Working Artist.

As a working artist it saddens me to the core to hear some people's thoughts about artists and art. Last weekend I did a little art fair in town.  I had someone else that was in this show (although more of a craftsmen) call me a starving artist.  I assured her that I was not starving in any sense of the word.  I told her I am a working artist.

I do take short term temporary assignments from time to time.  I am working tward a goal and that goal will take a lot of capital for the initial set up. I have fixtures to buy along with contracting out some of my bigger print projects. I have faith in my ability as an artist to generate a living;

I am on one of those assignments for the next week.  I was drafted to do the pumpkin for the building contest.  I brought in some acrylic paints and took about an hour to paint an owl .

Everyone seems very thrilled with it. "We are going to win this year!" has been uttered over and over.  Yet the person who is in charge, who loves it,  said... "You were supposted to waste more of the day doing art."  

I heard this so much when my children were young. " Oh, you had house work to do but you were too busy making pretty pictures"   This from my ex-husband.,  I had taken the work to a few places but had no real idea of where to start.  (This was pre-internet ) I had no real idea of how to start and no support. I just quit making any art at all.

I have askef this before but will ask this question again.

If my cousin-in-law can support his family using paint then why cant I?  He uses house paint.  I use a acrylics and oil pastels. Why is one a job and one a waste of time?  In my world it is not.

With the support of my loving husband and my family,  mother, children, step children(they had a perfectly good mother so I will never claim that status)  and on out to extended family.  I will continue on painting my dreams knowing to the core that they have value and are not a waste of my time.
#Art #WorkingArtist #StarvingArtist