What is it that gives us pleasure in art? What drives us to keep coming back to creating?
Looking back in my own journey, as a boy I enjoyed drawing. I was always happy when I did a drawing somewhat realistic and captured a likeness. It was also fun to draw from my imagination. Mostly though I dreamed of drawing or painting something that looked real, lifelike. At the time I guess it was enough for me to be excited about, but I didn’t know why I was drawing what I was drawing, I just liked the subject. That was one thing I didn’t ask myself is "why am I attracted to paint this,” "how do I connect with it in my heart?”.
I began my art career as a teen, and years went by. I had begun using watercolor but it had become a routine of doing a realistic watercolor painting, I was just copying the photo. I just didn’t know what was missing. At times realism could still feel satisfying when you received praise for it, art show patrons would surprisingly ask “that’s a watercolor painting?” or exclaim "it looks like a photo!” But the joy of art was not there like it used to be. As the demands of needing to produce more paintings pushed me onward it became a chore to sit down and paint, a mechanical routine, copying the photo, with no meaning, my heart was not in it. My inspiration and creativity shut down during that period and I was stagnant, tired of painting, not seeing hope.
A few years went by before joining Chris DiDomizio’s art classes. It was the beginning of rediscovering joy and finding meaning in my art, I had hope again. The art tools Chris DiDomizio taught me began an adventure of painting from my heart, bringing out emotion, a story, what it means to me. I was no longer copying photos, with each painting was a new discovery of my own heart.
Why do we enjoy painting what we choose to paint? How do we connect with it emotionally in some way? When we understand why it “speaks to us” we can use the art tools to communicate that emotion and story to the viewer. It sounds silly but I didn't know how exciting art could be. i am so grateful for years I’ve had with Chris DiDomizio. And for reclaiming my joy in art and opening up a new world, an exciting world of discovery, of the heart, of emotion and meaning.
