Just To Share A Little...

This week I plan to get back into the habit of posting pics of my works while in they're in the creative process. Things have gotten so busy, but I need to continue with the discipline of recording my journey so that I can look back and see the distance that has been traveled.

This year has been incredible for me…artistically speaking. I’ve been so blessed to participate in several shows, some large and small, but all of them have been awesome in their own way. This past week in particular has been super busy…I had 2 small showings and I’m getting ready for a larger show with ALM (girlShow) in July. As a result of all these opportunities, a demand for changes in my life, art and art processes has arrived too. Since I’m learning as I go, I wanted to share a little of my journey with you.

** The Recession – has helped me to get out of the box by working a little smaller than usual in order to produce less expensive artworks for patrons who are being more cautious with their budgets. The quality is the same as the larger works and there has been a good response to the newbies so far. AND, since everybody loves a sale, I’ve also discounted some older paintings. (I can’t eat these things….)

**Art Inventory – I read a quote by O’Keeffe in which she advised that every serious artist should have 3 shows worth of work on hand at any given time so that they could be ready to take advantage of opportunities with little advance notice. WOW, that’s awesome advice, but very challenging. I only have about 1.5 shows worth of work on hand, so when opportunities arise, I get stressed and wonder if what I have left over from a partially sold series will work. IF I had a large enough inventory, I wouldn’t have that problem. What are some other benefits of having 3 shows of artwork on hand?? It keeps the artist busy producing new things, which should help advance skill levels and concept development, plus it shows a diehard dedication to your craft to patrons/collectors. What am I doing about it? In the past 2.5 months I’ve created 38 paintings and have sold some here and there. (Most of the newbies are small and are not on my website yet.) My goal is to have another 20 paintings completed by the end of September, so I’ve been sketching like crazy.

**Getting Focused – For me, this means less TV, less talking on the phone, less time on the computer, less time hanging out here and there and more time behind the easel or drawing in the sketchpad. These days, I don’t mind saying “no” in order to stay home and create, so this has been a huge leap, because I love to serve and help others, but establishing boundaries and knowing when to take time off is essential if goals are to be achieved.