Maybe there are other artists like me. Maybe these artists are searching for their voice, perfecting their personal style, and making other excuses for why they cannot put themselves out there as a professional... yet.
I have spent years being "too busy, too tired, too broke" to focus on being a full time artist. I have been the queen of excuses. I have made an art out of procrastination, when I should have just been making art!
After graduating with a BFA in Painting, I gradually lost motivation and lost myself in the daily grind. Before I knew it I was giving all of myself to a job and nothing to art. A regular job gave me security and stability, but drained me of happiness and fulfillment as I couldn't shake the feeling that it was not what I was meant to do.
I wish I could say when I reached my breaking point, but I'm not sure it was just one moment in time- it was a series of moments over months and years, a thousand tiny fractures - a hundred chips and chinks, until it all just hit a crashing crescendo! And I was done!
I was done with the daily grind. I was done with the procrastination. I was done making excuses.
And now here I am, Week 1, navigating this strange and mysterious world of basic web design, self promotion, social media and the ever changing landscape of the digital age - all while learning a whole new method of time management and self motivation.
I keep going back to a small piece of encouragement given to me ... "Follow your bliss." It is from a poem by Joseph Campbell - simple and inspiring. It plays in my head like a mantra as I learn to approach my art as a business.
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