Art calls to me. It always has. I was that 10 year old who entered all the “Can You Draw This” “Art School” come-ons in Life magazine. I was the kid who drew pictures of horses, flowers, birds, models from magazines and made my own drawn birthday cards for my Grandmother. I couldn’t help it. I saw something that moved me, or represented something that I dreamed of and I would draw it. My parents didn’t see the same value in my passion, but, finally when I was 14 my mom took me for a six week oil painting course once a week after dinner. That was it! I painted. No education, no training, just my teen-aged imagination and riled up emotions put to canvas. That free expression earned me three prizes in the Fine Arts shows in High School.
Since then, I have matured…and as part of that process I have hardened a bit creatively. I went on, not to art school, but to engineering and became a software engineer. Almost the direct antithesis of creativity. My left brain had very hefty muscles, and still does. Awakening the right brain has been a challenge. Not so much a challenge of expression, but a challenge of confidence. Here I was at age 69 just learning to paint, searching for instruction that will help me in that task; composition, color theory, perspective. All these things are tools of my new trade and they are good things. But even good things can take one captive. Software Engineering is a rule based exercise. Therefore, I have struggled with the “rules” when painting and have tripped many times over a rule on the way to a vision or expression.
Then, last week I saw an article on the Artists Network entitled “The Best Advice I Ever Got: 8 Pastel Artists Share Success Secrets.” It was a succession of short pithy quotes from 8 Pastel Artists. Each was so true and put forth in such a succinct manner that I used my left brain to take it from the internet to a series of 8 pages, one per artist, and print it out. I then took push pins and pinned each statement (which also included a painting done by that artist) up all around my studio. The one I lean into most is “GO YOUR OWN WAY.” Here is the artist’s quote:
“The best advice I’ve been given is to be true to myself and do what I love. I have a passion for realism and detail, and I continue on that path. I’ve come to realize that, as individuals, we each have a unique way of creating that makes us happy and fulfilled. There are no rules in terms of style. No genre is better than another. You’ll have a much healthier relationship with your art if you do what you love.”Julie Freeman, Pastel Artists of New Zealand”
When I get stuck, or feel like “Sheriff Rule” is about to arrest me, I look around at those 8 quotes, and in particular the one from Julie Freeman, I tip my hat to the Sheriff and move on my way! That tip alone has already paid dividends!
Here is a link to that article:
The Art of Lorna McLaughlin 