Finding creativity in parenthood

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It’s been a while. I’ve been on maternity leave since August, and I’ve returned from the most transformative period of my life.

One of the things they don’t tell you when you become a parent is that your life will be subdivided into three-hour increments for a while. Everything you do is determined by your baby’s feeding and nap times, especially when they’re still newborns. We got lucky. Our baby loves to nap so we got substantial breaks in between feedings. It also meant that I had a considerable amount of space to fill with something other than staring at my baby’s sleeping face.

I tried to spend my free time consuming and doing things that would encourage the artist in me to come back out after months of hibernation. No doomscrolling or hours spent on my phone. Here are some of the things that kept me busy.

If you’re looking for a good art book to add to your collection, definitely pick up “Crafted Kinship” by Malene Barnett. From ceramics to textiles, craft art is often undervalued in comparison to other mediums, like painting or sculpture. Barnett explores the many Caribbean craft artists who are reshaping the ways we think about art. The book explores Black identity and traces the cultural connections between various Diasporic groups.

As an artist, I’ve been trying to deepen my knowledge on color theory. There are a ton of books and resources out there, but “A Dictionary of Color Combinations” has helped me immensely when designing or sketching. It’s a beautiful compilation of creative juxtapositions of color based on the research and work of Sanzo Wada, who is often credited with helping lay the foundation for contemporary color research.

When you have a sleeping newborn, any craft or art project you do needs to be quiet. That ruled out using my sewing machine and rug tufting gun. So I turned to my embroidery hoop and trusty punch needle instead. Punch needling involves punching yarn or embroidery floss through tightly woven fabric to create a pattern or a picture. It can be tedious and time-consuming but incredibly satisfying. It’s also a cheap endeavor — embroidery hoops cost a few dollars and yarn is pretty affordable. I made a couple of mug coasters and finished a portion of a punch needle portrait I’ve been working on.

Clay is another cheap and easy medium to get into. I’ve been working with clay for the past few years, mostly fashioning jewelry. Polymer clay is great for smaller projects that require a smooth, more refined finish. Air-dry clay is usually cheaper and tends to only come in white, but it’s perfect for things like ashtrays or jewelry dishes. I made some earrings and ring holders for family and friends and created some impressions of my baby’s hands and feet.

It was hard leaving the house as a new mom with a newborn — there’s always the potential of an inconsolable crying fest or a blowout diaper. But I risked it all to see “Allan Rohan Crite: Urban Glory” at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. If you missed it, I spent a year interviewing folks who knew and worked with the late Boston artist for the Gardner’s exhibition. I also produced a series for WBUR. “Allan Rohan Crite: Urban Glory” is the first comprehensive survey of Crite’s art that treats his innovative works on paper with the same prestige as his well-known oil paintings. This is the final weekend to see the exhibition, and I urge you to go see it if you can.

Another local show that I checked out during maternity leave was “Counter History” at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. Drawn from the museum’s collection, the ongoing exhibition highlights the alternate modes of memory keeping and knowledge production that marginalized people undertake in response to being left out of dominant narratives of history. The exhibit includes pieces by artists Dana Chandler Jr. and Jeffrey Gibson, among others. Some of my favorite objects in the exhibit are the family photos of Boston-based artist Laurel Nakadate, who explores the Japanese American experience in her work.

Like so many other people around the world, I tuned in to watch the final season of Netflix’s “Stranger Things.” For those who haven’t seen it, the series is about a group of young friends who face monsters from another dimension. I won’t spoil anything, but the show's running theme of love and friendship prevailing in the face of unimaginable evil felt really relevant, especially at this moment in time.

Because I’m a glutton for an adrenaline rush, I also devoured the new HBO series “IT: Welcome to Derry.” Like “Stranger Things,” Stephen King’s novel “IT” is about a monster from another dimension. “It” appears as a dancing, flesh-eating clown that lives in the sewers of Derry, Maine. “Welcome to Derry” is a prequel to the 2017 remake of the film and expands on the backstory and lore. The eight-episode series was incredibly gory and cinematically captivating with Bill Skarsgard returning to play the titular monster — and boy does he do a good job of it.

Maternity leave was amazing because I got to spend it with my baby. But it also gave me time to reconnect with my creativity and interests again. I let go of my perfectionism and learned to accept the uncertainty that comes with making and learning something new.

Something tells me this'll be pretty useful in parenthood.