Art is boundless, as open as the artist.

It’s a dialogue, isn’t it? Between viewer and artist? And at the same time, it’s an internal monologue expressed. It is the artist’s thoughts, skills, questions, poured into a single expression with no feedback outside of the media used.

My Job is one in which I use my technical ability to create art, and I get compensated for each piece I produce. I teach people how to be successful at the same thing. At work I am constantly thinking about the viewer. Art at work MUST be accepted in order to be successful.

At home, in my creative space, a different story unfolds. I can look how I want, sit how I want, drink what I want, listen to whatever sounds I choose. There is no customer feedback on the spot.

Now I’ve come to a point almost exactly in the middle — I have begun to consider selling work I create at home, mainly because so much of it has stacked up over the years. My concern is that the purity of the process will be contaminated when I open my work up to being sold. Will I start to make artistic decisions based on possible sales interest? Will I be aware of that process or would it happen naturally, without my awareness? If I explore the path of sales, how long before I lose what pleases me about creating art?

One of the items on my friends’ list of challenges was a musical instrument. This is a photo of me and an edge of the piano I painted. I’ll try to dig up completed photos of the piano — it was colorful and sparkly and fun!

This was a particularly fun challenge because I got the call from a business contact who asked if I’d be interested and willing to paint a piano for Pacific Symphony on behalf of Downtown Disney. While I had never painted a piano at that point, a challenge on its own, the real obstacle was completing it in less than a week while still engaging with family, going to school, working full-time, and, you know, life-ing. My schedule for the rest of the week went something like this: Work 9am until 5 or 6pm. Leave and do family/school/life stuff. Go back to Anaheim to a small office with a piano jammed inside, barely enough wiggle room to move around the piano and paint. Turn on some music, start working. I would work on the piano from 9 or 10pm until at least 2am. A couple nights I worked until after 4am. Then I went back to work at 9am.

On delivery day I went to work early, around 8am, and applied a clear protective coat to the entire piano, then I started work at 9am. Around noon I took my lunch break and ran back over to the piano to apply a second protective clear coat. That was the last I worked on it, and I felt so accomplished. I believe the number of days between initial phone call and final delivery was something like 5 or 6 days!

When the piano was complete it was placed at Downtown Disney as part of a county wide public opportunity to play pianos that had been placed throughout the county. It was such an awesome thing to walk in to Downtown Disney and see people playing the piano and taking pictures with it!

Everyone is an artist here, and like a discussion, it takes two or more to tango.

I’ll post my own works in progress (WIP), process descriptions, finished pieces, inspiration pieces, and fun art-related information. What I’m really looking for is ideas from others that I can run with and explore.

My first challenge: ask friends what I should paint on!

Here’s a list of ideas from friends:

1. Watercolor on plywood
2. Thrift store dress
3. Agate slice (then make into a necklace)
4. On a face
5. Window
6. Saw blade
7. Rain boots
8. Umbrella
9. Mail box
10. Hats
11. Mannequin
12. Headboard
13. Stale funnel cake
14. Mirrors
15. Saturday (the name of a ball-joint doll I have acquired on loan from a friend to paint, once my Saturday back-story is complete)
16. Canvas army bag
17. Surfboards
18. Skateboard
19. Coffins
20. Bus bench
21. Little red wagon
22. Garage door
23. Purses
24. Musical instruments
25. Wooden shutter
26. Window shade
27. A VW
28. Hydrant
29. Rocks
30. Glass
31. Flower pots – 3-5 piece scenes

The funny thing is I have already painted on many things in this list. Perhaps I should start by sharing what I have already done on this list?

Years ago I lived in a home that was blessed with an amazing porch.

The porch is where friends would gather and talk into the first birdsong of morning. We were artists, musicians, writers, thinkers. The conversations we had were of and about and an art unto themselves.

Grab a chair, a pillow, or a spot on the ledge. Kick off your shoes and let your feet hang free. We’ll wait for the moon to rise, light a few candles, and let the conversation flow.

Everyone is an artist here.

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