I've been agonizing over a sequence of questions for so long that I'm starting to feel like I need some help. I'm confused about what shows to enter, and what to exhibit, and where, and why. What I need is a Magic 8 Ball for Artists, to answer questions like, "Should I enter the Blah Blah Blah show?" or "Should I apply to the "Yada Yada Yada?" No matter who is asking these questions and what it's all about, there are actually only two answers, although the Magic 8 Ball would have to have ten times as many #1 answers as #2:
"Should I enter the National BS Show?"
1. No. The juror (or panel of jurors) is an idiot.
2. Yes.
Of course, one explanation of the incomprehensible choices of jurors in many shows is that the jurors were using a Magic 8 Ball of their own:
"Should I include entry #34?"
1. No. The artist is a zombie.
2. Yes.
But there are a whole class of other questions that artists frequently ask:
"Is this (painting, drawing, whatever) a lost cause?"
"Should I bother finishing this?"
"Is this hopelessly out of proportion?" etc.
And these could be answered with a whole lot of cliches:
Try again.
Keep trying.
It's better than you think.
Practice makes perfect.
If at first you don't succeed, shake again.
Altogether, all of an artist's questions could be answered simply, saving the artists' partners, friends and spouses hours of hemming and hawing. So, what do you think, should I patent this amazing idea? Drat. No Magic 8 Ball to give me an answer.
deborahdendler.com
Hi, Deborah, .....I've been doing this for over 50 years & still have no answers; the world changes and so do you, but I've tried to keep a working integrity. Right now the economy is against us also....However, I still get excited when I work in the studio, so I guess that is some sort of answer.
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