My rate of completion
Back in 2007 I completed artwork at a rate of about 65 square inches per hour. That’s about 1 sq ft completed every 2 1/4 hours.
In 2018 I completed artwork at a rate of 15.5 square inches per hour. That’s about 1 sq ft completed every 9 hours.
Wow – yikes!
What’s up with that?
First – I started doing a lot more sketching in 2018. And my 100 days project was all about sketching. And none of that studio time produces artwork I count in my completed total.
It’s a bit of an apples to oranges comparison when I cherry pick these 2 specific years.
Looking at the long term trend I have been getting noticably slower and slower as the years go by. (the last column is the most interesting)
| Year | Total Studio Hours | Total Sq inches of artwork completed | Square inches completed per hour | Hours to complete 1 sq foot |
| 2018 | 440 | 47.2 | 15.5 | 9.3 |
| 2017 | 616 | 70 | 16.4 | 8.8 |
| 2016 | 476 | 60.8 | 18.4 | 7.8 |
| 2015 | 416 | 61.3 | 21.2 | 6.8 |
| 2014 | 382 | 57.5 | 21.7 | 6.6 |
| 2013 | 350 | 72 | 29.6 | 4.9 |
| 2012 | 520 | 113 | 31.2 | 4.6 |
| 2011 | 459 | 111 | 34.7 | 4.1 |
| 2010 | 536 | 162.7 | 43.7 | 3.3 |
| 2009 | 388 | 141.7 | 52.6 | 2.7 |
| 2008 | 446 | 96.4 | 31.2 | 4.6 |
| 2007 | 865 | 391 | 65.1 | 2.2 |
2007 is the first year I have old records for number of hours in the studio. Prior to 2007 I tracked my studio time in a paper log that I kept for tax reasons and the logs were tossed out after 7 years along with the rest of my records for the year.
These old time logs are one of the only things I’ve ever regretted tossing out. Most decluttered items are never missed.
Why the Decrease?
I can think of quite a few factors contributing to why I am remarkably slower:
1) The first is my more consistent sketching habit, which I mentioned above. By adding the sketching hours into the total it makes my stitching sound a lot slower.
2) The big difference is my style of quilting as changed. The detail image a the top of this post is what I’m doing today. This image is what I was doing in 2007:
It was much much quicker to to just stitch back and forth vs the more complex textures and patterns I love creating now.
3) I forgot about this brilliant trick to speed up the tucking in of my thread ends. Once I start doing this again I will speed up. Although only a tiny bit.
4) I now stitch most of my artwork to canvas. Sometimes this can take longer than the original quilting of the artwork. This process essentially cuts my speed in half.
5) The kiwi guy. Always best to blame him for everything (hahaha.) He likes to come in and talk to me and I get distracted and definitely slow down. And yes – he just walked into my office right now, which is why I thought to add this to the list. Not sure how big of a factor it is but probably a bit.
6) In 2016 I completed the Structures Series. Since then I’ve been a bit adrift and much less focused in the studio. I tried landscapes, they didn’t stick. The black and whites were fun for a year but my brain needs more color long term.
What am I going to do About it
First – I’m not going to worry too much about it because I have no desire to go back to the simpler quilting lines and I don’t want to stop attaching my small to medium artworks to canvas.
My goal isn’t speed – it’s making the best authentic artwork I can. And right now the stitching I do is a key ingredient of my voice.
That said, I need to create a body of work and have another solo exhibition soon. It’s been 3 years since my last one it’s time to think about another.
I’ve really enjoyed the lack of pressure to exhibit as much as I used to – the break has been excellent for settling in to my new country. And now time to get back to the work of being an artist.
Which means the number 1 thing I need to do to speed up is to pick a single body of work to focus on and do that. Basically I need to do what I help many other artists to do in my Working in a Series and Create a Body of Work programs.
Now – which body of work will it be…
PS – The other thing I’m going to do starting in 2020 is keep a separate log of sketching time so I can get more accurate numbers on my rate of completion for my textiles.