Promises Promises...each time I have a few painting successes I come back Promising more. Yet, I let distractions get my attention and coming back is slow as well as painful. The worse of it is, I believed my own promises. I have little faith in them any longer, and that is not a good place to be. Today I will catch up the work that was done for the October show at Ross Gallery. It moved a little further than the last photo's I posted and the top series was sold to Christian Brothers University and bought by their donor. Nice, you may think, and some have said to me since it will be in an established academia situation that I have made it. What exactly does "made it" mean?  Does selling ones work on a grand scale mean you made it? Does everyone knowing your name mean you made it? Does respect among your peers mean you made it? I don't really know...I guess if within yourself you are satisfied, that could be the most worthy aspect of making it....in my case.... I may never make it.

Right now. I am at this crossroad of trying to establish what I want to do next. Do I want to paint for painting's sake or do I want to paint items and things that sell and can make many people happy. I don't know....seriously I don't know. I do know I use to paint for the sheer enjoyment. My subject matter was my point of interest. I was carefree about the "job of painting". I didn't struggle so much with "will anyone like this", I just painted. I was able to produce tons of work, though maybe not work in a series aspect. but work I was proud of...work that sold if that is a criteria to making it. I then realized if my intention was to get noticed, I had to work in a series mode and show that my work was not spots of ingenuity but real creative processes. So off to prove I could do a series...each series evolving into a new series. Was it enough? from where I am sitting I guess not.

So here I am standing once again to see what is next, painting for me or painting to sell. sometimes if lucky it can be both, lately it is one or the other. How many artist stand at this same place and ponder this same question? Guess if I could just be satisfied with whatever the outcome would be, I would find myself painting once again and enjoying it.