Art...Just do it!

I'm an artist.  That's a bold statement that has taken me a lifetime to accept, but I am an artist.  There has been a time in my life when I was what I would call a practicing artist.  Then there was an extended length of time when I was an art teacher.  Then for awhile I called myself an environmental artist.  Today, I am a "sneak in what I can" artist, concentrating on quilting because the finished product is functional, and in this economy that makes it easier for me to justify the time and money I spend on artistic endeavors.

As you can see, I've been eclectic in my art.  That's partly because that is my style, and partly because I have had to adapt to time, money, and needs.  When I was younger and I was asked what I wanted to be when I grew up, my answer was a hermit artist.  I think that would still stand for me, if only I had someone to pay all my bills.  I actually started college as an art major but after one particularly unliberated teacher and the realization that I probably couldn't make a living that way, I switched to broadcast-film arts.  Still artistic, but with a practical application.  After my years of television, I switched to painting.  After awhile of having to deal with kids and dragging out paint stuff and having to put it back (since I didn't actually have studio space) I switched to colored pencils.  I found a lot of success in that medium, and someday I'll go back to it, but for now it's fabric that I work with.

Why this diatribe now, you ask?  Well, a friend of mine recently posted this on facebook: "Considering taking on a personal artistic photo project that I've been throwing around in my mind for years now. I think it's time. Well, if I HAVE time.."  My heart went out at that.  I know from experience that if you don't start...you'll never finish...and if you don't start...you'll always regret it.  So to Nigel, and to all my other friends with artistic yearnings, I have to say "Do it!!!!"   Please, just try to do it.  There never is any time, and as my life has gone through different stages, I can tell you that doesn't change.  As the Picasso quote from my little painting goes, don't ever turn loose of your artistic desires.  Feed them.  Nurture them. Acknowledge them.  They are truly precious and will give you great rewards if you let them.