Most of us create art because we are answering to our passion. It is a passion that drives us to work hard, make little money if we are even lucky to do that, and usually go without or with little recognition for our work. We give up time, energy, and money to follow this passion. Sometimes we do without things, experiences and everyday things to invest in the adventurous studio time with our art.
Have you ever wondered why we make art? We see art around us every day, and everywhere. You can’t cast your eyes anywhere without seeing art of some kind. May not be our art, but its art. The chair you are sitting in, the clothes you have on, your furniture, your car, your home, all of this is considered art. It took someone down their own personal road of passion to come up with the genius to afford all of us these luxuries.
But we are talking here about our own little corner in the art world. The biggest percentage of us won’t ever make it big time with our art, nor do we necessarily want to. That again is a whole other world. It isn’t for all of us.
They say the five biggest reasons art is made is: decorative, functional, expressive, religious/spiritual, and communicate ideas. We may have at one point or another in our journey covered almost all of those points. It may not have looked exactly what the norm might be for definition of these categories, but in your own way I bet you have, especially if you have been around for a while. Of course, there is some flexibility in defining these reasons.
Give some thought for a moment about where the inspiration came from that drove you to enter into the art realm. Was it a person, another artist? An art piece or movement that spoke to you? A class you took that gave you the spark? Or was it just raw drive, something you had to follow to feel “satisfied”. This last one may be the norm for most all of us. It is something that is born into us, something that cannot be ignored and must be acted upon. True there are some casual week-end artists out there who dabble in the paint once on occasion. But we are talking here about the folks who are in for the long haul, those who cannot deny it is in their blood, their make-up.
You can read any stories in art history to learn about how famous artists, most of whom of course were not famous in their own lifetimes, suffered and did without a lot all in the name of their art. Some had family problems because they chose art as their pathway. Parents have denied their own children because they thought art was not a viable career. Others have had horrible relationships, mental anguish, and poverty. What a price to pay to follow a dream.
No matter what all these other people have done, or are doing, what is important is you follow your own dreams and fulfill what you were put here with the gift to do. Chances are if you feel the passion so deeply, you were given the gift to follow that. So, go out and make art, be happy, and exercise your right to express yourself in the way you were born to do.