Beauty restores. Beauty comforts. Beauty heals. You cannot overdose on beauty.
He has made everything beautiful in its time. . . Ecclesiastes 3:11a
Things I’m learning in Artworld.
Beauty restores. Beauty comforts. Beauty heals. You cannot overdose on beauty.
He has made everything beautiful in its time. . . Ecclesiastes 3:11a
I saw this on Instagram, and don’t know who to credit. Totally tickles my funny bone.
My business referral group, Business Network International, tells us to meet with other members in our chapter once a week. We need to truly know one another to confidently refer business. This friend and I met at the river and properly socially distanced.
This is probably the best my studio garden will look all year. Everything is temporary (including this stupid virus, so there.)
As a very late adopter of tech, until a few weeks ago I didn’t know what FaceTime was. This week, a dear friend and I had a long visit via FaceTime – what a treat! We’ve known each other since 5th or 6th grade and after a decades long separation, we reunited about 4 years ago. I showed her some artwork; she sang me a song and I “met” her husband. (Sorry, no photo for this.)
My friends/customers put this on Facebook, and then sent it to me as a screenshot because they know I would enjoy the setting for their goofy post. Makes me grin. (Yes, I know there shouldn’t be an apostrophe in “it’s” but I didn’t write it. Or its. Or it’s.)
May you find some fun on Saturday. (Remember when you wished weekends would last forever? What do you think about that now?)
It feels as if I already told you what I learned in all those listicles. These are just occurrences in my strange little world, not things I learned.
How about a list of books I read:
What did you read?
What do you miss?
What is taking place in your strange little world?
Today I am going to overwhelm you with good things. It takes many postives to outweigh the negatives in Normal Times. Right now we are not in Normal Times. Duh.
Because it is Sunday, here is the ultimate good thing.
You will show me the path of life; in Your presence is fullness of joy; at Your right hand are pleasures forevermore. Psalm 16:11
Lots of thoughts have come to me as we are shut down. Some are new, some are just a reinforcement of something I’ve already known or suspected.
This got too long. It will be continued tomorrow.
The degree of thankfulness Trail Guy and I have to live in a place where we are not trapped in an apartment in a city is almost overwhelming.
I’m not writing this to make you feel bad; I want you to be able to think of what is special about where you live and be just as grateful.
There are poppies on the distant hillsides, but the phone-camera can’t see that far. So, I focused on the Lady Banks rose.
Unintended good things about this lockdown:
Because it is Sunday, here is some additional encouragement:
“Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable–if anything is excellent or praiseworthy–think about such things.” Philippians 4:8
What’s up in your world?
What passes for recreation these days is gleaning oranges in a friend’s grove in Lemon Cove. (Don’t be confused – there is a Lemon Grove in San Diego, and an Orange Cove in Fresno County, and Lemon Cove is in Tulare County.) This has always been fun for Trail Guy and me, but now it is almost the only thing we do for fun. Taking walks, yardening, they count too, but I’m talking about going somewhere in a vehicle.
It is fun to ramble around the grove, take photos, hunt, find, pick, eat, and later, to share. As an added bonus, when I am out there I can touch my face as much as I want, so there. (Talk about fun – wowsa.)
We are having more fun than humans should be allowed, especially when we are supposed to be hunkered down in our dwellings, watching too much teevee, taking in confusing and conflicting information, and being afraid.
Not us, nosireebob.
This is what passes for a business trip in this time of “staying in place”. And now I have ideas and inspiration for new paintings. Take that, Virus!
There is a misperception about artists, that we just sit around waiting for inspiration, and then paint what and when we feel like it.
Artists who do that are usually hobbyists. Professionals know that life is easier when you have money, and if you want to sell, you need to paint what people want to buy, and then make yourself and your work visible and available.
Treating art-making as a business means many things are necessary:
I am reading Building a Story Brand: Clarify Your Message So Customers Will Listen by Donald Miller. He is an author whose memoirs I have enjoyed for many years, and “suddenly” (how did he pull this off from a navel-gazing author?) he has become a very wise business coach. His podcast, Building a Story Brand is one of my favorites, both for his business acumen and his sense of humor. I trust this guy and just really like how he communicates.
This is what I have come up with after spending time with his book; I think it really summarizes what I do.
Making art you understand, about places and things you love, at prices that won’t scare you.
(There is a parenthetical addition to the end of this little blurb: “because buying art shouldn’t require a degree.)
Now I just have to figure out how to incorporate that into all my marketing efforts.
I’d really rather be painting or drawing, but sometimes an artist has to do what she has to do.
(With thanks to my longtime blog reader and virtual friend Marjie who helped me streamline the words)