Time To Start Taking Myself Seriously
I think it may be time to start taking myself seriously as an artist. I said this to my husband. "You're not going to quit your job and just make art?" he asked in horror.
No. Nothing so dramatic as that. You see, I've always considered myself a writer. I've been writing poetry since I was fifteen. I was the editor of my high school newspaper. I was an English major. When I finally managed to graduate from college a couple of years ago, it was with a writing concentration. I've published two books and am about to launch a third. So, it's easy for me to say I'm a writer. I'm not actually supporting myself by doing it but most writers aren't.
But I came to art significantly later in life. I'm not even sure what inspired me to originally put brush to canvas a few years ago. It was just something I wanted to try. I had put "participate in an art show" on my bucket list. So I did. And it was fun (despite failing to wire my paintings correctly and receiving an embarrassing call from the gallery, telling me that my artwork had literally fallen off the wall!)
I got interested in photography and did one of those shows. I actually sold a photograph and was dumbfounded.
I've had no lessons and no formal training. I haven't had an art class since junior high. But I think I'm using my lack of credentials to sell myself short and that's not okay.
I currently have a few different art projects in the works and it's exciting. But as long as I see myself as just a dabbler, I think I'm holding myself back. I've never actually called myself an artist. I think this is a way of playing it safe. Of living a smaller life than I should. If I'm not actually an artist, then it doesn't matter if my art is any good. I don't really have to put myself out there because I'm not really an artist. Oh, I just play around with it for fun. And it is fun, don't get me wrong. But that disclaimer does me a dis-service. It's a way of rejecting myself before somebody else can and I'm not willing to do that any more. I want a really big life.
An artist is one who makes art. Ergo, if I'm going to make art, I need to be an artist. You can't go through life trying to protect yourself from rejection or heartbreak or whatever it is that keeps you up at night. Not only can't you keep yourself safe from those things but it's a bad way to live your life. Life is short. If we have things we want to do, we need to do them. Put yourself out there. What's the worst that could happen?
So, Hi, I'm Christine. I'm a writer, blogger, teacher and an artist. It's great to meet you.
No. Nothing so dramatic as that. You see, I've always considered myself a writer. I've been writing poetry since I was fifteen. I was the editor of my high school newspaper. I was an English major. When I finally managed to graduate from college a couple of years ago, it was with a writing concentration. I've published two books and am about to launch a third. So, it's easy for me to say I'm a writer. I'm not actually supporting myself by doing it but most writers aren't.
But I came to art significantly later in life. I'm not even sure what inspired me to originally put brush to canvas a few years ago. It was just something I wanted to try. I had put "participate in an art show" on my bucket list. So I did. And it was fun (despite failing to wire my paintings correctly and receiving an embarrassing call from the gallery, telling me that my artwork had literally fallen off the wall!)
I got interested in photography and did one of those shows. I actually sold a photograph and was dumbfounded.
I've had no lessons and no formal training. I haven't had an art class since junior high. But I think I'm using my lack of credentials to sell myself short and that's not okay.
I currently have a few different art projects in the works and it's exciting. But as long as I see myself as just a dabbler, I think I'm holding myself back. I've never actually called myself an artist. I think this is a way of playing it safe. Of living a smaller life than I should. If I'm not actually an artist, then it doesn't matter if my art is any good. I don't really have to put myself out there because I'm not really an artist. Oh, I just play around with it for fun. And it is fun, don't get me wrong. But that disclaimer does me a dis-service. It's a way of rejecting myself before somebody else can and I'm not willing to do that any more. I want a really big life.
An artist is one who makes art. Ergo, if I'm going to make art, I need to be an artist. You can't go through life trying to protect yourself from rejection or heartbreak or whatever it is that keeps you up at night. Not only can't you keep yourself safe from those things but it's a bad way to live your life. Life is short. If we have things we want to do, we need to do them. Put yourself out there. What's the worst that could happen?
So, Hi, I'm Christine. I'm a writer, blogger, teacher and an artist. It's great to meet you.
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