Seven Blows

Well, I've hit a new record.  Seven rejection notices within 24 hours.  Seven in one.  I feel like the brave little tailor...  But I know I can't let it get to me.  It's not personal.  One show had over 1500 entries, and it's not even at a major institution.  Less than 5% got in.  That has little to do with me at all, just that my work didn't make the cut like a whole lot of other people's.

I'm posting this in part to offset the view that this comes easy because it doesn't.  It takes work and effort and a willingness to put myself out there.  The way I see it, if I don't take chances then I won't get anywhere.  Even if the only place I get to is to fall on my face.  I don't want to just do what's comfortable and seek out only opportunities that feel safe or secure because I want to grow and evolve and try for bigger things.

The world is really accessible right now and there is a lot available and going on, but with so much creativity and so many talented people out there it is even less likely that success will come to us as artists.  We can't sit around and wait to be discovered because we won't.

So this shows that I'm trying and that I'm pushing myself for bigger and better things.  I encourage you to do the same and push your own boundaries, step out of your comfort zone and reach for the stars.  We won't get there if we don't try.

On a related note, Chuck & I were discussing creativity recently.  Sir Ken Robinson in a June 2006 TED talk stated that "if you're not prepared to be wrong, you'll never come up with anything original."  I had never thought about it, but that makes a lot of sense.  If we feel we don't have anything to lose, we'll be able to release inhibitions.  We have to be willing to try, to take chances, and to put ourselves out there, for better and for worse.

Mail & Art

I enjoy mail art.  I have engaged in mail art on and off for some time, among different groups and in numerous formats, from sending postcards to open calls for shows to buying and trading art cards to sending random mail to other like-minded individuals and more.  I enjoy the uncertainty and non-commodification that results from just dispensing of art through the mail with no expectation of monetary reimbursement or returned correspondence

Nowadays, a lot of people are networking online.  I need to become more involved and savvy to this, but I know I will continue to communicate through the mail regardless of my online presence.  I know I won't go fully digital.  There's something special about the physicality of the mail.  Opening a letter or a package is an engaging process.  Having and holding something in your hands lends presence and intensifies the immediacy of that precise moment.  And the time delay means there is no expectation of instant gratification, which naturally offers time to think and ponder possibility and prolongs conversations.

I don't always send art.  More often I send goofy funny random stuff I find on clearance or for very little expense - strange & bizarre things that beg one to ponder why they even exist or to just revel in their weirdness.  Many times, it costs much more to mail the object than the object itself, but that's okay because to me it's about the randomness of receiving it on the other end.

My big hope is that my mail helps to rekindle that sense of childhood wonder and excitement at receiving mail.  All too often our adult lives bring unexciting mail: bills, junk mail and ads geared towards consumerism convincing us to buy things (and ideas), notices...  not much fun, random, totally unexpected things that arrive without pretense...  But mail can be fun and can be treasured.  It can still be correspondence and not just a formality that brings boring and unwanted news or only comes once or twice per year at appointed times.  It can exist without occasion for it's own sake, outside of birthdays, illness, funerals, holidays, etc..  So consider sending someone you care about a note or something to let them know you're thinking of them.

He's so FLUFFY!!

Chuck & I went to the South County Mall carnival last night, where they had Despicable Me unicorns you could win.  I had to have one!  So after spending more money than it was probably worth and throwing darts at balloons, Chuck & I have now won our own carnival prize fluffy unicorn.  And he's so FLUFFY!!! 

Art of the Week: Dress for Success

In similar vein as The Trouble with Corporate America, I examine the symbolism of the business suit as a measure of success of sorts.  What kind of measure of success depends on how one perceives of what it means to be successful and why the wearing of the suit is recommended or required.

Art of the Week: Cars

I have been experimenting with a lot of new things at the Augusta plein air event this year, including small, abstracted close-ups on mini canvases and incorporating metallic paints.  Here is a display of some details from classic cars as seen at the Defiance paint out on Saturday.

Please feel free to check out more of my new paintings at the sale Saturday, April 27 at Mount Pleasant Winery, 11 AM - 4 PM.

Artist Resume & This Week: Augusta Plein Air

I recently embarked on a major undertaking in deciding to post my artist resume to its own blog after struggling with blogger to update my show list sidebar.  This is a record of all of the shows, art markets and alternative exhibitions I have been in, events, along with any other professional points (writing, jurying, school), donations, mail art & online shows, and more.  I have tried to post everything, not just the major events, and the list is as complete as I have.  My intent is to use this as a tool to record & preserve my own legacy and to have more control in promoting what I've done to those interested by using labels to differentiate by year and type of event (market, non-local, solo, St. Louis, WCA, etc.).

Please feel free to check out my artist resume blog here.
http://jenniferweigelartresume.blogspot.com/

And now that I've finished that task, I am excited to announce that it's that magical time again - the Augusta plein air event starts this Wednesday!  I am looking forward to participating again this year and hope that the weather will be nice.  I am planning to attend as many of the events as I can, though I know there are a couple of days I will miss so check in with me if you're thinking about coming out to watch me paint.  I will definitely be at the sale on Saturday, April 27.  You can learn more about the event on their web page here.

Some Thoughts on Courage

Fear is among the basest of human emotion and experience.  It is a given, a constant, a known.  It can enable us to empathize with others' plights, to recognize and acknowledge scary situations that befall those around us, close and distant.

We can become all too comfortable within our fears, allowing them to control us and inhibit us from reaching for our dreams and potential.  Or we can harness those fears as motivators to do better, to make waves, to work towards progress, even to pave the way towards a different response in the future by reacting with courage to stand up for ourselves and others...

Unbeknownst to many, I struggle with social anxiety and often feel isolated, judged and villified whether or not I truly am.  Sometimes I succumb to this anxiety, but other times I am able to overcome it.  I try to counteract my fear by diving in headfirst, by forcing myself to reconcile it by putting myself and my art out there as far as I can, reaching for and embracing the extreme, and openly speaking my mind.

In putting myself so out there, I often elicit the response of, "I could never do that."  But too few people realize that they can, and do, just that on a daily basis - they counteract their fears by putting themselves out there in contrast to them, by continuing to live their lives and fight for what they need and feel is right.  We are all far braver, stronger and more resilient than we realize. 

A quote by an unknown author defines courage as "quality of mind or spirit that enables a person to face difficulty or danger without fear."  I agree but beg to differ somewhat; I perceive courage as "quality of mind or spirit that enables a person to face difficulty or danger despite fear."  Essentially, how we respond to and what we make of our fears is up to us.