Generosity

Most artists as a whole tend to be pretty generous. (Obviously not every individual artist is and some people are strictly in it for themselves or to profit, but overall most artists are quite giving.) Unfortunately, that generosity can also mean that we can be taken for granted or taken advantage of, especially when it comes to soliciting donations or charging money to enter shows. Here, though, I want to point out many ways in which artists are very generous, to say thank you to the art community as a whole for its continued support of one another.

We give of our time and materials to do demos, work with children, seniors & others, do workshops and more, many of which are volunteer activities or pay such a meager sum as to barely offset materials. We give of our artwork to fundraiser events, many of which require a 50-100% donation. We offer advice, criticism & expertise to others, informing one another of exhibition & potential sales opportunities and helping one another in the creative process. We band together in collaborative networks and groups to foster camaraderie. We even offer up materials and items we no longer need to other artists who can use them, sometimes for free. (I have myself acquired display fixtures, materials and easels and have given many materials away over the course of time.)

So thank you to everyone for your generosity. It is this continuing support that strengthens the art community as a whole by welcoming and enabling those who may otherwise not show their work. We are truly all in this together.