What is Art? What is Craft?

Last spring, I was walking towards the front door of my daughter's school when I was struck by the amazing image of the school bus windows reflecting sunlight on shaded sidewalk before me.  Some of the windows were open and the sun was striking at an angle, which made for the most unusual parallel lines marching along the sidewalk.  And, most strangely, not a single person was in view.

In a moment of mindfulness, I pulled out my phone and snapped the picture.  I never remember to do that.

I knew right away that this would be a block print.  I wasn't quite sure how, but I loved that the rectangles weren't perfect.  There is movement there in all that symmetry/non-symmetry.

Today, I finally felt ready to sit down and make the stamp.  My rubber block was dark so it was hard to see the pencil lines, but I think that worked to my benefit.  I wasn't constrained by carving along the lines, I had to feel my way a little bit.  Let go.  Remember what I loved about the image without trying to reconstruct it exactly.  Is that what art is?  I don't know.  I consider myself crafty, not artistic.

When I started printing (wearing my awesome printing apron, just saying), I played a bit.  This is my favorite of the experiments:

I was using white on a darker color when I saw this linen hanging off the back of the chair.  It inadvertently looks like the cement sidewalk in front of the school.  The "windows" have the same movement, even in multiples.  Somehow, I got it right.  Exactly what I envisioned.  

To me it's craft, but, for the first time, I kind of felt some art there too.

Robin