So do all artists find financial security in producing and selling their work….the little secret that no one talks about is often “no” they don’t.  Artists work any number of part time jobs..often take a break to work odd jobs and save money.  Artists struggle to continue with their work, struggle to buy supplies, to pay studio rent, to travel, to advertise, to simply buy new clothes and actually have the amenities of life that most people take for granted.  They have moments of emotional meltdowns where they sit back and say why–I should just go get a job like the rest of the world?  why do I continue, why can’t I stop and then they ask them self, “what else would I do and if they are a true artist with the passion to succeed…they know deep down, they really have no choice but to continue.” 

I remember the day a painting professor said to me she had worked as a life guard making $8/hour so she could paint and I thought about that later and asked, “why?”  Why wouldn’t she just get a higher paying job and paint part-time, etc….why would she live in such a distressed situation, etc.   She’s now quite accomplished and well known, etc.  Her work is collected and her financial situation has most likely changed.  But this example of success is an exception for the larger majority of artists.  We do what it takes to continue the art–to buy the supplies, to show the work, to talk about our work…to produce and we couldn’t stop making art even if we wanted.   We may pause for long periods of time; however, we eventually hear the internal voice saying, “produce.”  The average person doesn’t understand this but an artist surely understands.  An artist understands why they rent a room in a house rather than buy a house, why they ride the bus or their bike as opposed to making a car payment and avoid any large financial commitments in general.  After all, the art comes first.  Then there’s the issue of how to buy supplies, how to promote our work, how to pay to ship our work to a show, etc.  After all, the crate, the shipping and all is not free and most of  the time you pay for it to be returned as well.

Does the ordinary person know that a canvas, stretcher bar and paint could easily exceed several hundred dollars and that shipping costs, studio  rent and such adds to this cost.  Of course they don’t.  Don’t get me wrong, I struggle just like the rest of the artists…but I believe we can make it if we continue.  I believe that people want us to produce art and that people want to buy art–they want to support the efforts of a good artist.  If you think about it, how, can someone possibly live without orginal art in their homes, their offices or anywhere else….and for this matter–you must support artists.  This exchange of money cannot be compared to anything else…it’s not an easy transaction to describe.

I have been  fortunate in that I am able to survive and thrive because of wonderful, supportive patrons and collectors…but how many artists are trying at this moment to evaluate how much more time they can afford to invest into their career before giving up.  The economics of being an artist seldom makes sense if you are that person who is salaried in corporate America…but if you know an artist you like…if you see work you love and that moves you…buy it!!!  Artists need you and they need you to validate their work with money.  Let’s be blunt…we all need money to survive–especially an artist.

A mathematician develops a system that creates a view of turbulence and then transmits it to airliner cockpits so the pilot can avoid turbulence ahead….but is there an algorithm developed for our mind that does the same so that we can avoid turbulence in the future.  We feel turbulence in parts of our bodies–particularly our stomach and head.  Some can detect turbulence long before an encounter while others must fly directly into the turbulent wind and struggle to then find a way out of the experience.  How we fly out of  the feeling or if we choose to “ride it out” can be in any number of ways but we do make adjustments for the uneasy feeling that comes with turbulence. 

So I ask you to think about the same in visual art.   Perhaps we need turbulence or chaos along with structure in each piece of art…and if so, do we consciously create turbulence in the piece and then pull out the structure? Do we always find this structure through proven compositional methods or can we do so unconsciously with our internal algorithm?     

Can one live calmly and sanely in the midst of chaos and if you can…how do you bring structure to the experience.  Even amongst chaos there must be a structure to hold it in place….or perhaps not? 

Encaustic with wood…hangs in NFR Energy’s office in Houston.  6′ feet by 9′ framed.