©2010 Carolyn A. Pappas, Bartlett Pears. Watercolor, apx 2.5 x 3.5 inches.
Last year I set myself some very basic goals (to make it easy to meet them). I wanted to put in more hours in the studio and declutter and get rid of stuff. I am happy to report that I have been successful on both counts.
I did spend a lot more time on my artwork than I did last year, and I also feel that my skills have improved quite a bit which is a real plus. November was definitely my most productive month (because of Art Every Day Month). I still seem to fluctuate between periods of working many hours in a stretch and other times where I will go a few days without picking up a pencil. I would like to develop more disciplined daily habits so I am doing something every day as a matter of practice.
In terms of decluttering, I moved into a new studio and spent a lot of time getting rid of stuff in the process. I gave away a lot of supplies that I would never realistically use. I also chose to hold onto some supplies that are more along the lines of odds and ends (mostly free samples from art supply stores). I am going to have to find some kind of creative use for these things in this coming year, or I will make myself get rid of them as well. I am thinking of maybe working these scaps into some kind of series. Most importantly, I have been really disciplined about cleaning up my studio at the end of the day and before I start working. This makes me feel a lot more relaxed when I sit down to start something.
Some other highlights from 2010 are some site updates that I have made. My blog is set as the homepage, but I have a number of static pages and I could theoretically call this a “website with a blog.” Earlier this year, I changed my wordpress theme to Atahualpa (very good for a free theme) and put all my links onto a static page. I also created a portfolio and contact page. Just the other day someone actually used my contact form and that was a great feeling.
I also set up a facebook page for my artwork, and have become more active on Twitter. This lead to the great opportunity to participate in the Twitter Art Exhibit and I ended up connecting with a lot of other artists as a result.
Stay tuned for my 2011 goals which I will post tomorrow.
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