Yes, I am capable of putting my ideas in writing, but I am not a writer, nor do I particularly yearn to be. That said, this post by the eminently eloquent Christine Mason Miller (AKA Swirly) on her pursuit of a writing career (and she’s well on her way!) really helped me sum up and express, at least to myself, my feelings surrounding pursuing a career as an Artist (Please note, that is with a capital “A”). I would really like making art to be my living, my career.

Right now I need to just keep making, painting, sewing, drawing. I see a style emerging a little bit at a time, but I still don’t know what my signature style is. And that’s ok. That’s where all the making comes in. All the advice I’ve heard from other successful artists boils down to “Just Show Up” and I really have to agree that this seems the most viable, doable and real way to attempt to make a living doing what I love. And taking it one step at a time really makes it seem a bit less daunting. Putting “paint today” on my to-do list is a whole lot easier than “have a retrospective show at MoMA” or some such wow dream. Not that that wouldn’t be nice, but I’m guessing most museums want you to have made some work before they will show it. hehe.

My next challenge is attempting to sell my original paintings, which I rarely ever do. I have sold a handful here and there, mostly those that are too big to scan and sell as prints, though, and a few small birdie paintings. I’m not a careful maker, and it is a new goal to create with the idea of actually sending the original out into the world as-is. I am experimenting with different surfaces and papers and mediums for just this purpose. I think I’m really liking the durability of acrylic on wood because it seems so substantial. Watercolor on paper is much more ephemeral. Not that that’s a bad thing, just completely different quality, and it really seems to need to be framed, and at this point I only have the means for lovely IKEA frames, not custom framing. I LOVE the framed watercolors that I own, and I will probably do a few here and there, but I think I need to change it up a bit for now.

I’m getting a little ahead of myself here, but I just thought it would be worth sharing some of these thoughts with you. I have a few more paintings started today, but nothing to show yet. Maybe tomorrow.

Oh and in case you were wondering, yes, my ankle really does still hurt. A lot. But I can walk like normal, so that’s a plus.