Endings Are New Beginnings

This week I finally finished an artwork commission that has been on the go for 6 months. I was approached about taking on the commission in early November, 2023 and with the heat and humidity of summer on its way I knew it could be months before I was able to do much on it. The collector was happy to give me a long time frame and I was certainly glad of it but it meant this ongoing canvas has been hanging around my studio since then. 

There comes a time when things really need to be moved on or my creative energy starts to feel stagnant. So what a wonderful feeling to finalise everything, pack it up and send it off to its new home! To add to that feeling I received a photo from the recipient showing me the piece hanging in situ and now I can breathe a sigh of relief.

I rarely take on art commissions these days. Although details of what the collector wants in their piece is ironed out before work even starts, in this case she had a specific list of images/symbols she wanted featured, an aura of uncertainty still sits over the piece until the final work is accepted. There is also so much pressure as the work progresses that I not "mess up" and have a lot of work to manage it.

This is a happy ending but the whole process has pushed me to continue to work on the piece even when I was feeling the need to follow my creative flow in other directions. It has challenged me to rethink how and what I want my art practice to be into the future. I have realised I've been selling my creativity in one way or other for 35 years. Art, craft, textiles, dressmaking...so many items created to sell or as gifts. It's time for a break and a different approach. It's time for some creative play for no other reason than to enjoy the process. 

I have decided not to take on commissions whether that's canvas art or book making for the foreseeable future. I have cleared my studio of all the old canvas works I've had lying around that no longer reflect who I am as an artist. All the canvases that have been worked and reworked so many times I'm sick of the sight of them or they were not in a very good condition. 

I'm spending time just playing around in my art journals and on loose papers that are easier to store or dispose of. If I feel drawn to work on canvas it will also be in the spirit of play and not with a commercial endpoint in mind. 

messy art journal play

This purge and new approach already feels really freeing! 

The overall message I take from this experience has been that to evolve and grow not only as artists but as a person we sometimes need to clear the decks, identify what's the most important to us and stop rehashing the old to try and make new. My grandmother use to say "you can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear".  To put it another way if you want different results you have to do things differently with new ingredients. So very true! Fresh inspiration, ideas and action are the where the future lies.

Sharon L Baker is an Intuitive Reader, Mixed Media Artist and Creativity & Wellness Coach living in the Hawkesbury Valley, NSW, Australia. For enquiries and bookings email: hellosharonlbaker@gmail.com