too. but cheating is creative problem solving, eh?
Congratulations, Cathy! You should frame your entry and hang it somewhere over your writing space.
I need to start submitting for these contests. I have good intentions every week, but the days get away from me. I need to crack down and participate.
Beautiful, beautiful entries! I really want to get back in the loop around here, but as Kristine observed – the days just get away from me, too! But I have to say, the “quilt” prompt just might get me really motivated, since I’m more of a fiber artist than a writer. I’ve got some wonderful quilts that I’ve worked on over the years, and I need to get some photos of them. I hope this will get me inspired! Nina
Congratulations Cathy!!!
Hmmm…Quilt…Now you have my mind ticking away and at 2.37am, I’m not sure that’s a good thing! LOL!