Category: Creativity

This is a story about a rug and a painting.

I got the rug at a yard sale. A really nice Karastan rug. It needed cleaning but man oh man the quality is there. I take the rug home and put it on the floor. It has a stain in it that sort of looks like a woman. It really does look like a woman so I paint it when I get to the studio to just start out with. The painting turns out great and I am totally in love with it.

Now my question to you is am I seeing women everywhere because I am an artist or would that same stain look like something else to another person and just a stain to another person? IS everything meant to be?  Why do we pick what we pick and draw what we draw?  Why do we see what we see???? Is it only there when we are there are do our minds fill in the blanks?

You will find what you are looking for. If you know this you will be thrilled to start looking. Everything is already there.  We just have to find it.

My new studio is in the back of a dress shop. This is quite a change from the third floor walk up in an empty building where I painted mostly alone for 4 years.

I thought artist should be alone to work and it seemed nice and monastery like. But I am a person that thrives on people being around me. And with that said it makes more sense to be in a peopled place.

It is like the sky opened up and the dress shop owner came into my life and we clicked and then the studio in a dress shop idea was born. It is not like I was thinking I should move to a dress shop. But now that I see it in the flesh, it is like this idea painted itself into my life without me even trying. Everything just happened. One thing after another.

I am so thankful for the first studio because if not for it I would not have been here now.

This blog is about little steps that lead to a new place. Little inconsequential things, become monumental in the big picture. The big picture is made of lots of little things going someplace you don’t know about yet. Isn’t that exciting to think about.

It’s like you are driving the car but you aren’t driving. someone else is. Each of us had a new studio being formed all the time. The wonder of it all is really quite beautiful.

Important paintings are ones that are breakthrough new idea works. The best ones are the ones that you did not see coming. Usually after days and days of striving and thrashing about and almost total despair you might end up with something new.

In the world of painting something new is hard to come up with. Everythng has been done before. You think this till you do something unexpected and it is now the new thing and you have a new level to reach, from here on out. Painters never get as good as they will ever get.  Never.  You always can do better. Even if that better is something more simple than your previous work.

It is harder to be simple and profound and beautiful than it is to be elaborate. To strip everything away but he most simple idea that is perfect is my newest goal. New space, new feelings. I crave a simple line. A beautiful simple line will take you a lot further than you think. That line has to resonate into the depths of most peoples understanding. If a lot of people understand it then it is a true line. It is a beautiful line and it will never stop speaking to you.

Most people find moving day horrific. All the boxes and going up and down stairs and the total exhaustion when you are through.

But I find it exhilarating. Going through and looking at the things you have acquired over the years is an important part of moving. closing. changing. opening a new space in your life for something else.

The truth of the matter is we are in constant flux. We change all the time in our perception, and our learning and our experiences. So really as soon as we get the house just right it is outdated. Almost like the latest computer gadget. Our cells totally are new every seven years. Even our body changes every day. It is best to embrace it and move on.

Move move move , until you can’t move anymore. Let God stop you from moving. He is the only one who can really stop you from moving. Moving equals living.

picture by By SisterMaryEris

When you are blessed to have sold a lot of paintings in one day what is one to think. That you are great, or popular or important. It is very hard to look at myself and say any of those things.

All I know is I love what I do and maybe it shows. That is all I know or care about. The rest is superfluous but that said it is so nice to have a good day in the gallery.

I told everyone, not to brag but to just share. If something good happens you should share. Now I will be able to pay my poor hard working webmaster and a few other people that have helped me along. What selling does is give you freedom to paint more and give more and not be all concerned if you are going to die or something.

Selling a lot is like going to a surprise party. You did not know it would happen. But when you get there you are so glad it did. Surprise and delight that is what selling a lot in one day is like. I wish the same for you and you and you so much that I can taste it. I want all artists to be able to get the blessings of sales.