I've always considered myself an artist, whether or not I was actively pursuing it. I've been told that I drew lots and lots of spiders...everywhere and women with really short arms. Yeah, that's me. I remember telling my 4th grade class that I wanted to be a starving artist. It sounds so romantic, but that was also the time where I wanted to have a little cottage right beside our mailbox. It had red curtains and lots of light coming through the windows. Let's flash forward to after receiving an art degree. I had a retail job, or was it waiting tables? Maybe both? My sister knew someone who knew someone and next thing I knew I had a regular 9 to 5 job, because I was lost to what I should do next.
I never really stopped creating, but didn't have an outlet for it. I took portrait, pastel and oil painting classes. I even gave some of my portraits to the models who asked for them. My husband built me a studio...I think more to move my stuff OUT of the house. I finally decided to become apart of a local gallery. It was a great few years while it was open, in which I met several wonderful artists and made lots of new friends. Some of my colored pencil paintings are still in a local gallery and I'm looking at what other options I have. I don't have a huge body of work due to my limited schedule, but I'm working on that.
My struggle is to continue being an artist while working full time and raising children. While some people restart their art career after retirement, I can't wait that long (not that I'm a spring chicken)! Regardless of where I am with my art, I'm always looking at life as if it were a still life, portrait, landscape, etc worth painting. I love the details in life, the light that shines on something and the shadows that are created. I mostly use colored pencils/watercolors for florals, charcoal for portraits, and charcoal/watercolor for animals.
