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Read the full Artist Statement:
This piece stemmed from the desire to have this reminder, “One Small Step at a Time,” hanging above my studio desk for encouragement each day. This saying has been one of my most consistent mantras I tell myself to muster motivation, grit and trust in myself & in the process over the last couple years and I hope you find this print encouraging for you in all your pursuits as well.
The habit of encouraging myself with this mantra began when I was thru-hiking the Appalachian Trail in 2017. The thought of hiking the entirety of the 2,190-mile trail over the course of 5 months was a daunting and overwhelming one. Back then, only one in every five people who began the trail were predicted to complete it in its entirety (now it’s one in every four people, thanks to added resources). When preparing for the hike I had read that the journey was 1% physical and 99% mental, and that source wasn’t wrong! When the going got tough, I would keep the overwhelming thought of the entire trail out of my head, break down the big goal into smaller chunks and focus in on the immediate task at hand: the next couple miles to the next campsite, the next mountain before the next water source, and the next small footstep to get me that much closer to the top of that next mountain.
The smaller I made the task, the more approachable it became. This mentality worked so much on the trail that I became the pace setter on the inclines whenever I hiked with fellow thruhikers. I would focus on a slow & steady rhythm just putting one small marching step in front of the next and would coach the other panting hikers to do the same, and soon I earned the trail name “Smallstep.”
These small steps up a mountain translate to how I tackle goals in my art practice, business and life in general. I break my big overarching goals down to small & approachable daily tasks and tackle them one at a time. I find success when I am consistently showing up to take the small steps, and each success strengthens my trust in this process.
For this print I used 24pt geometric vintage metal ornaments to represent these consistent small steps. I used a variety of shapes to show that not every step looks the same, and sometimes the steps might feel like you’re going backward, but by taking a step at all you are still making progress.
I hope this print inspires you to trust in the process, keep overwhelm at bay and just keep taking one small step at a time towards your goals & dreams!
