Newsletter #165 - Snow Write
The field as a text editor
A few years ago I was talking to a neighbor and she suggested I make the field on my property a meadow.
To her, I said, “Thank you for the suggestion! I’ll think about it.” But in my head, I was like, “No way. I absolutely will not make it a meadow. The field is my canvas. And I have important things to say.”
For the past few years I have been writing messages in the snow in this field in front of my house.
The conditions have to be perfect to write in the snow. I do this by hand, so there can only be 1-3 inches on the ground. Even though that does not sound like a lot of snow, it can be incredibly difficult to push around.
Since the ideal conditions only happen a few times a year, I have a lot of time to think about whatever truly meaningful, existential thing I am going to write next.
It’s a lot of pressure. It’s also completely ridiculous.
I have a few of these creations around my studio.
I was looking at this print all week and it was starting to bum me out.
While these expressions made sense to me when I made them (2016-2023), I don’t want to put that energy into the world anymore.
One day last week, the conditions were perfect. I went out and started to write “NO ONE WILL READ THIS” but then decided I didn’t want to write that anymore. But I couldn’t think of anything else, so I gave up.
It might be time to turn the field into a meadow.
Don’t forget to call the Hotline Show.
Kristen Neufeld hopes someone will read this.
Zach Vitale relates to working on something that ultimately disappears and everyone forgets it ever even existed.
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