Do something you've never done before
We all like our comforts and we can be guilty to not wanting to change things because it seems scary to delve into the unknown. However, when you do something you’ve never done before, it is very healthy and expansive for you.
This week I've done something I've never done before - I've entered my painting "Not lost, wandering" for consideration to The Royal West of England Academy Open Exhibition. I've never applied for an open exhibition before and certainly not with such a prestigious institution.
I think I've not done something like this before because of I've never felt ready to be judged in such a formal way. I feel fear and self-doubt about my business and art every single day.
I feel responsible to better understand my fears, to reveal the true problem to be solved.
Sometimes I can spot fear as it manifests as a feeling of indecisiveness which leads to prolonged inaction. Artists can be guilty of constantly being in search for skill perfection and believe the moment of feeling ready will come one day.
BUT that just doesn't ever happen.
We tell ourselves to be brave.
The way to gain bravery is through experience.
So here I am collecting new experiences.
The RWA's Annual Open Exhibition is now in its 169th year. This year will include painting, drawing, printmaking, photography, film, sculpture and illustration by artists ranging from leading professionals, including RWA Academicians, to emerging talent, from across the UK and beyond.
A selection panel assesses every entry and all work is for sale; the exhibition attracts art-lovers and art-buyers from far and wide.
The selection panel this year includes Academicians' President, Fiona Robinson PRWA, RWA Academicians; Sarah Gillespie, Dorcas Casey, Nicholas Turner and Hamish Young, alongside Mark Golder (collector and benefactor, Holder Thompson Collection), Sue Hubbard (Art Critic, poet and novelist) and our invited artist, Matthew Burrows MBE (founder of the Artists' Support Pledge).
Sue Hubbard is an award-winning poet, novelist, and freelance art critic. She has written regularly for publications including Time Out and The Independent, is a contributor to The London Magazine and is a Senior Writer on Artlyst. She has published three novels and four collections of poetry. Her second novel, Girl in white is based on the life of the German painter, Paula Modersohn Becker and is being reissued by Pushkin Press later this year to coincide with the autumn RA show, Making Modernism.
Mark Golder is a teacher of classics and philosophy and a collector of works on paper and ceramics. He and his partner Brian have donated approximately 1000 items to universities and urban museums. This Summer he is reviewing applications for the 2022 Woolwich Contemporary Print Fair and curating a print show for a commercial gallery opening in 2023.
I'll let you know how I get on!
Lost in thought, your girl is a deep thinker. This painting also makes the viewer think, the choice of colours and markings create an atmosphere and together with her expression will be interpreted in many different ways, which is what makes a great painting so interesting. Good luck
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