Deliberately painting myself into a corner, Why? So I can figure my way out.

I went to a Tony Allain workshop this year.  The man challenges the way people think about color and where you use it.  Here I am, enthralled by his choices thus the splash of neon.  It is scary to step outside of your box and try something bold but, when you take chances like this; you always learn exciting new things.

Taking that amazing step can put you into a creative corner where you feel trapped.  You don't know which way to go, how to pull it off; and it makes you take the time to consider what your options are.  Even if the piece never becomes a success, I have learned so much about color.  There was a project in my local art club (yes I joined an art social group and we meet in person).  We each traded a background that we had started and had to take it home and make something with it.  I will admit, mine ended up being a complete disaster.  Train wreck aside, I learned what I could do on that surface vs others and how the colors I didn't choose to start with, affect the direction of my piece.

I have a list of favorite quotes and one of them is Bruce Wayne's father; "Why do we fall down? So we can learn to get back up."  How do we ever learn how to recover from a failure if we never fail?  How do we learn to think through a problem unless we face them?  By exposing myself to challenges like this, I learn ways to find solutions.  Not all of those solutions need money but, in my case, it gave me a reason to purchase more pastels.  

We tend to try to make safe choices in life.  Marry the right person, live in the best neighborhoods, drive the safest cars, have a good job; well, being an artist isn't checking any of these boxes.  Thankfully, I have a spouse who gives me a backup.  Not every artist has that, many do this alone and work incredibly hard to be a success.  It can be difficult to step out of the safe zone and be bold when you make art.  You have to consider the cost of everything you do and how it will be received by the market you are in.  In order to keep your creative passion alive; however, try stepping out every once in a while, and put yourself somewhere you are challenged.  Who knows where you might end up.