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| 11 x 14 acrylic on masonite |
Life is interesting sometimes. I
find myself wanting to run full force towards the future and other times I find
myself stopped dead in my tracks, like a deer in headlights. I find that the
stronger my art and illustrations become the more I doubt myself, and sometimes
do the worst thing ever, compare myself.
It’s like this weird cat and mouse
game I play with my confidence. Some days I tell myself, “Let’s do this!” and
the there are the days I find myself saying, “Who are you to do this?” Thankfully
most days I can run the negative voices away, and replace it with the gentle
voice telling me, “You can do this.”
My confession is that I read far
too many blogs, and being an editor in the art industry makes me want to be the
best at what I do. That is where the comparison comes in. I come across many
artists who say doing what they love is hard and is a lot of work, and then
that scares me. That’s me focusing on the negative. When they usually quickly
follow with the, but it’s all worth it in the end — the positive.
I’ve been creating art for three
years now, and some days I wonder what am I doing this for. But then I look
back and remind myself how far I’ve come in the journey and that makes me
smile. Some days I feel like walking away from it, but my heart tells me
differently, “You must keep practicing. It will only make you stronger and a
better artist in the end.” A year ago, I didn’t think my art was good enough
for anything, but the universe had other plans. I participated in my first art
show. And then 2013 rolled around, and I’ve been published in one of our
Stampington magazines each month, not to mention I was a cover artists in
March. Wow!! Sometimes I need to slow my horses.
This year something inside of me is
changing and growing. I continuously tell myself to take my art to the next
level, like I know I can draw a Zebra, but how can I make it my own? With practice,
I remind myself. I’ve dabbled with the mixed-media but really my heart is in illustration
and that’s what I need to pay attention to and nourish.
You might remember this painting that I first shared
here, well I finally finished the piece this past weekend. I love the way it turned out.My favorite part, seeing all of my characters together in one painting. Each of these characters have been crafted from my own mind and hands to represent me. And that is when I remind myself that I can do this and that I am good enough.
Print of Yellow Submarine if available
here.
So while I am practicing being OPEN this year, I thought I'd finally share some illustrations I had tucked away in my sketchbook. Looking at these make me so happy, and today they are ready to make their blog debut. (I love the idea
of seeing these in a children’s book one day. Just wanted to put that out
into the universe.) I feel that I have finally found my own voice and style
with my art, and with that has come a new found confidence that allows me to
push myself to the next level with my art. I can't wait to translate these into paintings.
I have to admit, I am a really nervous, but in a first date sort of
way. While I can't wait for the weekend to get here, I feel like there
is a ton more that I need to do before Friday when I get to go set up. Oh yeah, plus I am feeling the need to paint some new pieces for the
show. Here are a few pieces I have come up with so far. P.S. These are all progress shots. Not to worry, I won't be taking unfinished artwork to display. 
