With the physical limits I'm trying to deal with, I'm struggling to keep myself busy in the studio. This is probably a measure of the strength of my drive to create. Regular breaks are being built into my time down there. I am reading a lot-thank Goodness for the public library. Evenings are being spent playing poker on the internet for play money. There is also a need for more small pouches to be sold at a local gift shop. Trying to find some inspiration and/or technique that I can manage has sent me back to the DVD's of the early Quilting Arts tv. Today I was watching video the 200 series, and that lead to time spent painting fabric.
The small pouches I'm slowly working on have lead to some family discussions and some soul searching on my part. These are selling fairly well, and the production uses a lot of left over fabric and scraps. The money is negligible. I'm certainly not getting paid for the time, and unless scraps and leftovers are used, the cost of supplies isn't even covered. But then, I never had the expectation of profit. At the same time, living on a fixed pension income, means every cent spent of art supplies, has to be carefully considered.
Still, the social contacts that are involved are welcome. Aging without socialization quickly leads to isolation which can, itself, lead to mental deterioration. Not going there!
I participated in craft shows and sales for many years, until I was persuaded to look at my work as "art". The final straw came when my booth, at a major show, was situated next to one selling obscene rubber stamps. Since than I have limited myself to art shows and exhibits, and activities associated with that, such as a gallery gift shop.
A second positive result of selling both art and craft is the validation one receives for one's work. Early in my life this was important to me. With both a family and a job, how else could I justify the time spent creating? No longer important. I'm comfortable with my abilities.
As young wife and mother, the social aspects of special interest groups may have kept me sane. That my sound strange, but IMHO, it's a reality. Now as an older person, with limited social opportunities, it remains a reality.
The small pouches I'm slowly working on have lead to some family discussions and some soul searching on my part. These are selling fairly well, and the production uses a lot of left over fabric and scraps. The money is negligible. I'm certainly not getting paid for the time, and unless scraps and leftovers are used, the cost of supplies isn't even covered. But then, I never had the expectation of profit. At the same time, living on a fixed pension income, means every cent spent of art supplies, has to be carefully considered.
Still, the social contacts that are involved are welcome. Aging without socialization quickly leads to isolation which can, itself, lead to mental deterioration. Not going there!
I participated in craft shows and sales for many years, until I was persuaded to look at my work as "art". The final straw came when my booth, at a major show, was situated next to one selling obscene rubber stamps. Since than I have limited myself to art shows and exhibits, and activities associated with that, such as a gallery gift shop.
A second positive result of selling both art and craft is the validation one receives for one's work. Early in my life this was important to me. With both a family and a job, how else could I justify the time spent creating? No longer important. I'm comfortable with my abilities.
As young wife and mother, the social aspects of special interest groups may have kept me sane. That my sound strange, but IMHO, it's a reality. Now as an older person, with limited social opportunities, it remains a reality.
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