Focus on the Positive

Work in Progress

Graphite on Strathmore Bristol Smooth 300 Series 100lb

Here of late, I have been worrying about why my art doesn’t sell. The biggest reason is because I have been creating pieces for family and close friends and I GIVE IT AWAY! I have been enjoying the process of creating that I can’t wait to share it with family and friends. I’ve been focusing on the positive elements of the process and not the end product of selling.

Yes, I still worry if other pieces will sell but while I’m waiting, I will still be creating. I have been thinking about creating smaller pieces that will enable me to get them done quickly. Quicker pieces results in more quantity. I’ll let God focus on the quality and I’ll focus on the quantity. Do you think I can pull it off?

What do you do when you run into the worry about sales?

Signatures and Lines

With the use of computers, writing is becoming a lost art. But we all sign our names. When you sign your name, you are expressing yourself with an element of art: line. On a sheet of scrap paper, write your name as you normally sign your name. Every time you write your name, you have expressed yourself in your own uniqueness. Try writing your name in three different styles. Look at the lines and let yourself respond to the nonverbal message each signature gives through the lines. A loose style implicates someone who is social, wears bright colors, and dramatic. A tighter signature says that a person could be quiet, reliable, and somewhat unadventurous. I might be wrong but a signature with sharp lines makes me think that a person is bold, easily angered, and stressed. Betty Edwards, from Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain says, “Your signature, however, does more than identify you. It also expresses you and your creativity. Your signature is true to yourself. In this sense, you already speak the nonverbal language of art: you are using the basic element of drawing, line, in an expressive way, unique to yourself.” I'm more of the tighter signature type, quiet, reliable, and somewhat unadventurous. What signature style are you?