Just got back from my brother's studio/house. He was having a small show of artwork he had purchased, was gifted and bequeathed by a fellow artist/friend and mentor. I could really see how her work influenced my brother over the years and it's obvious they had an amazing relationship. She was 20+ years old than my brother and regarded him as a student, a colleague, a model, an inspiration, a friend, a collaborator and a gift :)
My brother knew when he was quite young that he wanted to become an artist. There was nothing in our small town or high school that could help him with that goal so at age 16 he moved to London and attended Beal Tech while living with our oldest sister and her family. When he graduated from Beal he moved to Windsor and attended University there taking Fine Arts for another three years.
He has made his living through selling hi art and teaching oil painting classes. He has never wavered from his dream and has become enormously talented.
Why am I telling you this?
Well, you could say painting is his PASSION. Every aspect of his life is connected to the world of art. That is not to say he hasn't struggled. There were many years when he worked at minimum wage jobs to pay the rent and I happen to know he lived on oatmeal near the end of the school year when he was running out of money.
But this never held him back. He had his passion to keep him focussed and eventually he made a name for himself.
As a depressed and anxious person I don't have a passion. I have hobbies but most days I ignore them and escape into reading and/or Netflix. I try to get a few chores done each day and tell myself that tomorrow I'll work on my sculpture or genealogy. Sometimes I do, most times I don't. I truly wish I could feel passionate about something...anything. Something that made me want to get up in the morning, something to think about, be creative about. I read a quote a week or two ago that really hit home: "Anxiety is always nearly a block to creativity." I see that that is true in my own life. I'd like to change that quote to "Anxiety fosters creativity."
I'm going to think on that for awhile and see what emerges....
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