I received a comment on my recent post Hand to Mouth from an anonymous reader. It said...
"Finding your hands and now heads getting a bit stale. I assume you produce for resale on Etsy and as long as there are buyers you make what you can. I imagine a more impactful work would be a collection of many hands/heads in one piece but then you would have to charge more and it may not be as profitable. Aren't you getting bored? Please forgive my frank opinion, I only happened upon your blog due to book reviews. I haven't researched your bio, other work, and only see what you post here. Enough said, everyone has to make a living."
While I do not imagine that the person who wrote this comment is likely to be back to my blog reading this post, I do feel compelled to respond. While I absolutely do make art to sell, I am not the least interested in the philosophy "as long as there are buyers you make what you can." Those of you who have followed my blog over time know that I have had very good success with my Etsy shop. I feel extremely lucky about that and do not take it for granted. If in fact my motivation was as "anonymous" suggested, I would still be making the exact same pieces that originally sold well in my shop when it first opened back in 2008.
My work is often based in series. The number of pieces in each series has varied greatly. I do not stop or start a series based on how well or how poorly it sells. When my creative energy and interest in an idea runs dry, I stop. When I have said what I need to say through the artwork, the series ends.
I thank "anonymous" because this comment gave me the opportunity to review the different series I have created. And because I cannot seem to put up a post without images, I get to share them with you too. So take a walk with me down memory lane...
Solstice Series
Revolution
Hearts
Mountain Series
Desert Series
Iconduits
Book Marks
Text Tiles
Zen Series
Melts
Making Waves
Headliners
Anonymous asks "aren't you getting bored?" No way, no how! I am still passionately inspired by these hands and the Making Waves series. And I feel excited about the shift in direction that has become my Headliners series. Hands and heads...they are a big part of what makes us who we are, both as people and as artists.
This comment also has me thinking about "blogland", which I see as a very unique and special world unto itself. It is a place filled with support, reinforcement, compassion, and positivity. This world is often far removed from the "real" art world, especially in NYC where I live. All anybody has to do to get a sense of this is to watch the critiques from one episode of Bravo's "Work of Art."
Needless to say, I think most comments we all receive can be characterized as positive. That is true for myself too. I have on occasion read comments left on a few other blogs that were mean spirited and personally insulting and usually the blogger responds with a post. I will admit that I was initially taken aback by reading the above comment left for me, as it is so unusual for comments to be critical. However, I do not consider it negative at all. "Anonymous" has every right to feel that my work "is a bit stale." This is just one person's opinion. And in fact, that this comment has led to this posting and an opportunity for discussion is nothing but a good thing.
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