"When you buy from an independent artist you are buying more than just a painting or a novel or a song. You are buying hundreds of hours of experimentation and thousands of failures. You are buying days, weeks, months, years of frustration and moments of pure joy. You are buying nights of worry about paying the rent, having enough money to eat, having enough money to feed the children, the birds, ...the dog. You aren't just buying a thing - you are buying a piece of heart, part of a soul, a private moment in someone's life. Most importantly, you are buying that artist more time to do something they are truly passionate about; something that makes all of the above worth the fear and doubt; something that puts the life into living." - Rebekah Joy Plett
HOW TO FEEL FULFILLED AS AN ARTIST ( OR HOW TO GET OVER YOUR SELF-SABOTAGE )
1. NEVER COMPARE YOURSELF TO OTHER ARTISTS.
2. KNOW THAT YOUR FAMILY IS BIASED. WHETHER FOR OR AGAINST, THEIR VIEWS ARE SKEWED AND DO NOT REPRESENT AN ACCURATE REFLECTION OF YOUR WORK IN THE WORLD.
3. BASE YOUR SUCCESS ON HOW YOUR ART HAS ENRICHED YOUR LIFE AND HOW YOU FEEL WHEN YOU CREATE IT.
4. CONSTANTLY PUSH YOURSELF TO EXPAND AND LEARN.
5. KNOW THAT ART CAN NEVER BE MEASURED IN DOLLARS AND WILL ONLY EVER APPRECIATE IN VALUE.
6. TRUST THAT WHEN YOU ARE MAKING THE WORLD MORE BEAUTIFUL, THERE IS ALWAYS ENOUGH. HONEST WORKS IS NOT A COMPROMISE IF IT SUPPORTS THE CREATION OF ART.
7. REMEMBER, IT IS THE JOB OF THE ARTIST TO CREATE NEW CULTURE, NOT SIMPLY TO REGURGITATE WHAT EXISTS.
8. NEVER EXPECT YOUR FAMILY TO UNDERSTAND YOUR ART, BUT DO YOUR BEST TO EDUCATE THEM ABOUT IT, PATIENTLY.
9. WHENEVER A CLIENT/GALLERY OWNER/PATRON OFFERS THEIR ADVICE, SMILE AND NOD. THEN CREATE YOUR ART AUTHENTICALLY.
10. REMEMBER WHAT DALI SAID: " HAVE NO FEAR OF PERFECTION. YOU'LL NEVER REACH IT".