I was asked, recently, if I would consider exhibiting my art. My immediate answer was, ‘No.’. I had the desire to do so but, off the top of my head, I could only come up with about three things that I felt were display-worthy. I didn’t think that would make for much of an exhibition.
Despite my answer, I was extended a gracious invitation to do so. I haven’t stopped thinking about the possibility, since.
Much of that thought has focused on the ‘Why not?’.
The first stumbling block is how I define art. Everywhere I look, I see art….or art potential. Many of my creations come from pure inspiration and are very original. But often times, I create art out of things. If it is already a thing and I manipulate it, is it my art?
The same thing goes for design. There are a million things I see, or interact with, that I feel I could design better. If I do, is it now my design? I believe, very strongly, in giving credit where credit is due.
The second stumbling block is my perception. In terms of a portfolio I believe that I’m building one, not that I have one. I’m creating an art-based business and my feeling is that the best is yet to come. If I hadn’t answered no, my answer would have been, ‘Ask me again in three months.’.
Definitions, rules, beliefs, perceptions…they all beg to be challenged. Thankfully, I came to the realization that my challenge is a little less complex.
I’ve culled through numerous notebooks, gathered every doodle, pulled together every .jpg, .ai, .indd, .pdf and .psd file on my computer and begged every one I’ve gifted a creation, to let me borrow the pieces I’ve created. It turns out, I have a body of work that can, most definitely, be displayed.
Some of it you can see on the design page.
Some will, indeed, be exhibited soon. Details to follow.
The best stuff?
The stuff that is yet to come?
Some of it is already there.
That, and more, will be a part of challenging those definitions, rules, beliefs and perceptions.
More importantly, it will be fun, functional, imaginative and exciting.
All of that will be chronicled here.
