First God created time; then God created man that man might, in the course of time, perfect himself; then God decided that He'd better create eternity. (Robert Brault)

SIMON RENARD DE SAINT-ANDRÉ   Vanitas   c. 1650   Oil on canvas

You're Going to Get Rejected



Wm. Mulready - The Sonnet - 1839
Oil on canvas, 36 x 31 cm
Victoria and Albert Museum, London

Galleries are going to reject you, people are going to say insensitive things about your work, critics are going to ignore you and family members are going to plot to steal your painting time but you have to pick yourself up and go back at it.

(Cathie Harrison)

Today I got rejected.

Well, I knew I had a slimmer chance of acceptance,

but it,s still difficult to read the rejection letter.

Do you think rejection is a necessary part of an art career?

The Role of Anxiety in Making Art

Anxiety is the hand maiden of creativity. (T. S. Eliot)

REMBRANDT - Portrait of a Young Woman
  1632-   Oil on canvas, 92 x 71 cm

So this week I am taking a painting workshop with my former teacher.
Of course, I am a little anxious about it.
I have prepared all my materials, and packed my bag.
But the anxiety is still there.
I really don't know why, because I have taken classes with him before.
I guess it's just the fear of the unknown.
And, like most artists, I am worried about my skill level.
I am sure everything will turn out well.
But anxiety keeps me focused, alert, and ready to act.

How does anxiety factor into your work?

Jane Austen on Charm

Jacob Cuyp -  Portrait of a Child  -   1628?

There is no charm equal to tenderness of heart.
Jane Austen

Never miss a good chance to shut up. (Will Rogers)

At first thought, this quote seems to refer to conversation between individuals.

But what if we thought about its meaning in a different way?

Don't we also need to "shut up" and listen to ourselves?

REMBRANDT - The Mennonite Minister Cornelis Claesz. Anslo
 in Conversation with his Wife, Aaltje (detail) - 1641 
Oil on canvas

Daily Motivation

Albrecht Durer -  Portrait of a Young Venetian Woman
   1505  -   Oil on elm panel, 32.5 x 24.5 cm

People often say that motivation doesn't last. Well, neither does bathing – that's why we recommend it daily. (Zig Ziglar)

What can you come up with as a daily motivator?

Hidden Treasures

 Annibale Fontana   Lidded Goblet
   before 1569  
Rock crystal, enamelled gold setting  
Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna

The human heart has hidden treasures, / In secret kept, in silence sealed; / The thoughts, the hopes, the dreams, the pleasures, / Whose charms were broken if revealed.
(Charlotte Bronte)

What "treasures" are you hiding, and why?

Can you express any of these treasures through art, music, writing?

How High is Your Learning Curve?

I don't always have a five-year plan. One thing you must do in life is keep your learning curve as high as possible. (Yo-Yo Ma)

Yo-Yo is speaking about challenges, and keep one's skills on a continual quest for improvement.

What skills do you need to reconsider and improve?

What learning curve do you need to expand higher?

PARMIGIANINO - Portrait of a Young Lady   c. 1535 -  Oil on canvas, 139 x 88 cm  
Museo Nazionale di Capodimonte, Naples

Art is Risky Business

Art is, from any point of view, the greatest of risks. (Jean Helion)

Why is it so risky to be an artist?

Is it because, as artists, we wear our hearts on our sleeves?

Is it because we cannot separate ourselves from our work?

Is it because we fear rejection and criticism?

But what do we gain if we never put brush to canvas?

 John Singleton Copley - Brook Watson and the Shark - 1778  
Oil on canvas, 182 x 230 cm - National Gallery of Art, Washington

Where is fantasy bred, in the heart or in the head? (Willy Wonka)

DOMENICHINO - The Cumaean Sibyl - c. 1610  
Oil on canvas - Pinacoteca Capitolina, Rome

In one ear...

-ca. 1385...
Oon ere it herde, at tother out it wente. [trans. in one ear and out the other] (Geoffrey Chaucer)

The phrase "in one ear and out the other" rings true for parents of teenagers.

 Quiringh van Brekelenkam 
  Confidental Conversation - 1661  
Oil on panel, 47 x 36 cm  
Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam  

We scold, suggest, hint, and demand, yet the words have no effect on them.

We want to help them avoid danger, be healthy and have opportunities.

But we are also susceptible to having words travel through our own heads,  in a meaningless torrent.

What words might you make more of an effort to listen to?

A Yogi-ism for Artists

You can observe a lot by just watching. (Yogi Berra)

The other morning I hunted high and low throughout the house for my favorite coffee mug.

I checked the car, the studio, and the dishwasher.

As I closed the dishwasher, I looked up at the counter and noticed my freshly washed mug serenely sitting there.

I had looked, but I did not see.

As artists, we learn to see, to acutely observe.

It does not suffice to just "look."

My art took a giant leap forward when I was finally able to focus on fully observing my subject.

To do this, I narrow my field of vision.

I observe all the details of the one section of the subject.

The whole is divided into parts.

What do you need to focus on to really see?

 Willem Claesz Heda   Still-Life with Gilt Goblet   1635  
Oil on panel, 88 x 113 cm  
Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam

Art will never exist without...

Art will never be able to exist without nature. (Pierre Bonnard)

Let's really stop and think about this.

Without nature, there is no art.

Nature is inherent in almost every piece of art, whether it is the subject matter, the materials, or the emotion conveyed through the artwork.

It's a gorgeous morning here in New Hampshire.

The leaves are turning, the sky is a deep cerulean blue, and the grass glistens with the morning dew.

It's a work of art.

I hope you enjoy the artful side of nature today.

Richard Wilson   View of Syon House across the Thames near Kew Gardens  
c. 1760       Oil on canvas, 104 x 139 cm

Missed Opportunity

Opportunity is missed by most people because it is dressed in overalls and looks like work. (Thomas Edison)

Hmmm, Edison implies that opportunity is work.

Sometimes it seems as though others get all the "breaks," or opportunities.

But is that really what is happening? Sometimes, it may be a "lucky break."

I think it has more to do with working on a daily basis.

How have you met your opportunities? Did you have to roll up your sleeves and get to work?

Georges de La Tour   The Newborn   1640s  
Oil on canvas, 76 x 91 cm

Art and Technology | A Tango of Tension

Technology, like art, is a soaring exercise of the human imagination. (Daniel Bell)

Art dances with technology in a tango of tension.

Together they can appear as one, unified in a smooth blend of moves.

But in one quick turn, they pull apart.

Artists have resided along the continuum of technology - some embracing it fully, others decrying its fast and finicky nature.

How has technology impacted your art?

 Jacob van, the Elder Oost   The Artist's Studio   1666  
Oil on canvas, 111,5 x 150,5 cm

Beauty and Grace

Beauty and grace command the world.

(Park Benjamin)

 Jean-Honoré Fragonard 
  A Young Girl Reading
  c. 1770  
Oil on canvas, 81 x 65 cm  
National Gallery of Art, Washington  

Beauty and grace are two traits which rarely appear in their purest form in one individual.

People who have shown true beauty and grace have captured our hearts and minds.

They are the legends, the shining stars, the unforgettable.

They have been poor people, princesses, volunteers and saints, and have commanded our world, and our attention.

But sometimes, they have been the quiet ones, silent in deed and in voice, yet still full of beauty and grace.

Whom do you see as full of beauty and true grace?

The Spirituality of Art

First, one seeks to become an artist by training the hand.

Then one finds it is the eye that needs improving.

Later one learns it is the mind that wants developing,

only to find that the ultimate quest of the artist is in the spirit.

(Larry Brullo)

How have you experienced the spirituality of art?

 Lorenzo Lotto   Madonna and Child with Saints and an Angel (detail)  
1527-28  
Oil on canvas  

Discipline | What's Your Struggle?

Artemisia Gentileschi  
Self-Portrait as the Allegory of Painting   1630s
Oil on canvas, 96,5 x 73,7 cm  
Royal Collection, Windsor  

It is one thing to praise discipline,

and another to submit to it. (Miguel De Cervantes)

Every morning I wake up and look at my treadmill. I want to have the self discipline to run on it daily, but I struggle to get up and get on it. Some days, its very easy. Most days, it takes almost herculean effort.

As artists, it's necessary to adhere to self discipline in the studio. Without it, there would be no art, or at least no completed artwork. Thankfully, I am much better at being disciplined in the studio.

How have you struggled with self-discipline in the studio or your life?

The Healing Power of Art

I have huge appreciation for the healing power of art.

(Melanie Circle)

How has art "healed" you?



STEEN, JanThe Doctor and His Patient   c. 1660?  
Oil on canvas, 76 x 64 cm  
Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam



The Pursuit of Perfection

Forget perfection; only God is perfect. Go for excellence. (William Herring)

John Singleton Copley   Paul Revere  
1768-70  
Oil on canvas, 87,5 x 71,5 cm  
Museum of Fine Arts, Boston