See it...Feel it.

  "Why don't you just make things that you know will sell?" --This is the most infuriating question asked often by my non-artist relations...I am sure every artist has the person that you want more than anything to understand and feel what you are trying to say, but all you get in return is "Why don't you just make happy art?" or "I saw this (fill in the blank) the other day and you could totally make these and actually sell A LOT..."
      My response is--Because it is not honest. It is not me. I will not compromise my most cherished emotions and visions to make a copy of some other person's idea just because it will sell.  To me the creative process from the beginning spark to the fruition is if far more valuable than any of the finished pieces. Yes, in the end there is a hope that this thing I have created and I choose to share connects with some other human. And an added bonus would be that they feel strongly enough to buy it and take it home. If any person takes the time to try to understand the artwork and the artist they will have a reaction, good or bad.  Everyone brings their own baggage in viewing art, so they will have their own experience and connection with my sculptures, paintings, and pots, not everyone will "get" what I was trying to say, and that's okay.  As long as they take the time to actually see it, not just dismiss what I pour my heart and soul into because they don't want to confront the emotions that my artwork might stir up.
       I send these finished pieces out in the world with my raw vulnerability and uncertainty that anyone will care, but when someone does, I feel connected to humanity as a whole. Art should not be a bragging right for the rich, an object that brings out the color of your couch, or just a thing to make money. Art is a nonverbal communication between people. I want to make someone stop, think, and feel something...it's okay if it is not happy.