They tell me on Facebook that it’s World Art Day, so I thought it would be a good time to post some of my art, along with some of my thoughts about becoming an artist. Most of us hesitate to use that word to describe ourselves. It took me years of professionally cutting stencils and painting my original designs on people’s walls before I could even mumble it. Part of that was society’s distinction between decorative art and fine art. My work was considered “craftsmanship” and certainly that was part of it. If I did the same thing on a canvas was I an artist, I wondered? Sometime along the way, I realized that distinction was not meaningful to me and that I was doing work that was unique. I knew that my hand, my color sense, tools and adopted combinations of techniques were my own, developed through endless hours of trial and error and repetition. Eventually I referred to myself as an artist, and now I own it.

It took me decades to realize that I was an artist before I made a lot of art. As a pre-teen I was calmed by watching and comparing the variations in the ocean on my daily bus ride home. I deeply observed the world around me and took comfort from it. I definitely was “crafty”, and best liked to make things that I had figured out how to make; pre-cursors of what was to come.

I didn’t really set out to become an artist. It seemed almost accidental. In my 20s as a manicurist, I painted little scenes on my client’s nails. I had a steady hand and it brought in extra money. When later I started making stencils for application to people’s walls, I would coordinate with a fabric or other element in the room. I was good at pulling from the environment and tying it together with my designs. As my skills and confidence grew, my artistry became more unique. I grew into it and figured out that I had had the inclination all along, just like Dorothy’s ruby slippers. The difference between me and millions of others was that I had the opportunity and freedom to nourish it.

An artist conceptualizes a puzzle, then goes about solving it. (I’ve found that holds true whether I’m working in visual art or music. Both have choices to make that will show individuality but must serve the piece first.) In visual art, I learned to use a wide range of tools and techniques. The medium, surface, duration and impact are all things I consider before I begin. When I’m in the thick of it, I have to trust myself to make hundreds of spontaneous decisions. It’s the concept plus those choices, or the solution, that is eventually the signature of the artist.

Paint what you love! I love painting animals. Here are some painted in a variety of mediums:

Kingfisher, Oil on Gold Leaf. I enjoy bringing techniques used in decorative arts into my fine art, like the gilding here 

Sequoia, Oil on Canvas

Winnie, Pastel

Goat in a Bucket, Pastel

Cow, Acrylic. I made a giant stencil so that I could airbrush this cow onto the wall and vent. 

Green Heron, Acrylic. This was cut out and applied to an exterior wall. It’s been there since 2008 and still looks great. Care was taken to use lightfast pigments and to cover with MSA varnish from Golden. It protected the work from sun exposure and was removable in case of dirt or defacement. 

Pig, Watercolor

Horse, Watercolor

With deep gratitude,

Sheri