Should art-making be hard?

Looking at Art:

When I tell people I am an artist, they often say, “That’s wonderful. It must be so relaxing.” It is very difficult to explain that my art-making is hard work. Since each piece is unlike any other I have made, the process involves problem solving and dealing with the ideas and materials presents a challenge. There was an article in the Washington Post discussing studies about the brain. The findings suggest that: “Finding the value in effort is why we are able to climb mountains and find that hidden reserve of strength during a race or near a deadline.” Do you think it is the challenge that keeps an artist going?

Work in the studio:

Always interested in faces and figures in art, I have begun to present images that may suggest a story about the individuals in my paintings. I hope to engage the viewer and allow them to guess at the story. The painting shown here is called A Soft Landing. I wanted the title to be as ambiguous as the painting, in order to allow the audience to come to their own conclusions. What do you think the two figures in the piece mean to each other?

A Soft Landing, Watercolor, 14” x 11”