For Sale: Original Art, Five Cents

My dear sweet boys, who are 9 and 10, occasionally get in the mood to earn some money, and one of their favorite ways is to have an "Art Sale". They both make a stack of paintings or drawings or pastels, write their prices in the corners (usually ranging from one penny to twenty-five cents), make a sign proudly stating "Art Sale" with an arrow which they tape to the kitchen doorway, and then they sit down and wait for business.

Sometimes they do this when they know their Grammie is coming over. Sometimes they do this when we have invited friends over, but whether they know we have impending visitors arriving does not seem to be the real impetus behind the art sale. It is also not usually not tied to the desire to get some extra cash to buy a coveted toy. Believe it or not, it is usually tied to using a new medium or trying a new art style that gets them excited and focused on creating new pieces for their demanding public.

I had attended a conference for art teachers over the weekend and brought home a handful of the new Crayola Color Sticks. If you have not heard of them, they are kind of like the colored lead inside of colored pencils, but thicker and without the wood. They are not waxy like crayons or dusty like pastels. The surface of them almost feels like a ceramic finish, but that is the feel all the way through the Color Stick. We know because we already broke some of them.

I found a stack of colored construction paper, cut them in half (so each boy would have the exact same number and color of sheets that his brother had), and they went to work excitedly on their "abstracts". They do know that if a painting does not have figures or identifiable forms that it is considered "abstract".

With the excitement and lack of indecision that sometimes only a child can exhibit, they produced their art rapidly and without fear. It wasn't a scribbling thing, though. They paused before each picture and put some thought into their next piece. Sometimes, while they were working on one piece they would declare, "Oh! I know what I am going to do on my next drawing!"

I have a hard time remembering when I attacked any art project with what could legitimately be called "unbridled enthusiasm". I do remember being excited about new materials and new directions. I can even remember being enthused about new compositions. It makes me sad to say that I do not remember attacking my substrate with new materials the way my boys did with those Color Sticks. After an initial test of just a stroke or two on some scratch paper, they were ready and raring to go.

Think of idea. Execute idea. Prepare show for display. Reap the rewards.

Shouldn't it be that simple for the rest of us artists? Are we too "mature" to express that kind of passion? I sincerely hope I am not. If you don't have passion for your art, you need another profession. If you don't feel like you must create your art no matter what, then you don't have enough passion for your art.

As a "non-traditional" senior in college, every time I go to class I am exposed to a younger generation of artists that are preparing to embark on the world. We talk in our Senior Seminar class about very pertinent things like resumes, CV's, and the daunting "Artist's Statement". We look forward to having guest speakers come to our class later in the semester to share information with us about interviewing skills. Building our own webpages, getting arts festival experience, networking and volunteering - all of these things are things that seniors should be focusing on.

As an older student, I have already been in the work world for 27 years. I have a resume and I have made an artist's statement, both of which are horribly out of date, so I am looking forward to working on those. I have already struggled to network and make a living as an artist. Most of my painting successes have been commissioned murals in restaurants and decorative finishes in private residences. I did have a few canvases sell over the years - my highest sale was for $1500 for an acrylic on canvas for a private collector (that sounds important!), but certainly not enough canvases to be considered even remotely a commercially successful painter. 

Don't we all just want to get paid to be an artist? "Please buy my work - just buy enough so that I can pay my bills and not live at home anymore. Pretty please?" I have to say that I never considered living at home with my parents - even if it meant that I would have been able to paint full-time in my quest to become a professional artist.

I am a little embarrassed to admit that I really did not consider being a full-time artist as a viable career choice. I certainly did not have anyone cheering me on the sidelines, encouraging me to "be all that I could be" and forge a path as an artist. Was it because I did not go the Chicago Art Institute? Or a School of Design? Was it because I selected a more mainstream four-year college instead of an institute of higher learning that was solely dedicated to art? There were a couple of students older than me that left Grand View to go to "real" art schools.  There were also some that went on to grad school - but I remember that choice being made because they specifically wanted to follow the footsteps of the professors at GV

So do I fall into the category of these other "sell-outs" that never really considered being an artist for a living? Was it purely selective cognizance that allowed me to work in the sign business for 27 years? Did I just tell myself that signs were really "pop-art" (which I love) because the only alternative was to admit to myself that I failed to have a career as an artist?

Maybe I should take my young sons' approach and set up my own little art stand.
For Sale: Original Art, Five Cents.