art in the real world

They sentenced me to twenty years of boredom

For trying to change the system from within

- Leonard Cohen, First we take Manhattan

I suspect we all share similar life experiences -

at least in our day to day grind...

I wake up (already luckier than some!)

i go to work

(at a job that does little to inspire me)

run errands,

rush home,

prepare meals, 

do housework,

and carve little bits of time where i can

for some sanity

which for me - includes

music, painting or writing.

The 9 to 5 stuff is just filler.
Stuff that pays the bills
and does very little for my heart.

Sometimes, i feel like the "filler"
is taking up far too much of my time
and there is little time (or energy) left
for the good for my heart stuff.

but then, i read a passage in a book

that lights a fire up my ass

and I am reminded that many of us
are in the same boat...

many artists are doing something other than art
to make a living
and it's all ok
as long as you're finding time somewhere
to make art anyway!

Once in a while, i need to remind myself
of the importance of art in the world.
In my world.

Once in a while, i need to remind myself
that what i love most about making art
besides the process of creating itself -
is the sharing with the world.
With all of you...
But it took me long to get here.
It took me a while to get this comfortable
with sharing my art (and my world) with strangers.
(Of course, many of you are no longer strangers, 
and many still have become friends. xx)
So i fully understand the fear 
of putting yourself out there,
but it is oh so worth it.

The passage i read was this one:
(from the book THE VIEW from the Studio Door, by Ted Orland)

It may not matter in absolute terms
whether you play to an audience of one,
or an audience of everyone,
but until your art reaches out
and touches someone,
it's like the proverbial tree 
falling in an empty forest...
Simply put, the things that matter to you -
the stories you have to tell -
exist to be shared.
So the questions arise:
Who is the real audience for your art?
Where would you hope to find your art ten years from now?
In art galleries?
On magazine covers?
In your family scrapbook?
Engraved in the memories of people you've never met?
If you hope to make art that matters,
the first question to ask is:
Matters to whom?
To God?
To the world?
To the Art world?
To your friends?
To yourself alone?

 Ponder on that one for a bit...

Aren't these words wonderful food for thought?
This passage just makes me happy
because it brings me that much closer
to understanding why i do what i do.

I want my art to be engraved in the memories
of people i've never met.
That's why i make art.
A few years ago, I sold a painting on ETSY
called Soul Sisters...
(you can see the print here)
The woman who bought it sent me an email
to tell me she was buying it for her sister,
who had cancer, 
and who was undergoing chemo treatment at the time.
She had the print framed,
and a few months later sent me a photo
of herself and her sister,
with my framed Soul Sisters print.
My heart melted.
And that's when i fully understood
my reasons for making art.
It's all about connection.
It's all about making a difference, somehow
even if only for ONE person.

And on that note,
if this one person wouldn't have bought me
this beautiful little journal book -
I may have never been inspired
to fill its pages and share them with you!
(thank you to my good friend, Lucille)...
And now, I begin a new one! Yay!
(is there anything more exciting than a new journal?!?)

Thank you all for being here with me.
Wishing you a wonderful week.
xx