I'm going to do it. I'm going to be a part-time art student. As part of my college application process I have to write an essay on my art. I thought I'd share.
Art is my chosen form of expression. It is my joy, frustration, sadness, anger and curiosity. Without pen and paper I am lost. My hands and fingers fumble to find comfort without pen in place. I doodle while on the telephone. I sketch still lifes as I have intimate conversations with a friend. Business meetings require a fresh pad of paper and sharp pencil so I can sketch ideas as I take notes.
Journaling is no longer about words on paper in a private padlocked book. It's now about color that represents my mood. It's clippings of inspiring photos and sketches of my day. Art journaling is comfortable and it suits me.
For me art is everywhere. Finely crafted furniture, funky jewelry, intricately woven rugs and smartly knitted crafts are all art forms. Each of these mediums, among others, intrigue me in one way or another, but none so much as paper arts. Pen, pencil, ink, chalk laid to paper in many and various forms is pure art candy. So tasty and delightful that I squeak.
As a young child I thought artists were poor starving men on the streets of Paris. Struggle was the assumption. This frustrated me to the point of giving up. Rather than pursue a life fraught with aggravation and since it was assumed "you can't make a living doing art" I passed on art school. Thought I'm still young in my heart, at almost forty, my now adult mind has learned that I can't live without being creative every day. It has finally recognized that artists can indeed make a living making art and thirdly, my heart and mind agree that art school is something I must try.
The styles of the Renaissance masters fascinate me and at one time I thought that that was the only way art could be. This probably explains my own struggles with style. Getting the details and proportions right have consumed me and created an unfair judgement against my own attempts.
My personal style is, as most artists, evolving. In the past I have used the word UPTIGHT to describe my style because I have worked on small planes and usually with great detail. I am working at getting out of my own way to work in new styles; I have discovered a looser way is relaxing and fun to do. It removes the pressure. It's refreshing.
I have worked in a variety of mediums including: pen and ink, oils, acrylics, pencil, chalk, collage and assemblage. I do not concern myself with my art being salable. I will create pieces that feed my own soul. If a piece stirs something in someone else then I welcome it and hold my head high.
Art is my chosen form of expression. It is my joy, frustration, sadness, anger and curiosity. Without pen and paper I am lost. My hands and fingers fumble to find comfort without pen in place. I doodle while on the telephone. I sketch still lifes as I have intimate conversations with a friend. Business meetings require a fresh pad of paper and sharp pencil so I can sketch ideas as I take notes.
Journaling is no longer about words on paper in a private padlocked book. It's now about color that represents my mood. It's clippings of inspiring photos and sketches of my day. Art journaling is comfortable and it suits me.
For me art is everywhere. Finely crafted furniture, funky jewelry, intricately woven rugs and smartly knitted crafts are all art forms. Each of these mediums, among others, intrigue me in one way or another, but none so much as paper arts. Pen, pencil, ink, chalk laid to paper in many and various forms is pure art candy. So tasty and delightful that I squeak.
As a young child I thought artists were poor starving men on the streets of Paris. Struggle was the assumption. This frustrated me to the point of giving up. Rather than pursue a life fraught with aggravation and since it was assumed "you can't make a living doing art" I passed on art school. Thought I'm still young in my heart, at almost forty, my now adult mind has learned that I can't live without being creative every day. It has finally recognized that artists can indeed make a living making art and thirdly, my heart and mind agree that art school is something I must try.
The styles of the Renaissance masters fascinate me and at one time I thought that that was the only way art could be. This probably explains my own struggles with style. Getting the details and proportions right have consumed me and created an unfair judgement against my own attempts.
My personal style is, as most artists, evolving. In the past I have used the word UPTIGHT to describe my style because I have worked on small planes and usually with great detail. I am working at getting out of my own way to work in new styles; I have discovered a looser way is relaxing and fun to do. It removes the pressure. It's refreshing.
I have worked in a variety of mediums including: pen and ink, oils, acrylics, pencil, chalk, collage and assemblage. I do not concern myself with my art being salable. I will create pieces that feed my own soul. If a piece stirs something in someone else then I welcome it and hold my head high.
There it is, my application essay. Let's hope they'll accept me as a student. Fingers and toes crossed??
2 comments:
How wonderful! How great that you are going for your goal! you know that you are an artist at heart! It is inspiring.
Melba shared your blog address with me. I am starting to journal my thoughts on a blog, too. Some day I want to be out in the larger world loving what I do.
What a WONDERFUL essay. And I absolutely adore the tree piece.
Regardless of the status of your art school application, you are taking the necessary steps to being an artist....
YOU ARE AN ARTIST.
Thank you for sharing this with us!
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