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An Artist’s Growth Spurt

Saturday, August 7th, 2010 by Alyice

I am a good writer. I have a strong confidence in my writing abilities. I know that given the right assignment I can do a bang up job. I know this because I’ve spent years honing my skills as a writer.

I spent years trying to find my unique writing voice. I spent years testing out various genres in the writing industry. I spent years taking on writing jobs that were not always the best fit or use of my skills as a writer just so I could find and develop my niche as a writer.

With each writing job I learned more about myself as a business woman and a writer. I learned what I could not write. I learned what I did not like writing. I learned where my writing needed improvement and I learned where I excelled as a writer.

Through it all, I grew as a writer.

Over time, I discovered there are simply areas in the writing industry where I am not a good match. There are certain styles of writing or types of writing jobs that I cannot excel at because those are not my strong suits.

It doesn’t make me less of a writer. It doesn’t make me a failure as a writer, either. It just means that my abilities as a writer lie elsewhere and trying to tackle those jobs would not be beneficial to the client, or myself.

Those same lessons came to fruition this past month when what originally appeared to be a good opportunity for my art turned out to be another lesson in “the growing pains of an artistic soul”.

Though I strived to do my best, it was becoming painfully clear that things were not working out. I wasn’t meeting the client’s needs because my style wasn’t meshing with the overall plan.

Eventually frustration mounted on both ends and the relationship was terminated.

At first I was disappointed. You could even say that I was a little irritated because my style of art was evident from the very beginning of the relationship.

But having had some time to step back and look at the situation objectively, I realize that this experience was good for me—and quite possibly the client, too.

This situation allowed me the opportunity to stretch beyond my comfort zone and it brought me one step closer to defining myself as an artist.

It reminded me how vitally important it is to make sure that my style of art meshes with the client’s overall objectives and goals.

It reminded me how important it is to keep the lines of communication open at all times—when the company’s goals change, when frustrations start to mount, when something feels “off” in the business relationship, when things need a little fine tuning or tweaking, when I’m feeling frantic and lost as to what the client really wants, and so on and so forth.

And it reminded me that while art is often created on a very personal level (sometimes even emotional level), to a business the final outcome will always be about the bottom line.

So would I change anything about this latest endeavor as an artist? No, not really. I hate that it didn’t work out but I am grateful for the opportunity.

Keep Creating

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Today Marks 20 Years

Wednesday, August 4th, 2010 by Alyice

Today I have been married for 20 years—half my lifetime—and I can say without shadow of a doubt that my husband is the BEST thing that has ever happened to me. In an ever changing world he has been my one constant.

My husband is the ONE person in all the world that I can be myself with and know that being me IS enough.

With him, I feel safe. With him, I feel complete. With him, I feel as though the entire world is full of possibilities—possibilities just waiting for us to explore and conquer, together.

Today, as I think back over the past 20 years of my life, I can’t help but THANK God for bringing my husband into my life—for making him the father of my children, for showing me what it means to have someone “not” give up on me, for giving my life purpose.

Give thanks…

Posted in It's Gratitude, Dude! | 2 Comments »

A Child And His Waterfall

Thursday, July 29th, 2010 by Alyice

Isn’t my nephew, Austin, adorable with his hand painted waterfall?

He and his sister, Olivia, came to South Dakota with their mom for a mini-vacation. Upon seeing my art studio his first night here, he asked he if could do something on my wood blocks, like his cousin.

“Sure,” I said. “After we come back from Falls Park in Sioux Falls, tomorrow.”

Yesterday he created his masterpiece.

I’m thinking he got his inspiration from Falls Park, what do you think?

When he was done, his sister wanted to create a little art, too.

Realizing that I have a lot of .4 ounce Reeves acrylic and watercolor paints, from four years ago, that have never been used and are still in good condition, I decided to give the kids a jumpstart on their own art studio.

Then as I began talking to their mom, my sister, about my art studio and how much I love it, she started to get excited about all the possibilities, too.

The next thing I knew, I was packing up a care package full of art goodies for them to take home.

I filled a box with things like 24 various sized wood blocks, 12 rectangular wood planks for making necklaces, thin ribbon with multi-colored hearts for necklace chains, a package of 9×12 chipboard to create their own chipboard pieces, Workable Fixative to spray over their pencil drawings before they begin painting over their sketches, Aleene’s Jewel-It for attaching various embellishments to their art projects, Delta Ceramcoat Matte Varnish to seal their paintings, and a checklist of supplies I think they need to have on hand to make their art studio functional.

I’m not sure who was more excited. Them or me?

Then at 1 am this morning, I thought, “They need an art table!”

So I got up, packed up my oblong, folding art table and set it next to their stuff.

I literally cannot wait to see what they come up with!

Keep Creating

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AlyiceEdrich.com
I'm a freelance writer, mixed media artist, SMVA, and the owner of The Dabbling Mum.

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All material on this blog belongs to Alyice Edrich, unless otherwise noted. No project, artwork, or text may be reproduced or displayed elsewhere without the consent of the creator. That includes making derivative works for resale. Please use project tutorials for personal use and/or gifts only.