A few years ago, someone approached me to ask me to give him painting lessons. This was in May and he had the desire or the financial need to hold a painting exhibition at the end of that same year. He asked me if six months would be enough to make him an artist capable of producing an exhibition. It would have been entirely possible for him to produce and exhibit paintings after six months of learning and hard work, but he would have lacked one essential thing, which is maturity. As with good alcohol, there is a time of maturity for the artist and there is no way to expedite it. Technique is important of course, but so is experience.
I often have HSC students in my workshop and this question of time often comes up: “How long will it take me to start making money with my paintings?” » This is a difficult question to answer. The world of art is mysterious and I cannot say why one artist is successful and another artist is not. Often, it is not a question of talent or time, but of “connections” in the art world. For my part, time has made me the artist I am today and will make me the artist of tomorrow. This time spent creating, searching for new expressions, new techniques is so much more precious to experience than exhibiting ones paintings. Today, I appreciate the journey more than the destination, if there is one.
