This blog is where I will be sharing my journey as an emerging artist in Ventura County, CA. You will read about my mountain top excitement, my valley low woes and everything in between. I will share completed and in-progress drawings, photos from events and my drawing classes, and hopefully inspire and encourage along the way.
Drawing Chris and Melissa
Tuesday, December 10, 2013
Monday, December 9, 2013
Thursday, September 5, 2013
Simple Line Drawings
I needed to take a breaks from the projects and "mandatory" art I need to finish. So I found a couple of faces that I turned into simple line drawings. They are both 3.5"x5"on hot press watercolor paper.
Tuesday, September 3, 2013
Starting a New Routine and a New Direction
It has been some time since I have posted on my blog. However that is going to change. My life has taken a turn and I am very excited to let everyone know! Here is the story:
At the beginning of 2013 my parents reminded me that I was going to be taken off of my dad's insurance in August when I turned 26. To prepare for this my parents suggested that I talk to my employer to figure out what steps I needed to take in order to have benefits starting in August. After talking with my employer I found out that I needed to be working full time for 6 months before I could start getting benefits. So in March I started working full time at 7C's (the child care center at my church). Everything was going smoothly. I got to work with toddlers in the morning and still hang out with the school age kids in the afternoon. About 2 weeks into my new work schedule I started coming home extra tired every day; which is understandable when you work with kids for 40 hours a week. At first this was not a problem, but soon I realized that I was too tired to work in my studio. Every time I tried to go to my studio after work, nothing ever got done and the pieces I did work on were frustrating and I usually messed something up. I also putting a lot of time into planning a mission to Romania with my church. That also took away time from my studio. But I am not upset about planning for Romania! That was an amazing mission that I hope to do again!
To put it in perspective, over the last 6 months I have spent less than 30 days in my studio working on my drawings. This was not acceptable. I was basically paying for a nice storage space at my studio since I wasn't using it to draw. Not being able to create or feel the desire to draw was really disturbing. I was fed up! One of my goals in life is to support myself with my art; so not producing artwork was a problem. My solution? Work part-time!
This is the part that I am most excited about! I am working part-time with a split shift. That means that I will work in the morning, have 3 hours of break, work again and then have the afternoon off. This schedule is great! I have designated my break in the morning for my "Studio Time". I will spend at least 15 hours a week in my studio working on projects that need to get finished. Doing that will give me room for the project I know are coming my way as well as give me time to work on pieces that I want to do. In one year I want to have a body of work that represents what I can do. I have never been able to have daily time drawing. I am a little nervous that I wont be able to stay consistent, but I will do my best. I am truly excited to see what I am capable of and what I will be able to accomplish with the amount of time I have dedicated to my artwork.
Another exciting opportunity I have been given is a book deal. An author from a local community college came into my studio and asked me if I would illustrate for the book he is writing! I jumped at the chance! I never would have thought that I would be asked to do illustrate for a book!! Both the author and I are still in the early planning stages, so I will have more information on this subject in another post soon.
So there it is! My "New Routine and New Direction". I am very hopeful. I am working on coming up with short-term and long-term goals for my artwork, development and growth of my drawings, possible teaching opportunities and much more. This is a time of accelerated growth for me in terms of my art and my growth as a child of God. I have a lot going on at my church as well that all ties in to my art and my abilities as an artist within a church congregation. God gave me this gift and I am finally ready to start using it for His glory! This will be tough, but I have all the confidence that I will be able to do it with God's help and guidance. So many things can happen in a year! Let's get started!!
At the beginning of 2013 my parents reminded me that I was going to be taken off of my dad's insurance in August when I turned 26. To prepare for this my parents suggested that I talk to my employer to figure out what steps I needed to take in order to have benefits starting in August. After talking with my employer I found out that I needed to be working full time for 6 months before I could start getting benefits. So in March I started working full time at 7C's (the child care center at my church). Everything was going smoothly. I got to work with toddlers in the morning and still hang out with the school age kids in the afternoon. About 2 weeks into my new work schedule I started coming home extra tired every day; which is understandable when you work with kids for 40 hours a week. At first this was not a problem, but soon I realized that I was too tired to work in my studio. Every time I tried to go to my studio after work, nothing ever got done and the pieces I did work on were frustrating and I usually messed something up. I also putting a lot of time into planning a mission to Romania with my church. That also took away time from my studio. But I am not upset about planning for Romania! That was an amazing mission that I hope to do again!
To put it in perspective, over the last 6 months I have spent less than 30 days in my studio working on my drawings. This was not acceptable. I was basically paying for a nice storage space at my studio since I wasn't using it to draw. Not being able to create or feel the desire to draw was really disturbing. I was fed up! One of my goals in life is to support myself with my art; so not producing artwork was a problem. My solution? Work part-time!
This is the part that I am most excited about! I am working part-time with a split shift. That means that I will work in the morning, have 3 hours of break, work again and then have the afternoon off. This schedule is great! I have designated my break in the morning for my "Studio Time". I will spend at least 15 hours a week in my studio working on projects that need to get finished. Doing that will give me room for the project I know are coming my way as well as give me time to work on pieces that I want to do. In one year I want to have a body of work that represents what I can do. I have never been able to have daily time drawing. I am a little nervous that I wont be able to stay consistent, but I will do my best. I am truly excited to see what I am capable of and what I will be able to accomplish with the amount of time I have dedicated to my artwork.
Another exciting opportunity I have been given is a book deal. An author from a local community college came into my studio and asked me if I would illustrate for the book he is writing! I jumped at the chance! I never would have thought that I would be asked to do illustrate for a book!! Both the author and I are still in the early planning stages, so I will have more information on this subject in another post soon.
So there it is! My "New Routine and New Direction". I am very hopeful. I am working on coming up with short-term and long-term goals for my artwork, development and growth of my drawings, possible teaching opportunities and much more. This is a time of accelerated growth for me in terms of my art and my growth as a child of God. I have a lot going on at my church as well that all ties in to my art and my abilities as an artist within a church congregation. God gave me this gift and I am finally ready to start using it for His glory! This will be tough, but I have all the confidence that I will be able to do it with God's help and guidance. So many things can happen in a year! Let's get started!!
Saturday, July 6, 2013
Sunday, June 2, 2013
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