trying new things...

collage + acrylic painting

4" x 6"

I want to learn how to knit. Socks, specifically. I also want to try painting with pastels. How many different artistic expressions can I do? Will I ever arrive at a technique or medium that will be "it", the ONE thing that I do from then on? No. Is that OK? Yes. It's taken me 54 years to answer that question yes. Over the years I've tried all kinds of arts and crafts-

watercolor painting
oil painting
drawing and colored pencils
paper collage
digital collage, computer art
fabric collage
assemblage
beading
polymer clay
mixed media
acrylic painting
sewing (quilting and clothes making)
calligraphy
fabric painting
fabric transfers, paper transfers
doll house making
doll making
rubber stamping
greeting cards
altered art, altered books

Add to this my love of writing and my love of cooking and that is a lot of interests!
And I love them all. I think I am good at most of them. I don't say that in a bragging way; I mean to say that I think that I do have artistic talent and that I love all of the arts and crafts. For a long time I've put myself down for this diversity. No more. I have finally given myself permission to be an artist- an artist of many mediums. I am an artist of many mediums, not JUST watercolor or collage or colored pencil. Lucky Me!

A wise man once taught me that sometimes all I need to do is the look at the big ball of wax from a different point of view. Instead of looking at my varied artistic interests as a weakness, as a bad thing (read: jack-of-all-trades, master of none), I now see it as a gift. Part of my very being is my insatiable curiosity. I have always been curious about the world around me. It has dawned on me that this variety of artistic endeavors is an extension of my basic curiosity, it stands to reason that I would try different arts, be curious about different techniques. I just have that kind of brain- I want to know, learn, look, see, experience. To ONLY paint watercolors or to ONLY do paper collage would be far too confining for me.

I have an acquaintance who is a very successfully professional artist. Her pieces sell for thousands of dollars. She is held captive to her medium. It's what she is known for, it's all she sells to the public. I happen to know that in secret she is branching out, trying different techniques than what she is known for. At the end of her work day creating her art she sells, she secretly plays at new techniques, for fun. She doesn't want anyone to know, so she does this privately. I think she holds that same mistaken belief that it is a weakness to be diverse in art. Many in the art world hold to that same belief.

No more, not me. I am an artist and as such, express what I want to say in many ways. And I am lucky to be able to do this. I am blessed to have the ability, curiosity and the time to do so.