F Magdalene Austin

I return to pieces of your artwork because it gives something to me on a peaceful and spiritual level. I return to your gallery because the art of it has such emotion, such feeling and it gives me something unique that other artists don’t give.

You talked about selling art and feeling like you lost a piece of yourself. For me, when I sold an original painting it felt like I lost a piece of me too. I hated selling originals because it felt like in packing it up, in shipping it out a piece of me went with it. So I understand what you mean about selling. I don’t sell originals but I can sell a print and feel good about it. It took a very long time for me to see selling prints as a secondary benefit of my art. I was able to not feel so vulnerable and not feel like I gave too much of myself away. Now when people buy my art I see it as them appreciating something about it. I see it as them wanting to be part of the moment I put on paper. Exchanging money for an original felt too much like I lost ME but prints, well, they feel more like sharing, give and take. It feels more like a win-win situation.

You talked about wasting time and about losing yourself. When I create for me I find me. On a creative level my first love is the art itself. When creating I need to feed that inner hunger. When creating I heal old wounds, resolve old conflicts and grow. I have fun too. Art is very fluid in that manner. It can heal, move you to silence, entertain, incite to action or quiet the mind. Art has the power to do these things but most of all it has the power to sustain the artist. But that’s only if the artist creates for him or herself. I notice my greatest conflicts with art come up when I stop creating for me.

I think when the artist paints or creates for him/herself they may wonder less if they’re wasting they’re time. Is time spent on your personal growth a waste? Never. When you create for your inner harmony and when you create to satisfy your own needs it’s never a waste of time.

Austin