A Pile of Peas

I have, of late, come to the conclusion that being a "successful" artist can, in many cases, (not all) be attributed, in the percentage of at least 80%, to the art of bullshit.

I have not perfected this art by anywhere near that percentage, hence my inability to create a large enough following for my work. I'm too honest, I tell it like it is. I have no flannel, no patter, just me and what I do.

For instance, I'm not a brilliantly talented artist (gasp! shocks none), that takes dedication and I'm far too easily distracted. I'm the person for whom the phrase "Ooh, shiny!" was created. However, to give credit where credit's due, I can hold my own in my field of portraiture. By that I mean I can compete well within my particular tier, these things are tiered you see. I know that there are many people much better than me on higher tiers and there are many not so competent on lower tiers. I hold my own. I get commissions, people are happy, I get paid, yay!

I have gone to lengths to improve my skills, dragging my ass down to London for 2 months in the winter to study in an ice box of a studio at LARA. I would have liked to have stayed for much longer (preferably during warmer times) but with responsibilities at home and limited funds that was all I could manage. It did, however, make a large difference to my work and there was a marked improvement that I was very pleased with.

So why the deviation from portraits? Well, I've always envied creativity in art. I have previously been happy to paint what I see as it is and have struggled for years to loosen up my style. I wanted to break away from that and so far it's been fun, liberating, I would even go so far as to say it's been a cathartic experience.

Yes, the Red Dress paintings are simple, naive and appear to be lacking in artistry but it's what they have to say on an individual level that's important. They were predominantly created for my benefit as a healing tool but they spoke to others as well. Many people commented that they had been touched in some way by the simple images. Most commented that they felt uplifted by them. Good, that's what I wanted for them. I only received one negative comment which was along the lines of "nice colours but, frankly, my 5 year old daughter could have done them". Yes, you're probably right, and good luck to her if that's the way she decides to go.

Regarding the Girl in the Red Dress, will she continue to tell her tales? Absolutely! But she's evolving. Those simple images were for a different time. I have changed so my depiction of her will change too. You may like it, you may not, but the images are there just waiting to come out and she, like me, will continue to grow.

So there we have it, that is my level of bullshit, sitting at around 0%. I just can't do it. What you see is what you get. A Pile of Peas :-)