Jennifer Love Artwork BLOG

"Inspiration is for amateurs!"  Have you heard or seen this quote? I have many times, and I believe it as well - in a sense. If we are to be professional artists, that means we show up to work as any other professional would. Some days you have a successful and productive day, others...not so much. But, you plug away at it no matter what if you want to create that paycheck! But, setting that attitude aside for a moment...sometimes artists are also inspired! When we are, we have to act on our inspiration, immediately if possible. And, a lot of times, that inspiration results in something magical. A painting that you truly love, where all the techniques and color harmony and everything just came together. Sometimes it is just a happy accident, when you are experimenting with new ideas and techniques. The question is...once you've created the magic...can you recreate it? What if you did that magical painting on inferior quality materials because you were just experi...

I know it's cliche, but it's so true. Time just gets away from you! My kids are growing right before my eyes...time marches on! Some goals are accomplished, and some are left unfinished - to accomplish another day! I am still in the middle of my #KonMari tidy event. Even though I haven't followed her direction to do it "all at once"...I also don't feel that I quit in the middle. I just had to take a hiatus. Two years of commitment to the Utah Watercolor Society, first as the Vice President, and then the President. My "free time" was non-existent. Now, I am Past President and Communications/Webmaster. But, the demand on my time is significantly less. Last fall, I remodeled my master bedroom, including new paint, pulling up carpet, screwing down squeaky floor boards, and laying carpet tiles. (and yes...I did all the labor). We have an older home, rambler style, built in 1967. It needs a lot of fixing up, and we are slowly trying to work our way thr...

Summer FLEW by!  Our summer was filled with tee ball games, coach pitch baseball games, and visits to grandma's house. I spent a good amount of time in my continuing efforts to complete a KonMari sort and tidy of our entire house. We are at the "miscellaneous" category in the discarding process. It's a long process for me, marked with many detours. Not the recommended (tidy all at once, in one "event") process from Marie Kondo. But, I have not lost sight of the ultimate goal, and continue to tidy by category and just keep picking up where I left off whever I can devote a few hours or a weekend to it. It is slowly, but surely coming along! (See my previous blog post " A place of Sanctuary: If I tidy up my home life, it will benefit my professional life ."  to read why I think it's important to complete this tidy project.) Along the way, in July, I also received notification that I have again been selected for a group showing (3 artists) at ...

I have been working to set up a new studio space in my home for  the past couple of months, and also to  clean up our house a bit - so I am not constantly bombarded by the mess factor, feeling guilt that I should be cleaning or doing laundry or dishes rather than painting. In fact, we are in the process of using the KonMari method of tidying our entire home! The end goal is to allow myself to get into a higher level of art production and to create a "sanctuary" at home. I am hoping for a place that feels relaxing when I walk through the door, so that I can unwind and let my brain rest and rejuvenate - thus allowing me to focus better on all things I would like to accomplish. (That is what I hope to do by tidying our living space...create some peace for all of us! Getting the hubby and boys on board hasn't been too difficult, but we still have many things to do in order to achieve that sanctuary!)  Additionally, in the last few weeks, the new school year started for b...