When I started Goble Studios full-time last fall, I began to dig into many more art books and magazines for reference and encouragement. I once came across a passage about how art-making is one of the most acceptable, yet truly selfish activities/occupations. It went on to say that doesn't make art-making bad, it just means that being an artist is great because you get to do what you want when you want and get paid for it.
What I took from that passage is a sense of guilt for being selfish. I like to think that I try to be a selfless person rather than a selfish person. When I paint, I paint for enjoyment and to hopefully sell. But I also paint so viewers have the chance to take with them (if they choose) a new way of looking at the world.
Somehow, the realization that I don't want to do art selfishly allows me to find new selfless opportunities in my art-making and business. That's one reason why I volunteered to donate a watercolor to a raffle next month. The thought of choosing a career that's selfish is sometimes more frightful to me than all the marketing I have to do for my next project!
In our group of fearless artists, what is the one thing in your chosen artistic career of which you wish you were fearless?
