Abel's Goats No. 1    acrylic on canvas

My last post sounded really brave, huh? Well, I was trying to work up the courage to drag out a 30x30 canvas that's been hibernating in my hall closet for months. The above painting is probably my most ambitious work to date. I took the reference photo and worked without a coach and fought the voice that said, "you don't know what the hell you're doing" with "I will work on it until I get what I want".  At some point the first voice grew fainter and the strong voice won out.

I've done goats before. But I'm liking the improvement I see after looking over past work.

It's so important for me to see progress and I know there must be someone starting out there, a person that is new on this journey that thinks their practice is getting them no where. That's the reason I share and the reason I take courage from you too as I watch the brave steps my blog friends make every day.

Wish me luck. It's time for Roswell's Juried Art Show and "Abel's Goats" will be my entry. I still have some work to do on it (looking at it posted I can already see some things I can tweek) and would appreciate any suggestions to improve it to make it my best work ever.

Setting goals and Making it happen.

I use to think that my art needed to look like somebody else's art to be real art.

I still love copying well-known artist to see if I can achieve certain effects and I love to wonder as I paint what they were thinking as they made the choices they did.

But then, maybe only this year, I began to accept that my art never looked like their art even if I tried my hardest. That it always had my "look" to it. And so I said to myself, "SO WHAT!"

Now I'm learning to paint and draw the things I like to see and have some compassion for my own art. To let it be what it is. To heck with what others see. It is my intuition or nothing. If my art never makes it then nobody ever connected to what I see and feel on the canvas or the paper but I did, and I matter. But others have connected already. I've recently sold paintings to complete strangers (rather than people who have an emotional connection to me as the artist). Those wonderful buyers connected with nothing more than the image, the art that was my own unique vision. It is very validating and humbling at the same time. And encouraging that I'm on the right track.

I think I will continue to trust my instincts. I've read that it takes 10 years or 10,000 hours to be truly proficient and successful at something. I'm half-way there. I know that in 5 more years, I'm going to be twice as good if I keep studying and practicing my art.
No one but me can hinder my future success as an artist. I have big goals. I want a piece of my art to hang in a museum. I want to win some major art shows. I want to sell paintings on a regular basis. I want to paint until the last day of my life.  I want to make beautiful, interesting, unusual art that makes me excited to share it with the world. Now I've stated it and it's out there. And I'm willing to work for it.

It's mine, people. On my terms.

Woods of Wonder

Bird friends of odd chick

chick chat

 I love birds. They are the one consistent symbol in my art and in my life and they share spaces all over my house as well.

odd chick made by Nancy Phillips

this delightful bluebird struts over my stove-top.

odd chick as the original ugly duckling!

The latest and favorite bird painting called, "You Are One Fine Chick". I love to send this card to my girlfriends with this caption on the inside.

And someday I will fly high, over the sky where birds fly over the rainbow.
Until then, odd chick will share her life and art and home and yard with the birds and bird friends.