On Creating My Own Niche

I started my art journey full time about five years ago. Since then, I have wended my way down the river of self-discovery and self-identity as an artist.

Sometimes I have lain back in my art canoe and let the river take me where it will. I enjoy the leisurely pace this offers. It gives me an opportunity to look around and explore new ideas, new techniques, new creativity without having any set definition of who I am or what I create.

Paradoxically, sometimes this has led me to get lost in a bend or stuck in an oxbow. The very thing that I am trying to avoid (being defined) can be a little too loose. Certainly, we need a little structure in life! We are not invertebrate jellyfish, after all!

Other times on my journey I have worked my way upstream, fighting against the easy currents of exploration to coerce definition into what I do. That enforced structure has been good for me. Generally, it is I who has created the terms of that structure, but society and other’s opinions and social media are not without their influence. I try to keep those latter voices to a minimum, though.

It seems to be the trend in the art world to “become” a particular artist, to define oneself and one’s impact on the world by what we make or do, to have influence and prestige. Perhaps it is a way for artists to feel important and valued in a world that tends to value making money over making art. I’m not offering that up for a debate. I’m simply wondering.

But certainly, right now, I don’t want to define myself too precisely as an artist. I feel it will limit my creativity and my opportunities (of all sorts), and I am enjoying the wanderlust of this journey. Maybe what I will “become” is just what I already am: ever-changing.