art every day

I’m trying to write my second screenplay. I wrote my first, Brother’s Keeper, in 2007 after finding out about a contest for emerging writers; the deadline was just a month away and so I ordered a book (How to Write a Movie in 21 Days) and got to work. This time I’m adapting my novel, Ship of Souls, and submitting it to the Sundance Lab. Another long shot, but deadlines force me to get work done. I’m hoping to have these 5 new chapter books ready by the end of the month because I’ve got book fairs on May 10 and June 1. The Sundance deadline is May 1 but I only have to submit the first five pages of my screenplay. In my mind’s eye I’ve seen all my novels unfold on screen, so I don’t think this should be too hard. My other goal for spring break is to nourish my imagination by consuming art every day. On Sunday I went to see “Witness: Art and Civil Rights in the Sixties” at the Brooklyn Museum. I was struck by Barkley Hendricks‘ gilded portraits and the way artists in the ’60s formed collectives and used their art to raise money for the cause. On Monday I visited Katie Yamasaki‘s studio, which made me feel like a kid in a candy store. I’ve bought some of Katie’s prints for my nieces and nephew but the truth is, I wanted those prints for myself! I got to see her new collages and hear about her books-in-progress. We talked about the possibilities of publishing and the limitations. It’s time for a new model and my friend Rosamond gave me some advice about starting a not-for-profit. We went to St. John the Divine to see the phoenixes—they’re stunning. And today we’re going to see the Carrie Mae Weems retrospective at the Guggenheim. Tomorrow? Maybe the Studio Museum of Harlem or the new Muppets movie. I want to see a play this week and may go to St. Ann’s to see Red Velvet. This is New York—there’s no reason anyone should be starved for art, least of all our children. I’ve got an essay brewing on the role of art in education. Break won’t last forever but somehow I’ll find time for it all….