This site is not just to show and sell my paintings BUT also to inspire anyone who drops in to be more creative for their own personal fulfillment.
People often say to me “you’re so talented!” And while it’s a lovely compliment, inherent in it is the belief that I possess some skill they don’t possess. Trust me. I’m not gifted. I’m no Picasso or Modigliani. I couldn’t draw a hangman five years ago. What changed me was my willingness to fail. Having earned my living for most of my adult life as a writer and writing professor, I imagined I’d be a huge success. I was continually disappointed because nothing lived up to my expectations. A dear friend always encouraged me to lower expectations. When I started painting, for the first time in my life I went into it with no expectations other than to enjoy it. I started painting believing I’d be shitty at it. In turn, I found something that gives me enormous joy and sense of personal accomplishment.
All that separates me, for example, from someone who isn’t a writer is that I actually write. Many people want to write but think, “I won’t be good so why bother?” The ONLY reason I chose painting was because I’d never done it and I wanted instant gratification. I can play a little piano but would have to practice 24 hours a day for eternity to play a decent Chopin Sonata. There was freedom in jumping into something I knew nothing about and showed no facility for!
If you haven’t read “Just Friends” by Patti Smith, I encourage you to do so. It inspired me to open my eyes to art in all its many forms. I started painting because I believed it would improve my writing and I think it has. And in the process it also turned me into a painter. All forms of creativity are linked.
So plunge in, try something that scares you every day. What’s the worst that can happen?