Yesterday I began the process of inventorying my 4" squares. Bonnie, my business and art consultant, has been encouraging me to do this since the first day we met a couple of months ago. It was a daunting task because I want to document not only each layered square but each layer that the square is made of. I was trying to come up with clever codes for my list but they ended up looking something like this, dfPC Tbr MTGrn MPin BPur. I was feeling overwhelmed so I put it off.
According to the Online Etymology Dictionary, the word "inventory" comes from the Late Latin "inventarium" meaning "list of what is found" but is also related to the Latin "invenire" meaning "to find and discover," and "thing invented." I know the words invention and inventory are related, obviously because of the root "invent," but I am struggling to link the two ideas in my head. I love inventing. It feels free and open-ended. Inventory feels much more organized and specific. The website also quoted from the Century Dictionary that "invention is applied to the contrivance and production of something, often mechanical, that did not exist before."
As I began the laborious process, I got each container of squares out, my roll of square stickers, a pen, and a google doc set up with my about 10 columns and unlimited rows. I started to input each square layer by layer and it went surprisingly quick as I figured out how to best set up my table and add each detail, including framed and price sold. The process was actually quite satisfying and getting it done felt like a big accomplishment. I guess that's what happens when you put something off for long enough and then you finally finish that task. Now I know exactly how many squares I have and what layers they are made of so that when I sell them I can determine which ones sell more and analyze my work from a business perspective.
And in the end I did feel that I invented something useful that did not exist before in a methodical way. I've always seen my self as a technical artist so maybe this constructional way of creating and categorizing will not be so foreign and uncreative after all. I'm starting to like the business side of things.