Oblivious to what the world was saying about my sudden interest in art, I immersed myself in the pursuit of art like I was an artist all along! Since I am a self-described moody person who refuses to do anything that is of no interest to me, it wasn’t until I was shown how to paint with oils indoors that I delved into making art. The frustration of waiting for oil paintings to dry, especially in the winter months, made me explore better ways of working with acrylics. Just last year, I created more than 58 paintings because I told my son I would do it to mark the 58th year of my life. This led to applying for grants and exposing my work to the world. Luckily, for me it was quite well received!
Amidst the elation of presumable success, however, the unfathomable happened. “Did you go to art school?”, “Let me tell you the basics”, “What are you trying to make?”, “Where are you coming up with these ideas?”, “Are you making these up in your head?”, “Your hypothesis is wrong”, “Everything you are talking about is already done”. While these words of unsolicited advice were a bit demoralizing at first, what the naysayers did not know was that the quiet façade I portray actually masks a feisty, thinking, fearless and inquisitive mind. As I sit here writing this blog post, I came across quite a few articles on the subject. Just google the title of this blog and you will find that many people have much to say.
So, why should I add to the debate? Because people actually said these things to me! No one has the right to question whether you are an artist or not. Keep making your art. Not everybody is as strong-willed and butt-headed as I am, so this blog is dedicated to those people who at some point in their lives were minimalized for some reason or another. Let the world decide if they like your work and keep the naysayers at bay by forging right on.
