So...You call Yourself a Artist

So... You Call Yourself an Artist
　
For the longest time I never referred to myself as an artist. My loved for the craft was so intense that I actually didn’t want to make a living from it. So am I an artist?

Okay, you caught me. Why would you read a blog by someone who made the conscious decision not to make a living at art?

It wasn’t from a lack of skill or from even love of the craft. It came down to the math. If I wanted to make a comfortable living at my craft. I would have to sell consistently 3 paintings a month, and that would be every month.

I didn’t for the longest time want to turn something that I have always enjoyed into a task, into a JOB. I felt like a plumber or a carpenter who never works on his own house. I figured if I do this strictly out of the love of the craft then that would fulfill me.

The surprising thing…I started to sell and my paintings meant as much to the buyers as they did to me when I painted them. “Who knew?” I no longer felt awkward about calling myself an artist.

I had spent a great deal of time on the quest, searching for new techniques, materials and a vision to pull it all together. Some artists faithful to the craft, have spent their whole lives seeking a vision. They have the techniques down, their work is flawless. But there is something missing, something elusive, something they can’t quite capture. What is this? What makes a master artist?

Passion, gut wrenching passion.

How can the viewer ever relate to a subject if the artist doesn’t feel the earth quaking passion for either the subject or the actual experience of applying paint to a substrate (canvas, board, or whatever).

Somehow that all came together a couple of years ago for me, when I stop searching and stopped trying so hard to conjure up something unnatural. I found the truth, and could paint from there.

Finding the truth is an important concept. The truth in your art is more personal then religion, and for some it is an artist's religion. I firmly believe you cannot paint to any high level of achievement without truth and the passion behind it.

So, take a moment and ask yourself:

• What am I passionate about?
• What stimulates me?
• What makes me get up in the morning?
• What keeps me going through the day?

Trust me, this won’t be the last time I ask you this question.

I was broke and I needed to bring in some extra income. I stop looking for a vision and started to ask myself what I felt passionate about. I am living in the South West desert at the time. The first thought that came to mind was, I am passionate about water. I am a water nut. I swim whenever I get a chance, and have lived neared the beach most of my life. Figures…I would be passionate about a scarce item, something that I would have to travel about 6 hours in the states to get to.

But the more I contemplate this passion, the more truthful it became. For the most part my whole world revolved around water. So, how do I make this passion for water make sense and still be true to my craft.

Then it hit me…..SMACK….

There are many places in this world where the desert meets water. Water comes right up and flows onto the desert during certain tides around the world.

Aaaaahhhhhh, you say, “…so Doctor there is a method to this madness…” and “ EUREKA…” I cried, as I started the Elemental series.

I wanted to start a series of commercial landscapes that would catch interest and still be true to the craft. And so Elemental took over my time. Southwestern landscapes with an edge, WATER.
So why am I going on about this… to show you that even when we are not painting, we are thinking. That is all part of the creative process.

My breakthrough, came after a series of questions. I wasn’t looking for a vision. I was seeking an answer to my question.

The Process

(The title image for this blog is a combo of fine art and digital art. I took a photo of a current piece of art and played with it.)

Reaching Your Full Creative Potential

For the Novice and Experienced Artist

This began, as a conversation with my close friend Jan. " Sorry Avery... but it did start with Jan."


Any way, both of us artists, my focus fine art and her field of expertise graphic design. After working in the commercial art field for a number of years, Jan wanted to get her feet wet again in the fine art world.

Now you may think graphic art verses fine art, apples or oranges, whatever…it’s all still art right?


Well... speaking from a person who works mainly in oil and acrylic…no they are not the same. The concepts can be the same but the tools are different enough that the separation can be as huge as the

G r a n d C a n y o n

Our conversation touched on the subject of fears. The fear of failure and not having the creative skill set any more. It had been twenty years since she put brush to canvas.

• Would she have to relearn her craft again?


• What could she do to quell her apprehensions?


• Would she have have to start from ground zero?


• What would it take for her work to reflect her skill set?

Yeesh, my first thought was take a chill pill. This isn't as bad as it seems. Yes, a little daunting .

In the next few weeks we will be examining fears and develope techniques to dispell them.

1. In the following posts we will touch on the subject of fear and methods to conquer and de-escalate them.
   
2. We will review art techniques; some basics that you may have forgotten or that you are just learning now.
   
3. We will discuss sources and new materials available to the artist in the new millennium and what areas of the art world that is capturing the world’s attention.
   
4. We will address marketing strategies and resources to get your art viewed, and out in the real world. What kinds of mass media can you approach and still not break the bank.

This is just the start of an ongoing discussion and problem solving session. Look if you are an artist ...that's great, but even if you are not, you may find something that you can use.