Have you ever dreamed of winning the lottery, the big one? Who hasn%92t. All the money you need to do whatever you want to do, no more having to go to work, being able to do exactly and only what you want to do. Sounds great, doesn%92t it.

Having recently retired, I often ponder upon what it is that keeps us going, that gives us a reason to get out of bed in the morning. No matter how much we thought we%92d love having nothing to do during all the years when we were working, the fact is that we need something to do. We need a purpose. Without purpose, what%92s the point? Without a purpose, one could so easily fall into depression. We NEED a purpose, we NEED something to do.

Leaving aside the obvious ‘spending time with family and friends%92, for me, it%92s everything to do with my art. Painting, even though I don%92t seem to paint as often as I always thought I would. There%92s maintaining my website and writing by blog. And one of the most fulfilling things I do is my work with the art club. As the president of the club, I keep quite busy with phone calls, meetings, preparing forms, brochures, booklets. All things that I love to do. An extra bonus to this are all the wonderful friendships I have made over the years.

Those are the things that keep me going, that fill my life with purpose.

What about you? Share your thoughts by clicking on ‘Comment%92 below.

Suzette

Last Monday was Thanksgiving (in Canada, Thanksgiving is in October). This is always a good time to look at the things in our lives for which we are grateful. Hopefully, for most of us, there is a lot to be thankful for.

In order to have lots to be thankful for, I believe we must ‘help things along%92, make our own luck so to speak. CARPE DIEM - Seize the Day!

I love that expression. SEIZE the day. Seize every opportunity, don%92t waste any of your precious time, life is short, make the most of it. Make the most of the every moment of every day if possible. As George Bernard Shaw said: "Yesterday is the past, tomorrow is the future, today is a gift – that%92s why it%92s called %92the present%92."

I know this sounds like a bit of a cliche but true nonetheless. I think it fitting to look at our lives and look at the ways in which we are seizing the day, and if we%92re not, why not, and what can we do better.

I always feel inspired when I hear that expression. I should make myself a sign and post it in my office, or studio, to remind myself to make the most of every day.

Life is short! Seize the day!

Share your thoughts on the matter by clicking on ‘Comments%92 below.

Suzette

Today, I%92d like to talk about my work a little bit. Over the last few years, my paintings have become quite abstract, with a lot of texture and geometric shapes. I love doing those. But sometimes I come up with something that is quite different. This year, for example, I did 3 acrylic %92collages%92. Completely different than anything I%92ve done before. One is abstract, one is a flower and the other a parrot (shown above). Then this summer, I did some %92small pieces%92 for a juried show where the dimensions could not exceed 6 x 6. Half of those are geometric abstracts, the rest are not.

What I%92m getting at is this: how important is it to have a consistent style, one that is easily recognizable as your own? Does it matter if you stray from that sometimes? What about if your work changes from year to year so that there is no real consistency in your style, except for a slow progression over time?

From everything that I hear, that%92s not a good thing. They say your work should be ‘consistent%92 and you should have your own personal style. That%92s all very well, but then wouldn%92t I be painting the same thing all the time, except for small variations of shapes or colour?

I don%92t know what the answer is, but I refuse to be bound by rules like that. I want to do whatever I feel like doing. I am sticking to a certain style in a general way, that is in the use of texture in an abstract or semi-abstract format. Beyond that, no, my work doesn%92t all look the same and I often put something in a show that proves to be a surprise to viewers.

I like to think that the only viewer I am trying to please is me. However, like most artists, I do care what other viewers think and I also want to think of my art career and the direction it takes. What do YOU think?

Share your views by clicking on ‘Comments%92 below.

Suzette