On Commitment

Sunflowers & Oranges

 9 x 12

Oil Painting by Pat Fiorello

In yesterday's blog, I shared some ideas for making more time to paint on a regular basis.

 Today I'd like to continue some thoughts on that subject. 

After painting exclusively in watercolor for about 12+ years, I decided to try my hand at oils about 3 years ago. While you might think painting is painting, each medium has its idiosyncrasies and even though I know a bit about color, composition etc.. which apply to any art form,  the actual handling of the paint and painting process is quite different between oils and watercolor.

 When setting my goals for this year, I decided to really invest the time develop my oil paintings further on my own as well as study with some top instructors. I took a look at my typical plan  for the year and eliminated a few activities to focus on more time to paint aiming for an average of 4 painting days/week in addition to 1 day of teaching.

This required some hard choices of things I had to cut out in favor of freeing up more time to paint.  And it is a daily challenge. As new opportunities come up , I have to decide if they will truly further my intentions or if they will "cost" too much in terms of time that could be spent painting and learning.

Part of what had me say "no" to several things and put others on the back burner, at least for this year, was the following quote from Robert Johnson's  ( magnificent) book, On Becoming a Painter:

“You will never know how good you can be until art gets your very best.

 Your best time, your highest energy, your complete commitment”


Actually Robert didn't say that , but  he was sharing what a mentor of his said to him during a critique when he was seeking feedback on his own paintings.

 If you dont' know Robert Johnson- look him up on line at  RobertJohnsonart.com. He's an amazing painter, wonderful teacher and inspiring in many ways. But it's clear he invested the time  to develop a level of mastery.

 I have that quote posted in my office so when I see it it reminds me to get back to the studio and make the time to invest in myself and my art.
 When I am at a decision point , I can refer to it and remind myself that painting deserves my best time.

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