
I was able to determine I have 85 canvases that I consider complete and available. How delightful it would be to have all 85 canvases find new homes. Can I make that happen? How long am I willing to hold on to a painting until I come across it's owner and how much effort am I willing to put into finding that person? These are questions I ask myself because it seems unlikely that enough folks will come knocking on my door to look through the stacks.
In addition, I feel a little challenged when attempting to determine what work is really good and what isn't. Most of the time I think my work is brilliant, but truth be told, I can become enamored with the way paint dries on my palette as well. I'm not always the best judge of my own work.
Take for instance the painting above. It is from my diamond phase in 2010, and highly textured. To me, the three diamonds represent my most precious treasures, my children. It may be hard to tell from the photo but in real life it is easy to see that the textural part of the upper diamond has been removed. The image remains but the physicality is gone. I call the painting One Left, Two Left. I made it after my oldest child had moved out on his own and the two younger ones remained at home with me. There is a bit of a line at the bottom that the last diamond is moving through. They are all on their way to independence.
That is what this painting means to me. It is the embodiment of a specific time in my life. Would it be as interesting to someone else? I don't know. I hope it could be meaningful or at least decorative to another. The colors are rich and vibrant. It is textured and asking to be touched.
What do you think? It is 24 x 18 x 1 1/2, the deep edges are painted a dark dioxizine purple, almost black. Unfortunately the wooden frame of the canvas is tweaked just a bit so that it doesn't lay flat against the wall. Do you think it could be salable? Would you buy it? If no one wants to buy it, do I still keep it? For how long? This one is just from 2010, I have paintings from the 1980's. It is becoming obvious that I can't keep them all, even if I think they are great. My sales ability and ambition are questionable. I appreciate your kind support and input.