On the Subject of Style

My comment on the discussion of style by "Ancient Artist: Developing an art career after 50":

This subject has come up with me often, as well. I have been told by "those who know" that I have a personal style and that this is essential to become a collected artist. I don't see it, but I'm real happy others do if that's what it takes to be considered an ARTIST. I just paint. It's that simple. I can't find any cohesion with my watercolors and my oils, but I love both mediums. My pen and inks are nothing like my oils and watercolors, but they are still MY WORK. So, I would say that those "Who make the rules" have done most artist's a disservice. Being an artist lends itself to being free and unconventional. So telling us that we need to find our signature is like telling an ant not to build an underground den. I say just keep doing what feels good and there will always be someone out there who wants to share your den.

New School Year

This is the time of year when I reflect on lessons I've been given from the classes I've purposely or inadvertantly enroled in and decide which classes I need to further my education.

My class schedule was heavy for 2008. I took "Caring for Injured Mother 101", Caring for Stroke Victim Father 102", "Learning How to Emotionally Handle Declining a Wonderful Opportunity Due to Lack of Funds" (that was a three part class), "Galleries and How They Can Teach You To Be More Patient", "When To Say No" and "Where To Go From Here". Great classes with lots of opportunities to learn and apply the lessons.

I met some great people in my classes which for me is usually the best part of going to school. My grades were average, probably due to the class load, but I really learned a lot. The important part of education is taking the learned knowledge and applying it to your life and career.

This year I've enrolled in "Not Accepting Failure", "How To Have A Millionaire's Attitude with Limited Funds" and "Balancing Family and Career and Still Making the Cut". I haven't talked with my counselor yet, but I'm going to try and keep my class schedule low. She might have a few more classes she thinks I might need to reach the Master's Program, but I really want to concentrate on better grades.

Well I just got a call from my counselor and she told me I'm going to have to retake "When To Say No", but it's only a 2 credit course so I should be able to fit it into my schedule.

I hope I meet some of you in school this year. It's always such a blast when we can all get together and bounce around our curriculum and cram for those tests. See you in the Class of 2009.

In response to Robert Genn's "Love your Name"

I've had my share of names in this life time. When I started painting I was Weisel. Weisel quickly turned into Weisel-Keisser then just Keisser. Then I moved on to Keisser-Jirik which became Jirik. I took a break from painting, but not name changing. I was glad to skip that next name and go directly into Jirik-Guichu. Alas I have settled permanently on Guichu. My husband is real happy about that, too. There was a time between Jirik and Guichu when I seriously considered changing to O'Malley. I hadn't ever met an O'Malley so I thought it would be safe - thankfully I didn't. I would have ended up with Jirik-O'Malley-Guichu, or maybe Weisel-Keisser-Jirik-O'Malley-Guichu. Talk about an identity crisis. My advise to all female painters is to pick a name and stick with it. Collectors will take you more seriously and your personal life won't be plastered all over your artwork.

2nd Day of my New Year

Today I want to talk about "BE BACKS". A lot of you artists have probably evolved from the weekend fine art shows to dealing only with galleries, but you must be able to remember the "BE BACKS".

In Early December my "FOR SURE" customer said he wouldn't have money for the painting he was buying from me until after December 31st. Okay, my first reaction was, Hum Bug, there goes Christmas. It hadn't flashed at me yet. I still had it in my desperate 'I need that sale' mind set that after Dec. 31st meant January 1, 2009. A few days passed and it hit me. He may be a "BE BACK" kind of guy. (Did you catch that 'may be'? I'm still holding out hope.) I mean really, what does after Dec. 31st really mean? Does it mean January 1st or April 16th or August 21st, 2054?

It wasn't that long ago, (well about 15 years, but who's counting) when I was sitting in a park with my easy-up and paintings taking a tally of how many BE BACKS I had talked to that day. All of the artists would get together at the end of the day and compare lists. I guess you had to be there. It was fun. I would want to say, "when will you be back?" Five minutes, three hours, tomorrow, NEVER!

I had such a tremendous day yesterday. So many incredibly cool people have joined me on Twitter. So I took inventory. Instead of stressing over my BE BACK I can slip over and listen to Mike Dooley, founder of TUT.com remind me that my thoughts become things. Just listening to him makes me driven to think January 1st, 2009 not 2054. After I center my positive thought process I can jump right back into Alyson Standfield's book "I'd Rather be in the Studio". Then I'll go to MCHammer's site and listen to poetic music while I paint.

It's going to be another great day. You have one, too.

Comment on Robert Genn's "Channeling Negative Energy" Dec.12, 2008

Getting together with family isn't my most anticipated endeavor. I'm the one in my family who always wants to make nice. But during the holidays I'm put to the test. Two years ago I did a painting between Thanksgiving and Christmas. My husband finally begged me to take it down. He felt so much anger coming from it that it was distracting and depressing to him. I tried everything I could to cheer it up, but the drama just wouldn't go away. Gesso was my only option. I do think that stress and conflict can produce some powerful work. Perhaps, for many of us, painting is our way of escaping reality. During times of high stress, the strength that it takes to shed it comes out in our work.

Art Jury Competition

One Step Up From Third was accepted into the Fall/Winter 2008 show.

Today is the beginning of my New Year. I'm a bit early, but I have to get started. I've decided to create boundaries this year. I'm setting aside 4 hours a day for art. No phone calls or interruptions will be allowed except emergencies which will come through on my cell phone. That's an easy one since only four family members have that number and I have told them of my plans so they know not to use it unless it is a dire emergency. That will be up for interpretation I'm sure.

This sounds harsh to those around me, but it's more of an exercise for me. I need the discipline of not answering the phone. I need to concentrate on building my business of art. Whether it involves reading other art blogs, working on my website, studying the business of promotion or painting, I will be doing it between 11am and 3pm, Monday through Friday every week this year. I will leave open the days I clean my parents house and I'm sure there will be some days I will need to go there to fit things. But I will try to make it before 11am or after 3pm.

It has occurred to me that I've been full of excuses to insure my failure. I tell myself that I must be there for my parents. Both of them have health issues. Then there are my grandchildren that I love and am happily responsible for 4 out of the 5 school days and nights each week. They need me to collect them from school and give them my attention. I can't leave out my husband who has a tendency to call me 4 or 5 times a day and I do have friends that need to tell me all their problems, too. Boundaries. That's the ticket. If I can do it so can they. There's going to be a bit of an adjustment period, but I'll let you know how it goes. I'm optimistic that all of us can make it through.

Negative interaction brings my creativity to a screeching halt. If I can discipline myself to not allow negativity or any interference into my life for 4 itty bitty hours a day I can only imagine how much I will be able to accomplish toward my goals.

Happy beginning of 2009 to all of you. Let me know what your goals are and we can all help each other sit up straight and get on with it.

Figures in my painting

I've been struggling with this idea for months now. It has been on my mind so strongly that what was to be a draped cloth ended up looking like a business suit with an invisible person inside. I'm an abstract painter. I absolutely love looking at your landscapes. I've tried to do a peaceful, serene, warm landscape, but it's not in me. I end up with odd shapes and lots of color. Even with what I do, I still wonder if I should place a person inside my fantasy. Perhaps someone struggling to climb that purple-striped mountaintop. I promised myself this week I would walk past my fear. I would venture into the 'what if I ruin my painting' fear and climb over that peak into the unknown. You have given me a challenge now. The painting I'm working on has a place for a figure to assist in telling my story. I hope I make you proud.