Category Archives: art

Artists Block

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When I was a child I always considered myself an artist. There was no question about it, I knew I was an artist. It’s what made me feel happy, relaxed, and alive. (I know that’s dramatic) When I was asked what I wanted to be when I grew up, the answer was always the same. In elementary school I hated my art teacher, she was sarcastic (which is really confusing for a 7 year old) and even down right mean. Despite her being the worst, art was still my favorite subject. I specifically remember a lesson she did on Charles Schultz. We watched a documentary on his life and the creation process of The Peanuts. We then had to create our own cartoon character and design a comic strip. I created a character name Molly Pod. She was a ten year old girl with a very Pippy-Longstocking-like style. I drew Molly Pod for years.
I pursued art in high school and college and stayed relatively confident in my skill. Sure, I had peers with more refined skills or more original ideas, but it didn’t seems to really bother me. I was part of an elite AP studio art program in high school, which meant I had multiple art classes a day. Most importantly, that meant I had multiple opportunities to relax and be creative. I even thought very seriously about becoming an art teacher- but let’s be real guys, I would HATE teaching.
Now, as an adult in a career outside of the art industry, painting, drawing, and creating aren’t usually at the forefront of my mind. I’ve been in a rut for longer than I’d like to admit. Artists block, if you will. I’ve felt really uninspired, un-creative, and apathetic towards creating art. Which honestly makes me feel pretty crappy about myself. Even when I’ve been given great opportunities to create, I just don’t want to.IMG_0866(1990’s couch pattern inspired by my planner)IMG_0865
 Fast forward to two weeks ago- I’ve been forcing myself to doodle a little everyday, even when I don’t want to. Sometimes it’s in a sketchbook and sometimes it’s just on a post-it at work. I have a few creative ideas floating around in my head, ready to be worked out on paper. So, maybe I’m on my way out of the rut? I don’t want to speak too soon, but I think the discipline of intentionally drawing/doodling/creating is helping.

Art, Infinity Con, and a little Insecurity

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art 5art 3A couple of weeks ago I blogged about Infinity Con. If you didn’t read that blog, go read it now or you will be a little confused reading this post. Something I didn’t mention in that post was that I’m going to be selling some of my own art at the convention!
I’ll be honest, while I’m excited about this opportunity, I’m also nervous about it. I’ve been making art all my life, from pre-school to college, and I’ve loved it… but I’ve also struggled with feeling inadequate about it. In high school I was part of an AP art program for 3 years. While there were only a handful of students chosen to be part of the program, I still felt like I didn’t have the same talent and skill as my classmates. For the last 6 or 7 years I’ve gone back and forth about pursuing art. It’s something that makes me feel alive and doesn’t feel like work, but it’s also a place where insecurity lives and sometimes takes over. What if no one buys anything from me? What if people don’t like it? What if they don’t get it and I’m pegged as one of those weird artist!?!? My worst nightmare!! I’m just reminding myself that my worth doesn’t come from peoples opinions on the things I create. art 4art 6art 7IMG_0419As you can see, signing up to be an artist at a convention (even one my husband is planning) is kind of a big deal for me. Throughout this post I’ve shared a couple of pieces and will have even more at Infinity Con!
I’m nervous, but I’m sooo excited about this opportunity! I will be sharing a table with my very talented friend, Kyle. If you come to the Con, make sure to stop by our table!

Childhood Obsessions

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Something you should (or maybe already do) know about me is that I easily get obsessed with things. Turn of the century circus memorabilia, 1950’s horror movie posters, Weeki Wachi mermaids, Nancy Drew, cryptozoology, nail art… you name it! Also, my obsessions are always really evident in my artwork, even as a child! Remember about a year ago when I was forever drawing old telephones? I kid you not, that started because my favorite song was Call Me Maybe. I came across a box of my childhood artwork and thought it was really funny to see my obsessions from elementary school!
Obsessions no. 1, manatees. This was probably fueled by my parents and other relatives, but I definitely had a teal manatee sweat suit and manatee earrings to match. Oh, and hand drawn portraits, of course. manateeAlso, just general marine life. marine lifeMary Kate and Ashley Olsen. Still into them 20 years later. mk and aAnd last but not least, the Titanic. I think I wrote a report about it in third grade (3 years before the movie came out, btw). titanicI was also really into The Babysitters Club and native Americans. My sister, Brie, had a short lived obsession with cardinals and sunflowers. What were some of your childhood obsessions?

 

Painting Inspiration

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For Christmas, I painted house/ apartment portraits for my mother, mother-in-law and sister. I LOVE painting, but for some reason I just don’t do it very often. Recently, I was perusing one of my favorite art blogs, Ona Befort, and remembered she posted a really cool painting video several months ago. I remembered it, but didn’t look it up because I was lazy and sick and on my phone. THEN, a few days ago I was perusing another fave blog, Making It Lovely, and saw that Nicole Balch had posted the Ona Befort video! What great luck! I hope you can enjoy this video as much as I do!

Fawn and Flora ~ work in progress from Oana Befort on Vimeo.