The 360-Degree Check-Up
Artists need to self-analyze continuously, asking themselves:
- Why do I make art?
- What are my motivations?
- What are my inspirations?
- What is my message, content?
- What sets my work off from others?
- Where do I see myself and my art - within society, within the art spectrum?
- Where do I want to take my art?
- Am I doing what I need to do to get where I want to be...and do I have time to do it?
For example: I started working on iPad creations when I cannot get to the studio... It may or may not lead to something else, but I am still creating!
This Artist's Cycle-of-Life:
So, about 2 years ago now, I found myself painting figures again...
It felt like "coming home." It seems to be a cycle with me that once I have quasi-mastered a new medium after working with it for three or more years, I begin painting the figure.
I started my art life drawing figures - usually ladies - at 4 or 6 years old. Since then, with sculpture, then watercolors, then acrylics and mixed media...I eventually find myself coming back to the human form, figures.
Do you have something like that in your art?
...something personal,
a favorite theme or subject matter?
If so, do not ignore it!
In acrylics, I moved or evolved from these non-objective, mixed media abstract expressionist works (circa 2013)...
...to these abstract expressionist figurative paintings in 2014.
Who knows where I will move from here...
It is a journey that is uniquely mine.
My current series focuses on relationships
and the influences of my past, my own unique history.
What we must remember is this:
We must never limit ourselves. (There are enough people out there who will try to limit us, so we must remain positive and never give up on our dreams.) It is up to each artist to determine our own timeline for our progression and achievements. The sky is the limit and the journey is as important as the paintings that result from it.
Now: Let's get back to creating!!
Our world needs this art legacy we are making....
Yours in Art,
Elaine