The art Olympics

Gina steps on the podium and the crowd goes wild. ( insert your own crowd cheering sound here) I love the Olympics. Our life pretty much goes on hold when the winter Olympics come around. I love the athleticism, the look of joy at an accomplished goal. The family that roars with thrill and excitement when their athlete wins.

What is the gold medal for artists? I pondered this question and came up with several different ways artist get 'gold medals'. You would think it would be the obvious answer of a big sale. Don't get me wrong, every time I sell a painting that means I get to be an artist for another month. That is worth cheering about! But for me it is more when you see someone open their mouth in wonder at what you created. Someone who comes back again and again to see that painting that speaks to them. You can almost see the mental calculations as they figure out a way they can buy it. It's when someone leaves a show maybe even empty handed but on the way out they sincerely tell you, " That was wonderful, we are so glad we stopped. Please keep on painting." Those are the moments you hear the crowd cheering in your head.

Art is very subjective. Local popular artists and even internationally popular artists often cause me to scratch my head in confusion. That's good? Interesting? Shows skill? Whew, not in my book. But compare their monthly income with mine and I would have to slink away in shame. So anytime a person sees something wonderful in your creation it is worth raising your arms in victory.

Maybe I should start my own Artists Olympics. Maybe like Lindsay Vonn I will be in a swimsuit on the cover of Artist's magazine. Okay, maybe not.