Man, am I busy! I shouldn't complain, I know, but I don't know how I can possibly get everything done! January is over and I haven't completed half the things I wanted to do.
I'm beginning to wonder if maybe my expectations are too high?! Possibly I have too much on my plate? I have always had a hard time saying no. In my perfectionist mind however, I should be able to do it all! Why not? Because I'm only human for crying out loud! So, my goal for today...after getting orders shipped and going to the shop....is to prioritize my mile long list of things to do. I'm feeling a little unorganized and I KNOW this is my biggest problem.
Any suggestions?????
Thursday, February 02, 2006
Thursday, January 19, 2006
The worst and best year of my life
So today I'm trying to psych myself out to work on the next year in my story. 1995 was definitely the worst AND best year of my life. It was a year of major transitions. I've always said I feel like I went through two divorces that year. When you read the story, you'll understand what I mean by that. I think what I may have to do is split the story of 1995 into two sections, the bad and the good. It was bad up to about September/October and good for October through December with a little overlap in the middle of it all.
Reliving my past has been difficult, but it has set me free as well. I finally feel detached from that part of my life. Once I get past 1995, the story should flow. Of course I had good and bad times since '95, but my life was basically stable after that point. Although I was 25 years old in 1995, I see that year as the turning point from childhood to adulthood. I sometimes think I was in some sort of limbo from the ages of 16-25. I was on my own, married with children, but I had no clue what that meant for me. I was merely sleepwalking through my life and now it all seems like a very bad dream. For years after my divorce, I felt like I was in a beautiful dream that I would awake from at any moment. I had nightmares for several years reliving my old life. I would have to pinch myself regularly to make sure my waking life was real. I still feel that happiness in my life everyday, but now it's more real to me and the nightmares are much less frequent. I still haven't come to a point of forgiving the people who have done me wrong in the past. Actually, I shouldn't say that, I have forgiven some of them, including myself.
So, anyway, I apologize for taking so long to get this story out. I thought when I began that it would be easy, boy was I way off!
Reliving my past has been difficult, but it has set me free as well. I finally feel detached from that part of my life. Once I get past 1995, the story should flow. Of course I had good and bad times since '95, but my life was basically stable after that point. Although I was 25 years old in 1995, I see that year as the turning point from childhood to adulthood. I sometimes think I was in some sort of limbo from the ages of 16-25. I was on my own, married with children, but I had no clue what that meant for me. I was merely sleepwalking through my life and now it all seems like a very bad dream. For years after my divorce, I felt like I was in a beautiful dream that I would awake from at any moment. I had nightmares for several years reliving my old life. I would have to pinch myself regularly to make sure my waking life was real. I still feel that happiness in my life everyday, but now it's more real to me and the nightmares are much less frequent. I still haven't come to a point of forgiving the people who have done me wrong in the past. Actually, I shouldn't say that, I have forgiven some of them, including myself.
So, anyway, I apologize for taking so long to get this story out. I thought when I began that it would be easy, boy was I way off!
Tuesday, January 17, 2006
Art Story: 1994
1994 was a better year, probably the best one I had as an artist to this point. Of course, I found out after my divorce in 1995, that it was only good on the surface.
I had a workshop for my art for most of this year. Starting out in a storage unit in the heat of the summer, we had a portable swamp cooler that we had to haul water to in order to keep cool. If you have never been to Las Cruces in the summer I have to tell you, this is a feat within itself. I believe the record high set that year was 117 degrees Fahrenheit! If I remember correctly, we stayed there only a couple of months.
We then moved the shop into an office building where we shared a space with my brother's heavy metal band! This was also the year we had to hire help to keep up with the demand for my prints. At this point, there were close to 300 shops across the southwest selling my art. My brother started out working for us, but he quickly left for a better paying job and referred his friend, Aaron Lewis, to work for us. I had known Aaron for many years, so we hired him. Later, we hired a couple of other people, all artists, to help with cutting mats and putting prints together.
The shared space in the office building only lasted around a month. I came in one day and found a beer can sitting on my side of the curtain next to some prints and came unglued! I should have known it wouldn't work to share a space with a band, and most importantly, my brother's band (New Mexican Erection). My brother and I ended up in a literal fight because of it and we moved out and into another office building. We stayed there until 1995.
It was about this time that I received a call from one of the store owners who sold my prints in Arizona. It seems that my husband had come on to their daughter and they thought I should know that he was possibly cheating on me while on the road. Of course I confronted him with this accusation and he gave me some lame story about the daughter coming on to him, not the other way around. Needless to say, this is when I seriously started thinking about how I was going to escape.
In November, we finally moved out of the small, isolated little mobile home, into a larger, nicer mobile home that was only 5 miles out of town. At the time, I felt like we had finally made it. I had spent the past 3 years living in a crappy trailer with the air conditioner falling in through the roof. This place even had a washer/dryer hook up! This was the ultimate luxury for me at the time. I was so tired of taking my 15 loads of wash to the Laundromat every week! I know, I sound like I was white trash! My ultimate dream was always to have a house that didn't have wheels underneath it! Even at the time, I knew that would never happen as long as I was married to this guy. His idea of the ultimate home was a double wide trailer on a piece of land. Isn't there a country song about that?
This was also the year that I started working with watercolors. It had been years since I had pulled out the paints and once I started, I was hooked again. I completed all my watercolor pottery paintings in this year. Acoma Jar and Bowl, San Ildefonso Jar and Bowl, Zia Bowl and Zuni Bowl. It was these prints that really made the business take off. These pottery prints are still my most popular to this day. I expect them to be completely sold out by March!
Next up is 1995, probably my toughest year ever; divorce, kicked out on the street, destitute and a sabotaged art career. However, it was also the year I found my soulmate and lived happily ever after!
Jump to previous years:
1991, 1992, 1993
Next up: 1995; The First Half
I had a workshop for my art for most of this year. Starting out in a storage unit in the heat of the summer, we had a portable swamp cooler that we had to haul water to in order to keep cool. If you have never been to Las Cruces in the summer I have to tell you, this is a feat within itself. I believe the record high set that year was 117 degrees Fahrenheit! If I remember correctly, we stayed there only a couple of months.
We then moved the shop into an office building where we shared a space with my brother's heavy metal band! This was also the year we had to hire help to keep up with the demand for my prints. At this point, there were close to 300 shops across the southwest selling my art. My brother started out working for us, but he quickly left for a better paying job and referred his friend, Aaron Lewis, to work for us. I had known Aaron for many years, so we hired him. Later, we hired a couple of other people, all artists, to help with cutting mats and putting prints together.
The shared space in the office building only lasted around a month. I came in one day and found a beer can sitting on my side of the curtain next to some prints and came unglued! I should have known it wouldn't work to share a space with a band, and most importantly, my brother's band (New Mexican Erection). My brother and I ended up in a literal fight because of it and we moved out and into another office building. We stayed there until 1995.
It was about this time that I received a call from one of the store owners who sold my prints in Arizona. It seems that my husband had come on to their daughter and they thought I should know that he was possibly cheating on me while on the road. Of course I confronted him with this accusation and he gave me some lame story about the daughter coming on to him, not the other way around. Needless to say, this is when I seriously started thinking about how I was going to escape.
In November, we finally moved out of the small, isolated little mobile home, into a larger, nicer mobile home that was only 5 miles out of town. At the time, I felt like we had finally made it. I had spent the past 3 years living in a crappy trailer with the air conditioner falling in through the roof. This place even had a washer/dryer hook up! This was the ultimate luxury for me at the time. I was so tired of taking my 15 loads of wash to the Laundromat every week! I know, I sound like I was white trash! My ultimate dream was always to have a house that didn't have wheels underneath it! Even at the time, I knew that would never happen as long as I was married to this guy. His idea of the ultimate home was a double wide trailer on a piece of land. Isn't there a country song about that?
This was also the year that I started working with watercolors. It had been years since I had pulled out the paints and once I started, I was hooked again. I completed all my watercolor pottery paintings in this year. Acoma Jar and Bowl, San Ildefonso Jar and Bowl, Zia Bowl and Zuni Bowl. It was these prints that really made the business take off. These pottery prints are still my most popular to this day. I expect them to be completely sold out by March!
Next up is 1995, probably my toughest year ever; divorce, kicked out on the street, destitute and a sabotaged art career. However, it was also the year I found my soulmate and lived happily ever after!
Jump to previous years:
1991, 1992, 1993
Next up: 1995; The First Half
Monday, January 09, 2006
Art Story: 1993
Sorry about the long wait, but finally, here is the 1993 part of my art story.
Back home in New Mexico for almost half a year by this time. I spent time drawing whenever I could. My husband quit his job by February and was back on the road selling my prints. We rented a shop space for a couple months but had to give it up because we couldn't afford the rent.
1993 saw the addition of several more drawings. 'Buying Too Choos', 'Collecting Cow Chips', 'Zuni Governor', 'Zuni Woman', 'Eagle Dancers', 'Apache Man', 'Apache Woman', 'Scout', and 'Kiowa Boy' were all done in this year.
I spent the majority of the year at home with my boys. I watched A LOT of TV and tried to lose the weight gained during my third pregnancy. We stayed in the small trailer that we had moved into upon our return to N.M. When my husband was gone on the road, we were basically stranded at home since we lived so far out of town. This made me feel very isolated, which was my husband's goal. He was determined to keep me locked away from the world. Occasionally, he would take me along on road trips to meet shop owners. I had the feeling they didn't believe I even existed. He even had me convinced that I could never sell my art if it wasn't for him. Of course he never gave me any information about where sales occurred or how much he really made. I was already very shy and self conscious being overweight. Unfortunately, I believed he was right about my sales ability. Even if I could sell my art, how was I going to go out on the road and leave the kids behind? I fantasized about leaving him but didn't think there was any way I could pull it off. With three young children to support it was nearly impossible in my mind. We fought with more frequency, over many things, but most often the fights were about him staying home and being part of our family. I wanted him to get a steady job with a secure paycheck. It was like he had hijacked MY dream of being an artist and had no dreams of his own. We used to argue over who's idea it was to start the art business in the first place! This had been my dream long before I met him!
At this point, freedom from the oppression of my husband was just a fantasy. I continued to draw subjects "suggested" by my husband, because "they would sell". We struggled to make ends meet while he continued to travel around the southwest, living in hotels and eating in restaurants. Meanwhile, back home, the boys and I lived on bean burritos and ramen noodles and whatever they gave us at the food bank.
To read previous years of my Art Story, follow these links;
1991, and 1992
Next up, 1994.
Back home in New Mexico for almost half a year by this time. I spent time drawing whenever I could. My husband quit his job by February and was back on the road selling my prints. We rented a shop space for a couple months but had to give it up because we couldn't afford the rent.
1993 saw the addition of several more drawings. 'Buying Too Choos', 'Collecting Cow Chips', 'Zuni Governor', 'Zuni Woman', 'Eagle Dancers', 'Apache Man', 'Apache Woman', 'Scout', and 'Kiowa Boy' were all done in this year.
I spent the majority of the year at home with my boys. I watched A LOT of TV and tried to lose the weight gained during my third pregnancy. We stayed in the small trailer that we had moved into upon our return to N.M. When my husband was gone on the road, we were basically stranded at home since we lived so far out of town. This made me feel very isolated, which was my husband's goal. He was determined to keep me locked away from the world. Occasionally, he would take me along on road trips to meet shop owners. I had the feeling they didn't believe I even existed. He even had me convinced that I could never sell my art if it wasn't for him. Of course he never gave me any information about where sales occurred or how much he really made. I was already very shy and self conscious being overweight. Unfortunately, I believed he was right about my sales ability. Even if I could sell my art, how was I going to go out on the road and leave the kids behind? I fantasized about leaving him but didn't think there was any way I could pull it off. With three young children to support it was nearly impossible in my mind. We fought with more frequency, over many things, but most often the fights were about him staying home and being part of our family. I wanted him to get a steady job with a secure paycheck. It was like he had hijacked MY dream of being an artist and had no dreams of his own. We used to argue over who's idea it was to start the art business in the first place! This had been my dream long before I met him!
At this point, freedom from the oppression of my husband was just a fantasy. I continued to draw subjects "suggested" by my husband, because "they would sell". We struggled to make ends meet while he continued to travel around the southwest, living in hotels and eating in restaurants. Meanwhile, back home, the boys and I lived on bean burritos and ramen noodles and whatever they gave us at the food bank.
To read previous years of my Art Story, follow these links;
1991, and 1992
Next up, 1994.
Tuesday, January 03, 2006
Happy New Year!
Another New Year has come and gone and here I sit more ready than ever to get back to work. I know I mentioned getting in here during my break to finish up my art story, but I convinced myself that taking time off would do me good. Boy, was I right! It was not easy to do, being a work-aholic, but I am so glad I did! I feel refreshed and rested and ready to take on the year.
I will continue my art story this week, but my first order of business is to get my office cleaned up and files reorganized. Tomorrow I go back to the shop and back to creating; painting, etc.
I will also put up listings on Ebay this week for a clearance sale of all the Paula Beck prints. One of my goals for this year is to get past the past and sell off the remaining Beck prints. My art story is part of this goal, as I need to get the story out of my head. So from now on, when someone asks questions about it, I can direct them to my blog instead of having to tell the whole story over and over again. While I realize that it is interesting to others, to me it is the past and at times it was a very painful past. What I need is to put it behind me so I can move on with the future.
I will return soon to complete the story, until then, Happy New Year!
I will continue my art story this week, but my first order of business is to get my office cleaned up and files reorganized. Tomorrow I go back to the shop and back to creating; painting, etc.
I will also put up listings on Ebay this week for a clearance sale of all the Paula Beck prints. One of my goals for this year is to get past the past and sell off the remaining Beck prints. My art story is part of this goal, as I need to get the story out of my head. So from now on, when someone asks questions about it, I can direct them to my blog instead of having to tell the whole story over and over again. While I realize that it is interesting to others, to me it is the past and at times it was a very painful past. What I need is to put it behind me so I can move on with the future.
I will return soon to complete the story, until then, Happy New Year!
Saturday, December 24, 2005
Christmas Eve
The busy Christmas season is almost over. I had my last day at the shop yesterday. We are closing the shop from 12/24 - 1/4 so we can finally enjoy some time off and relax a little. We also plan to do some remodeling during that time. I have even put my Ebay store on vacation settings. After all the hustle and bustle, today is house cleaning day! We have been so busy, we still don't have the house back together after Bryan's move back and the subsequent rearranging of the entire house that followed! Today is the day to reclaim the house!
I had hoped to get Christmas cards out by now, but since I never did have the time, I've decided to send out Happy New Year cards. We still have to take our annual family photo in front of the fireplace, probably today. This will be the first year in a couple that all three boys will be together for Christmas at our house! THAT makes me very happy, doesn't even matter what else happens, only that they will all be here!
My brother and his wife are coming up on Monday for the day. It will be good to see them. We won't see my dad this year until after New Years, he is going back east for Christmas. Better him than me, too much snow back there! We are supposed to have a 60 degree day on Christmas!
I guess that's it for now, I hope to write more later in my vacation. Perhaps I'll continue on with my art story. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!!!!!
I had hoped to get Christmas cards out by now, but since I never did have the time, I've decided to send out Happy New Year cards. We still have to take our annual family photo in front of the fireplace, probably today. This will be the first year in a couple that all three boys will be together for Christmas at our house! THAT makes me very happy, doesn't even matter what else happens, only that they will all be here!
My brother and his wife are coming up on Monday for the day. It will be good to see them. We won't see my dad this year until after New Years, he is going back east for Christmas. Better him than me, too much snow back there! We are supposed to have a 60 degree day on Christmas!
I guess that's it for now, I hope to write more later in my vacation. Perhaps I'll continue on with my art story. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!!!!!
Friday, December 09, 2005
Happy Holidays!
It's that time of year again! There never seems to be enough time to get everything done. I like to complain about time or the shortage of it I've noticed! I wish I could clone myself! Then someone else could perform all the daily mundane tasks that I hate so much. We did finally get our Christmas tree up last week, but I still have to wrap the presents to put under it. Then there are the dishes and housecleaning that keeps piling up on me.
Fortunately, I did finally get some painting time in this week, may even finish a painting by the end of today. I am revisiting the rock landscape series. It has been too long since I worked on them. I love my rocks! People must think I'm nuts! I have my grandmother to thank for the love of rocks. She started me collecting them when I was only 5 or 6 years old.
In other news, my eldest son is moving back in with us! I must admit I am much happier about this than I first thought I might be. He is 19, almost 20 and he spent the last 5 months in his own apartment doing quite well if I say so myself! Until last week when he lost his job. He's going back to school in January, so he's coming home! It was 3 years to the day that he left to live with his dad in Arkansas! It is nice this time though, because he has done A LOT of growing up since then. Another plus, he's already found a new job.
So it's shaping up to be a great Christmas with all three of my boys being here with us! In case I don't get back here before then, Happy Holidays and a Happy New Year!
Fortunately, I did finally get some painting time in this week, may even finish a painting by the end of today. I am revisiting the rock landscape series. It has been too long since I worked on them. I love my rocks! People must think I'm nuts! I have my grandmother to thank for the love of rocks. She started me collecting them when I was only 5 or 6 years old.
In other news, my eldest son is moving back in with us! I must admit I am much happier about this than I first thought I might be. He is 19, almost 20 and he spent the last 5 months in his own apartment doing quite well if I say so myself! Until last week when he lost his job. He's going back to school in January, so he's coming home! It was 3 years to the day that he left to live with his dad in Arkansas! It is nice this time though, because he has done A LOT of growing up since then. Another plus, he's already found a new job.
So it's shaping up to be a great Christmas with all three of my boys being here with us! In case I don't get back here before then, Happy Holidays and a Happy New Year!
Thursday, December 01, 2005
Like I said before....slippin', slippin', slippin'.....
Another week has slipped by and I have been swamped with Ebay orders. My continuing art story is being postponed until I can get caught up with everything. Of course, wouldn't you know it...as soon as I get slammed with Ebay orders....We are supposed to be moving into the new shop space and getting it set up. So, this morning after getting more orders out.....it's back to the shop to get more things moved in and then set up!
What a week it's been! I think it seems more overwhelming because I just had a wonderful, relaxing four day weekend. Thinking I had all the time in the world to get into the shop, until WHAM!, Monday morning I wake up to more work than I expected.
I guess I shouldn't complain, this is a great thing! In fact, just a week ago I was complaining about how slow business was. I guess that's what I get for complaining! The universe has a way have getting back at me for my negative energy. I need to stay positive!
Actually, I'm very happy as I sit here typing this morning. I'm VERY CLOSE to meeting my sales goal for the year....all in all, it has been an awesome year! I have to take this opportunity to thank all of the wonderful people who have supported my artwork this year and made my dream a reality! This was my first year, actually half year, to make a living from my art since 1995! I was able to finally quit the part-time job and devote all of my time to painting and business. I will write more about this awesome goal in the continuation of my art story. Basically, I have finally proved wrong the naysayers from my past....people who told me that I could never do it myself! These people tried to tell me that without them I could never sell my art! Well.....I have now proved you wrong! I can do anything I put my mind to. That feels soooooo good! Great, in fact! I guess I had better get back to work!
What a week it's been! I think it seems more overwhelming because I just had a wonderful, relaxing four day weekend. Thinking I had all the time in the world to get into the shop, until WHAM!, Monday morning I wake up to more work than I expected.
I guess I shouldn't complain, this is a great thing! In fact, just a week ago I was complaining about how slow business was. I guess that's what I get for complaining! The universe has a way have getting back at me for my negative energy. I need to stay positive!
Actually, I'm very happy as I sit here typing this morning. I'm VERY CLOSE to meeting my sales goal for the year....all in all, it has been an awesome year! I have to take this opportunity to thank all of the wonderful people who have supported my artwork this year and made my dream a reality! This was my first year, actually half year, to make a living from my art since 1995! I was able to finally quit the part-time job and devote all of my time to painting and business. I will write more about this awesome goal in the continuation of my art story. Basically, I have finally proved wrong the naysayers from my past....people who told me that I could never do it myself! These people tried to tell me that without them I could never sell my art! Well.....I have now proved you wrong! I can do anything I put my mind to. That feels soooooo good! Great, in fact! I guess I had better get back to work!
Monday, November 21, 2005
Time keeps on slippin', slippin', slippin'..........
It's already Thanksgiving week! I cannot believe how fast time is flying by! Last week was a good one. Together with another artist friend, we put down a deposit on a retail space to sell our art and other creations. So if you are in Albuquerque after December 1st, come visit us at our 'Collectors Corner' in the "Las Tienditas or Little Shops on the Rio Grande". This is a cool little shopping mall on Rio Grande Rd. just north of Old Town Albuquerque at the intersection of Indian School Rd. and Rio Grande. We have been talking about this venture for some time and finally found the perfect spot! Not only is it already an established business location, but it is in a great location. Anyway, come do your Christmas shopping, or just stop by and check it out.
This is a short week for the guys in my life, looking forward to seeing my family this weekend. My dad, brother and his wife are coming up to visit. I love this time of year! The best part about this year is, my boys are all here with me this year! Anyway, lots of work to get done in half the time this week, so I'd better get to it!
This is a short week for the guys in my life, looking forward to seeing my family this weekend. My dad, brother and his wife are coming up to visit. I love this time of year! The best part about this year is, my boys are all here with me this year! Anyway, lots of work to get done in half the time this week, so I'd better get to it!
Thursday, November 17, 2005
Back in a Gallery
I just dropped six of my latest paintings off at the Third Moon Gallery in Corrales, New Mexico. It has been a couple of years since I have shown any of my work in a gallery, so I'm very excited about it. Third Moon Gallery is a wonderful place...old adobe house, quintessential New Mexico gallery. I will post the new paintings here, but please visit the gallery if you can to see them in person! Actually, I think I'll just post three of the six here for now. These are oil paintings on canvas, I call these the Spiral Sun Series.
Spiral Sun Series #1
20 inch square
Spiral Sun Series #5
12 inch square
Spiral Sun Series #6
20 inch square
Spiral Sun Series #120 inch square
Spiral Sun Series #512 inch square
Spiral Sun Series #620 inch square
Wednesday, November 16, 2005
Art Story: 1992
On to 1992!
This was a difficult year in my life that I would rather forget. With that said however, this is something I need to get out so that I can move on to the future! I can easily say that the best thing to happen during this year was the birth of my youngest son Nathan in November.
I'm going to make this a quick rehash, because it was not a year I like to remember!
In a nutshell, (maybe a little longer)
January; evicted from our house with nowhere to go; moved across Tennessee to McMinnville to live in a gutted out mobile home with NO indoor plumbing or anything else for that matter;
February; found out I was pregnant with my third son; terrible morning sickness probably caused by the fact that I had to empty out the porta potty everyday!
March-June; husband continued to stubbornly go out selling my prints rather than getting a job that could actually support us; sales of art barely fed us; luckily the landlord felt sorry for us and didn't charge us any rent for the gutted out mobile home (particle board floors!); finally had running water after husband figured out (after my bugging him for months) that it would only cost $30 for the town to hook up the water line! Talk about living like hillbillys!! This is where I worked on my first series of Native American drawings, I wanted out of this place and figured the only way out was to make some great art! My 'Little Dancer Boy', 'Brave on Horse', 'Mother and Papoose', Woman Dancer', 'Sitting Bull' and 'Bronc' came out of this period. We took a trip in May to New Mexico to sell these prints and blew the engine on the car! He ended up staying with his parents for a month in Las Cruces while it was being fixed! I went back to Tennessee to relieve my brother of babysitting duty and spent the month having to walk into town (about 2 miles) to go to the store and use the phone because we didn't have a phone or a second car! Picture a pregnant woman walking down the side of a rural country road with a 6 year old and a one year old, carrying shopping bags. I could only carry a couple of bags with help from my oldest son because my one year old couldn't walk that far and I had to carry him too! So, we had to go every couple of days.
June; thanks to my husband's wonderful business practices, a man showed up at the trailer from Clarksville, TN to collect money owed by my husband; since we were broke, he took some of my original drawings; sheriff showed up to arrest my husband for a couple of bad checks written for food and gas on the premise that there would be money to cover them; He always did count his chickens before they hatched! So, rather than take care of the problem, we hit the road!
July; It took me a month to convince my husband that we should just give up and go back to New Mexico where we had family to help us out. We lived in the car for that month, renting cheap motel rooms when we had the money, sleeping in rest areas when we didn't. By this time I was 6 months pregnant and hadn't seen a doctor yet! So I finally called my dad to borrow the money to get us across the country to New Mexico and home we went!
August; Finally back in New Mexico, found an old mobile home for rent that we could afford, husband finally found a job! I thought I was in heaven in this 2 bedroom 12' x 50' trailer, after living in the gutted one! This place actually had linoleum and carpet AND indoor plumbing; I didn't care that it was 30 years old! It's amazing what you can live with when you are depressed and beaten down!
September-November; depressed and pregnant I spent most days watching tv; November 6th my beautiful youngest boy, Nathaniel was born; Unfortunately, he had to be kept in ICU for a week because of respiratory problems (probably from lack of prenatal care!) So I spent the week traveling back and forth to the hospital to see/feed him. The funny part of all this was that Nate was born weighing in at 9lbs 10 oz. so he looked like a giant compared to all the little premie babies in ICU! They had a hard time finding an icubator head cover that would fit him!
December; The year ended on an ok note with Christmas being spent with family and friends.
So, in a huge nutshell, that was 1992! whew!
Next up, 1993.
This was a difficult year in my life that I would rather forget. With that said however, this is something I need to get out so that I can move on to the future! I can easily say that the best thing to happen during this year was the birth of my youngest son Nathan in November.
I'm going to make this a quick rehash, because it was not a year I like to remember!
In a nutshell, (maybe a little longer)
January; evicted from our house with nowhere to go; moved across Tennessee to McMinnville to live in a gutted out mobile home with NO indoor plumbing or anything else for that matter;
February; found out I was pregnant with my third son; terrible morning sickness probably caused by the fact that I had to empty out the porta potty everyday!
March-June; husband continued to stubbornly go out selling my prints rather than getting a job that could actually support us; sales of art barely fed us; luckily the landlord felt sorry for us and didn't charge us any rent for the gutted out mobile home (particle board floors!); finally had running water after husband figured out (after my bugging him for months) that it would only cost $30 for the town to hook up the water line! Talk about living like hillbillys!! This is where I worked on my first series of Native American drawings, I wanted out of this place and figured the only way out was to make some great art! My 'Little Dancer Boy', 'Brave on Horse', 'Mother and Papoose', Woman Dancer', 'Sitting Bull' and 'Bronc' came out of this period. We took a trip in May to New Mexico to sell these prints and blew the engine on the car! He ended up staying with his parents for a month in Las Cruces while it was being fixed! I went back to Tennessee to relieve my brother of babysitting duty and spent the month having to walk into town (about 2 miles) to go to the store and use the phone because we didn't have a phone or a second car! Picture a pregnant woman walking down the side of a rural country road with a 6 year old and a one year old, carrying shopping bags. I could only carry a couple of bags with help from my oldest son because my one year old couldn't walk that far and I had to carry him too! So, we had to go every couple of days.
June; thanks to my husband's wonderful business practices, a man showed up at the trailer from Clarksville, TN to collect money owed by my husband; since we were broke, he took some of my original drawings; sheriff showed up to arrest my husband for a couple of bad checks written for food and gas on the premise that there would be money to cover them; He always did count his chickens before they hatched! So, rather than take care of the problem, we hit the road!
July; It took me a month to convince my husband that we should just give up and go back to New Mexico where we had family to help us out. We lived in the car for that month, renting cheap motel rooms when we had the money, sleeping in rest areas when we didn't. By this time I was 6 months pregnant and hadn't seen a doctor yet! So I finally called my dad to borrow the money to get us across the country to New Mexico and home we went!
August; Finally back in New Mexico, found an old mobile home for rent that we could afford, husband finally found a job! I thought I was in heaven in this 2 bedroom 12' x 50' trailer, after living in the gutted one! This place actually had linoleum and carpet AND indoor plumbing; I didn't care that it was 30 years old! It's amazing what you can live with when you are depressed and beaten down!
September-November; depressed and pregnant I spent most days watching tv; November 6th my beautiful youngest boy, Nathaniel was born; Unfortunately, he had to be kept in ICU for a week because of respiratory problems (probably from lack of prenatal care!) So I spent the week traveling back and forth to the hospital to see/feed him. The funny part of all this was that Nate was born weighing in at 9lbs 10 oz. so he looked like a giant compared to all the little premie babies in ICU! They had a hard time finding an icubator head cover that would fit him!
December; The year ended on an ok note with Christmas being spent with family and friends.
So, in a huge nutshell, that was 1992! whew!
Next up, 1993.
Tuesday, November 15, 2005
Still working on 1992
I'm still working on 1992, but it has proved to be fairly difficult because it all came flooding back and there was a lot happening! Most of it bad!
Thank God it's all in the past! Thank God that my current husband wants nothing to do with my art business, because he has his own goals and ambitions! Thank God we own our home (not a trailer!) and I don't have to deal with landlords anymore! Thank God I got away from my first husband! Thank God I don't have small children anymore! I'm sure there are many other things I am thankful for......Thank God!
It is good to look back at the past and see where all the lessons were learned....and be happy that I don't ever have to go there again!
I've definitely learned to appreciate all the good in my life now....it wasn't too long ago that there wasn't much good to appreciate!
And how can I forget....Thank God for giving me my art to get me through it all!!
Thank God it's all in the past! Thank God that my current husband wants nothing to do with my art business, because he has his own goals and ambitions! Thank God we own our home (not a trailer!) and I don't have to deal with landlords anymore! Thank God I got away from my first husband! Thank God I don't have small children anymore! I'm sure there are many other things I am thankful for......Thank God!
It is good to look back at the past and see where all the lessons were learned....and be happy that I don't ever have to go there again!
I've definitely learned to appreciate all the good in my life now....it wasn't too long ago that there wasn't much good to appreciate!
And how can I forget....Thank God for giving me my art to get me through it all!!
Tuesday, November 08, 2005
Working on 1992
So, I figured I'd write another blog before I finish the 1992 entry. 1992 was a particularly difficult year to live through, much less rehash!
I suppose it will be good for me to get all my past out of my head and on to the blog, but once I started writing about 1992 I realized that the only good thing about it was the birth of my youngest son, Nathan. Even that wasn't exactly a good thing at the time. I love him to death, but the circumstances surrounding his birth were not good. One other good thing to happen was moving back to New Mexico.
Maybe it wasn't such a good idea to write my art story! It is impossible at times in the past to separate my personal story from my art story, so it may take longer than originally planned to finish.
Maybe I should just let the past stay in the past! Although, I believe it would shed alot of light on the person I am now to share where I came from and what I've been through. I just didn't expect it to be so hard to do! Time has healed most of my old wounds and life is wonderful now, so I should be able to approach it in a detached manner.
I may just condense the years 1992-1995 into one blog as they were the hardest years of my life. Why relive all that crap? I'll have to think about it a little while.
I suppose it will be good for me to get all my past out of my head and on to the blog, but once I started writing about 1992 I realized that the only good thing about it was the birth of my youngest son, Nathan. Even that wasn't exactly a good thing at the time. I love him to death, but the circumstances surrounding his birth were not good. One other good thing to happen was moving back to New Mexico.
Maybe it wasn't such a good idea to write my art story! It is impossible at times in the past to separate my personal story from my art story, so it may take longer than originally planned to finish.
Maybe I should just let the past stay in the past! Although, I believe it would shed alot of light on the person I am now to share where I came from and what I've been through. I just didn't expect it to be so hard to do! Time has healed most of my old wounds and life is wonderful now, so I should be able to approach it in a detached manner.
I may just condense the years 1992-1995 into one blog as they were the hardest years of my life. Why relive all that crap? I'll have to think about it a little while.
Friday, November 04, 2005
My Art story: 1991
I have been contemplating my art story for several months, even years! Today, one of the artist blogs that I read regularly talked about the ultimate story. She talked about how, as an artist, YOU are the ultimate story. So, I am finally going to tackle that subject! I've decided to start with the beginning of my art career and write about one year per day. Today is dedicated to 1991!
March 1991 to be exact. But first, a little background. According to my mom, I started drawing as a child, but doesn't everyone draw as a child? My memory of being an artist goes back to 9th grade and my first real art class. From that year on, I took every art class available at my high school. I wanted to major in commercial art in college. However, in my junior year I gave birth to my first son, Bryan, and my life took an unexpected twist. I dropped out of high school in my senior year, because I was married with a baby, my husband joined the army and ended up stationed in Hawaii! That move put a slight hold on my school plans. So,.....back to 1991!
While my bio states that I have always been an artist, March 1991 is when I started seriously considering a career as an artist. I was 21 years old and going to school to become a CAD drafter. My oldest son, Bryan, was 5 years old and my second son, Jeff, was 7 months old. All I really wanted was to be a stay at home mom. As is usually the case, money prevented that from happening. I was working the graveyard shift at the front desk of the Comfort Inn. Most nights I sat and watched TV in the lobby. One night, I sat through an infomercial for Tony Robbins.(I know, pretty funny, huh?) Being the person I am, I thought to myself, I don't need to buy some guy's book to know what I need to do. So that night I decided to start using my dead time at work for drawing. It had been some time since I had worked on my art. Many factors played into this...my husband told me my work sucked for one! Not to mention I had been up to my eyeballs in diapers and baby puke for some time.
The first drawing I did was of a covered bridge in Kentucky near where we lived at the time. I had postcards printed and my husband started selling them to people at his job in a local convenience store. Don't remember how it all came about, but he hooked me up with the local Historical Society and I started doing drawings of all the local historical homes, churches and buildings. I participated in the local historic homes tour, selling matted prints and postcards. Out of that tour came many commissions for local homes and churches. I eventually left my drafting classes to pursue my art (encouraged to do so by my drafting teacher!). After seeing how well my art was selling, my husband decided to quit his job as well. He became my sales rep and changed his view of my work! I also did some drawings of Civil War Generals, which were very popular in the south. I enjoyed more than anything, researching the history of the south and the Antebellum architecture. Beginning in this year, my husband went out on the road to sell my prints to shops in Tennessee, Kentucky, Alabama and Georgia. During this time, I spent my days at home with the boys, drawing whenever I could fit it in. At this point all my art was done in pencil. I had worked in watercolor in the past, but still didn't feel confident enough in my abilities.
Next up, 1992!
March 1991 to be exact. But first, a little background. According to my mom, I started drawing as a child, but doesn't everyone draw as a child? My memory of being an artist goes back to 9th grade and my first real art class. From that year on, I took every art class available at my high school. I wanted to major in commercial art in college. However, in my junior year I gave birth to my first son, Bryan, and my life took an unexpected twist. I dropped out of high school in my senior year, because I was married with a baby, my husband joined the army and ended up stationed in Hawaii! That move put a slight hold on my school plans. So,.....back to 1991!
While my bio states that I have always been an artist, March 1991 is when I started seriously considering a career as an artist. I was 21 years old and going to school to become a CAD drafter. My oldest son, Bryan, was 5 years old and my second son, Jeff, was 7 months old. All I really wanted was to be a stay at home mom. As is usually the case, money prevented that from happening. I was working the graveyard shift at the front desk of the Comfort Inn. Most nights I sat and watched TV in the lobby. One night, I sat through an infomercial for Tony Robbins.(I know, pretty funny, huh?) Being the person I am, I thought to myself, I don't need to buy some guy's book to know what I need to do. So that night I decided to start using my dead time at work for drawing. It had been some time since I had worked on my art. Many factors played into this...my husband told me my work sucked for one! Not to mention I had been up to my eyeballs in diapers and baby puke for some time.
The first drawing I did was of a covered bridge in Kentucky near where we lived at the time. I had postcards printed and my husband started selling them to people at his job in a local convenience store. Don't remember how it all came about, but he hooked me up with the local Historical Society and I started doing drawings of all the local historical homes, churches and buildings. I participated in the local historic homes tour, selling matted prints and postcards. Out of that tour came many commissions for local homes and churches. I eventually left my drafting classes to pursue my art (encouraged to do so by my drafting teacher!). After seeing how well my art was selling, my husband decided to quit his job as well. He became my sales rep and changed his view of my work! I also did some drawings of Civil War Generals, which were very popular in the south. I enjoyed more than anything, researching the history of the south and the Antebellum architecture. Beginning in this year, my husband went out on the road to sell my prints to shops in Tennessee, Kentucky, Alabama and Georgia. During this time, I spent my days at home with the boys, drawing whenever I could fit it in. At this point all my art was done in pencil. I had worked in watercolor in the past, but still didn't feel confident enough in my abilities.
Next up, 1992!
Monday, October 31, 2005
Another Monday, another month
One more Monday, end of another month! Time flies when you have lots to do.
This is my busy holiday sales month. I hope to have lots of new listings up by the end of the week.
I only have a couple of weeks left to get paintings done for the Third Moon Gallery. I hope to finish the one I'm working on today and start a new one.
Finally done with the open air market for the year. We have our weekends back! yeah!
Not much to blog about today, but my goal is to blog everyday...so there you go!
Peace!
This is my busy holiday sales month. I hope to have lots of new listings up by the end of the week.
I only have a couple of weeks left to get paintings done for the Third Moon Gallery. I hope to finish the one I'm working on today and start a new one.
Finally done with the open air market for the year. We have our weekends back! yeah!
Not much to blog about today, but my goal is to blog everyday...so there you go!
Peace!
Friday, October 28, 2005
FRIDAY!
Not that it matters, since I have to work thru the weekend as well. Weekends at the outdoor market are fun though. This will be our last weekend out there for this year. The weather keeps getting worse, colder, rainy, etc. Only on Saturday of course!
My cousins from Vermont arrived with their moving truck yesterday. So we spent the afternoon helping them unload the truck. Today I'll be giving a tour of Albuquerque to my cousin who is leaving to go back to Vermont tomorrow. Wish he could stay longer. Oh well.
Not alot to write about today, I have to get some work done before I pick up my cousin at 1:00. Finishing up another spiral abstract painting today,....I hope. I still have alot of detail work to do. I will try to post new paintings by Monday.
Finally figured out how to get the subscription box into my blog! What a pain! So, please sign up to receive email updates whenever I post a new blog!
Until later.......
My cousins from Vermont arrived with their moving truck yesterday. So we spent the afternoon helping them unload the truck. Today I'll be giving a tour of Albuquerque to my cousin who is leaving to go back to Vermont tomorrow. Wish he could stay longer. Oh well.
Not alot to write about today, I have to get some work done before I pick up my cousin at 1:00. Finishing up another spiral abstract painting today,....I hope. I still have alot of detail work to do. I will try to post new paintings by Monday.
Finally figured out how to get the subscription box into my blog! What a pain! So, please sign up to receive email updates whenever I post a new blog!
Until later.......
Thursday, October 27, 2005
So I'm middle aged,...who cares!!!!
I think I may have finally recovered from my birthday! LOL! It didn't help things that my dad, brother and oldest son all forgot it! In spite of the fact that I was in a perfectly good mood on my birthday, yesterday was terrible! I was in a crappy mood for most of the day.
I didn't get any painting done, but I did finally manage to get my studio and office clean! I still have filing/organizing to do, but I am pretty proud of myself for cleaning. Not that it was that bad, I'm just way too much of a perfectionist to work like that. In fact, the mess is probably what put me in a bad mood in the first place.
Today has been much more productive, I painted all morning and packed Ebay orders earlier this afternoon.
I am really getting into the new series I'm working on. I have now switched from watercolors to water mixable oils. I can layer the colors better with the oils also the colors are brighter. (Thanks for the suggestion, Carol!) I will post one soon. I have to get several more done by the end of November. I will be showing several paintings in the Third Moon Gallery in Corrales,NM starting then. I hope everyone else loves them as much as I do. I finally feel like I'm painting what is inside of me. I don't know if I can ever go back to what I did before. Of course if these don't sell, I may have to! :( It's hard making a living as an artist, especially when you move on with your art and people want you to keep painting what you did 10 years ago. My problem is I have a hard time sticking to one subject or style. I like to paint what I like, and being that I like a lot of different subjects, it's hard to stay with one thing. Hopefully, my collectors will bear with me. I think this new abstract work is what I've been searching for. MY ART!
Once Aaron and the boys get home however, my work day will be over. My cousin and her family are moving to Albuquerque from Vermont and they arrive today. I promised my aunt that we would help them unload the moving truck. It's pretty wierd having all this family here now. My aunt, great aunt and my cousin's family are all out here now. After growing up out west with all my family back east, I don't quite know how to handle all this family. It should be interesting at the least!
I hope to start blogging more often.....we'll see!
I didn't get any painting done, but I did finally manage to get my studio and office clean! I still have filing/organizing to do, but I am pretty proud of myself for cleaning. Not that it was that bad, I'm just way too much of a perfectionist to work like that. In fact, the mess is probably what put me in a bad mood in the first place.
Today has been much more productive, I painted all morning and packed Ebay orders earlier this afternoon.
I am really getting into the new series I'm working on. I have now switched from watercolors to water mixable oils. I can layer the colors better with the oils also the colors are brighter. (Thanks for the suggestion, Carol!) I will post one soon. I have to get several more done by the end of November. I will be showing several paintings in the Third Moon Gallery in Corrales,NM starting then. I hope everyone else loves them as much as I do. I finally feel like I'm painting what is inside of me. I don't know if I can ever go back to what I did before. Of course if these don't sell, I may have to! :( It's hard making a living as an artist, especially when you move on with your art and people want you to keep painting what you did 10 years ago. My problem is I have a hard time sticking to one subject or style. I like to paint what I like, and being that I like a lot of different subjects, it's hard to stay with one thing. Hopefully, my collectors will bear with me. I think this new abstract work is what I've been searching for. MY ART!
Once Aaron and the boys get home however, my work day will be over. My cousin and her family are moving to Albuquerque from Vermont and they arrive today. I promised my aunt that we would help them unload the moving truck. It's pretty wierd having all this family here now. My aunt, great aunt and my cousin's family are all out here now. After growing up out west with all my family back east, I don't quite know how to handle all this family. It should be interesting at the least!
I hope to start blogging more often.....we'll see!
Tuesday, October 25, 2005
So you say it's your birthday?
Well, it's my birthday too, yeah!
Goodie, Goodie! I have to admit, this is the first year that I'm not very thrilled to be celebrating another birthday. What's to celebrate? I'm another year closer to the grave and I still have so much I want to accomplish with my life. Where have the past 36 years gone? I started seriously working as an artist 15 years ago! I have to remind myself that there was a five year break in there, and it didn't help that my first husband sabotaged my business so I had to start over again 5 years ago. So I guess I should look at the 10 lost years as my training period. I learned ALOT during those 10 years, mostly what NOT to do!
I have to also remind myself that people now look to me for advice on being an artist. There was a time when I had to ask questions of others, now they ask questions of me. My ultimate goal is to be a mentor to young artists just starting out. Mainly because it's hard to find a mentor for myself.
I remember when I was 21 and starting out, I thought 36 was OLD! Now I'm here and I don't FEEL that old. Of course my 89 year old great aunt calls me a spring chicken! Coming from her, I guess that's true. I guess I'm looking forward to what the next 50 years has in store for me. In 5 years I'll be entering another phase of my life..."the empty nest years". I must admit, I'm looking forward to those years! These days I'm very happy that I started having kids when I was too young, because I will still be young when they are grown. Time is just strange.
I may write more later today...I'm still trying to come to terms with my birthday!
Goodie, Goodie! I have to admit, this is the first year that I'm not very thrilled to be celebrating another birthday. What's to celebrate? I'm another year closer to the grave and I still have so much I want to accomplish with my life. Where have the past 36 years gone? I started seriously working as an artist 15 years ago! I have to remind myself that there was a five year break in there, and it didn't help that my first husband sabotaged my business so I had to start over again 5 years ago. So I guess I should look at the 10 lost years as my training period. I learned ALOT during those 10 years, mostly what NOT to do!
I have to also remind myself that people now look to me for advice on being an artist. There was a time when I had to ask questions of others, now they ask questions of me. My ultimate goal is to be a mentor to young artists just starting out. Mainly because it's hard to find a mentor for myself.
I remember when I was 21 and starting out, I thought 36 was OLD! Now I'm here and I don't FEEL that old. Of course my 89 year old great aunt calls me a spring chicken! Coming from her, I guess that's true. I guess I'm looking forward to what the next 50 years has in store for me. In 5 years I'll be entering another phase of my life..."the empty nest years". I must admit, I'm looking forward to those years! These days I'm very happy that I started having kids when I was too young, because I will still be young when they are grown. Time is just strange.
I may write more later today...I'm still trying to come to terms with my birthday!
Thursday, October 20, 2005
Seventh Mountain group
So, last night was the first meeting of the Seventh Mountain artists in over a year. Seventh Mountain is an artist group that I co-founded a couple of years ago. It was one of my projects during the year that all three of my boys were living with their dad in Arkansas. I had to do something to keep myself busy or I would have sunk into a terrible depression. Actually, I did sink into a depression, but the camaraderie of all my artist friends truly helped me through it.
So, once the boys came back, the group just faded away without me to organize and pull everyone together. About a month ago, I went to an opening for one of the members, Ed King, and he asked about the group. "Are you planning to get that going again?" I said I would love to, but I thought, is anyone interested in that actually happening? I sent out an email to gauge interest and found that apparently everyone has just been waiting for me to bring them together. Well, maybe not "waiting", but most old members and a few new ones were excited about getting back together.
Back to the beginning of the blog,....Last night was the first regrouping and it went really well! I was so wound up when we came home that I couldn't sleep and stayed up painting until after 12:30! I cannot even remember the last time I was that motivated to paint! Interestingly enough, during the year that the group was nonexistent, I have had a hard time being motivated. I guess I just needed that connection to the Albuquerque art community. That was the most exciting part of the meeting for me, was all the talk of community and once again discussing the building of a community here in Albuquerque. I guess it's not neccessarily building a community, but bringing together the community that is already here. So maybe now I'm not so anxious to leave town and move off to the mountains to be a hermit! :)
In other news, I finally put up my peace auctions for charity. I have decided that from now on all my peace paintings will have 25% donated to the Peace Corps Fund. I have this dream to join the Peace Corps someday, but until that can actually happen, I will make my contribution with money. Below is a link to the first Peace Corps auction, and it already has a bid!
Charity auction for the Peace Corps Fund
So, once the boys came back, the group just faded away without me to organize and pull everyone together. About a month ago, I went to an opening for one of the members, Ed King, and he asked about the group. "Are you planning to get that going again?" I said I would love to, but I thought, is anyone interested in that actually happening? I sent out an email to gauge interest and found that apparently everyone has just been waiting for me to bring them together. Well, maybe not "waiting", but most old members and a few new ones were excited about getting back together.
Back to the beginning of the blog,....Last night was the first regrouping and it went really well! I was so wound up when we came home that I couldn't sleep and stayed up painting until after 12:30! I cannot even remember the last time I was that motivated to paint! Interestingly enough, during the year that the group was nonexistent, I have had a hard time being motivated. I guess I just needed that connection to the Albuquerque art community. That was the most exciting part of the meeting for me, was all the talk of community and once again discussing the building of a community here in Albuquerque. I guess it's not neccessarily building a community, but bringing together the community that is already here. So maybe now I'm not so anxious to leave town and move off to the mountains to be a hermit! :)
In other news, I finally put up my peace auctions for charity. I have decided that from now on all my peace paintings will have 25% donated to the Peace Corps Fund. I have this dream to join the Peace Corps someday, but until that can actually happen, I will make my contribution with money. Below is a link to the first Peace Corps auction, and it already has a bid!
Charity auction for the Peace Corps Fund
Tuesday, October 18, 2005
Another busy week
Once again, I have let way too many days go by since my last post. It's hard to decide what to blog about and for some reason I'm afraid to get too personal still. Not sure why....After reading the blogs of a couple of my artist friends, Amy and Chris Schelling, I've decided that I'm just being a wimp! Why not spill my guts here?
So here goes!
The past couple weeks have been crazy around here. I've been trying hard to concentrate on my art work and all the many tasks involved in selling, promoting, etc. During the day, I get plenty of work done, but as soon as 3pm rolls around and the kids and Aaron get home.....forget about it! So, I'm seriously considering moving my studio/office out of the house again. When I moved it back to the house it was because the boys were living with their dad and there was so much extra space, it didn't make sense to pay rent for an outside studio. So now that reasoning doesn't work anymore!
The ultimate dream would be to open an art center with room for other artist's studios, a gallery and a classroom. Don't know if that will happen right away. The hard part is going to be finding a place to rent that we can afford. Hopefully, I can convince an artist friend of mine (JO!)to share a space with me. We've talked about it, but the hard part is getting her to commit to it. The best thing is that Aaron is now interested in getting his own music going again, so he'll need to have a classroom space for private students. So he will be onboard with getting a place.
As with everything I want to do, the biggest issue is money, isn't that always the way?! So.....I'm caught in a catch 22...I know I could make more money if I had an outside studio/shop...but I need money to get the space...but I need the place to make more....etc!
So...if anyone has any suggestions or knows of a place to rent in Albuquerque, NM...please let me know!
Other than that, I've actually made a step towards showing my art in a gallery again. I've shown my new work to 2 different galleries and both said they would be interested in showing my work! Funny, because only a couple weeks ago I was saying I didn't want anything to do with galleries anymore. Of course, it helps that I personally know the owners of both galleries. That made it easier to approach them. I don't know why I have such a hard time with my confidence! Inside I feel like I am meant to be a artist and that someday I WILL be world famous! Why can't I have that attitude on the outside? It was good for me to read Chris' blog for that reason. He's got the outer ego that I need! So I guess I'll just learn from him and try to be more egocentric. Maybe not quite as much as Chris...it's just not my personality...but enough to have confidence in my art.
Sometimes I wonder why I bother writing all this mess. Does anyone even read this??? I guess it would help if I could get an email out to everyone telling them about it! :)
So here goes!
The past couple weeks have been crazy around here. I've been trying hard to concentrate on my art work and all the many tasks involved in selling, promoting, etc. During the day, I get plenty of work done, but as soon as 3pm rolls around and the kids and Aaron get home.....forget about it! So, I'm seriously considering moving my studio/office out of the house again. When I moved it back to the house it was because the boys were living with their dad and there was so much extra space, it didn't make sense to pay rent for an outside studio. So now that reasoning doesn't work anymore!
The ultimate dream would be to open an art center with room for other artist's studios, a gallery and a classroom. Don't know if that will happen right away. The hard part is going to be finding a place to rent that we can afford. Hopefully, I can convince an artist friend of mine (JO!)to share a space with me. We've talked about it, but the hard part is getting her to commit to it. The best thing is that Aaron is now interested in getting his own music going again, so he'll need to have a classroom space for private students. So he will be onboard with getting a place.
As with everything I want to do, the biggest issue is money, isn't that always the way?! So.....I'm caught in a catch 22...I know I could make more money if I had an outside studio/shop...but I need money to get the space...but I need the place to make more....etc!
So...if anyone has any suggestions or knows of a place to rent in Albuquerque, NM...please let me know!
Other than that, I've actually made a step towards showing my art in a gallery again. I've shown my new work to 2 different galleries and both said they would be interested in showing my work! Funny, because only a couple weeks ago I was saying I didn't want anything to do with galleries anymore. Of course, it helps that I personally know the owners of both galleries. That made it easier to approach them. I don't know why I have such a hard time with my confidence! Inside I feel like I am meant to be a artist and that someday I WILL be world famous! Why can't I have that attitude on the outside? It was good for me to read Chris' blog for that reason. He's got the outer ego that I need! So I guess I'll just learn from him and try to be more egocentric. Maybe not quite as much as Chris...it's just not my personality...but enough to have confidence in my art.
Sometimes I wonder why I bother writing all this mess. Does anyone even read this??? I guess it would help if I could get an email out to everyone telling them about it! :)
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