Artist's Voice
I just went to an art opening at the Walker's point Center for the arts (WPCA). I realized something while I was there, it seems obvious, but it just clicked today. Great artists have a point of view. They have something to say, an idea that they want to convey. I need to figure out what I want to express. I have been afraid to articulate what I believe and what I have to say.What topic do I want to explore now? The idea that there is an invisible interconnected interdependent web that connects everybody and everything across time and space. We are all connected to each other in a meaningful way. That sounds spiritual. I'm also interested in art itself, what makes something art? What role does art play in our society? What role does the artist play? I don't have a good answer for myself. I need to redefine my world, what is possible? What do I believe? What unseen assumptions are holding me back? Those are fascinating questions to me.I believe in questioning, following your curiosity, and that there is value in art. Expressing my own unique point of view is part of my job as an artist. One role that the artist plays is that of the questioner, the disruptor. I don't believe in absolutes, black or white, the world holds so many shades of gray. In exploring opposing viewpoints I clarify my own. No one needs a wishy-washy artist, but at the same time, as soon as you are certain of something you are wrong. Painting doesn't have to be my medium I think that I'll return to doing to fiber and installation art.The unseen relationships fascinate me. What can I explore that is interesting to me now that will bring value to others? What new spin can I bring to those age-old questions? I want to start a long-term project, Maybe about overcoming fear and the resistance, about showing up every day in the face of uncertainty.Uncertainty will always be there, It's what you do in the face of it that counts. What am I passionate about, what lights a fire under my ass? I wonder why I'm afraid to articulate so many things fully. I think it's a fear of commitment, once I put something into words, it becomes concrete and real, even though stating an opinion is not an obligation to hold that belief forever. Having an opinion and being wrong isn't the end of the world. In the end, I want to be known for something. I want to stand for my convictions, but at the same time I need to hold on loosely, I'm not a fundamentalist. Maybe I already know the answers to all my questions, I need to start asking the right ones.When I ask myself, "What do I believe in?", "What do I stand for?", "What is my art is about?" and "What impact do I want to make on the world?", I hear the fear and resistance whisper to me: “What if people don't like it? How will you support yourself with that? How are you survive?."First of all, "everybody's" opinion doesn't matter to me, I need to choose a select group of people who I care about, Whose views are of value to me. Secondly, worrying about money hasn't gotten me very far. I'm not making money from my paintings now, and I'm not sure I ever will. Why not start doing something more interesting? Something that has a strong point of view, that wasn't created from a place of fear, but from a place of love for the craft, from passion? I need to stop trying to do everything and just do what I'm good at, the future will take care of itself.I need to let myself have ideas and dream big. I want to create meaningful art, I've been so afraid, I need to start stepping into myself. I can only create the art that I can create, I have to stop trying to create someone else's art. Having a strong point of view is an asset, not a liability.
