Another Pair Of Eyes

This month I have been busy entering Art Shows.

There is a lot of work going into this - getting the finished works ready to hang and so on. Not to mention the many trips I have to take to and from to where the show is.
It is not that I needed people's approval, although it is always a thrill to win, ribbons and prize money.

Why do we put our works out there to be judged, to be criticized, and to be rejected, sometimes? 

Painting is a lonely business. You do your work by yourself. Sometimes, it is difficult for ourselves to know whether we are doing well or not. 

In the beginning we tend to love everything we do. A masterpiece every time? We treasured what we produced and loved them to death - they are our babies! We are crushed when some one criticized our babies. 
We are blind to our faults.

However, at some point you need another pair of eyes.
You need some honest feedback. Why?
Because we don't always see our faults.
You may say that there is no right or wrong in making art - express yourself. Right. Still what has been proven throughout the years has some merit.

You are lucky if you have a friend with a good eye and a friend who is honest with you. You may not agree with him. Buy I tell you, you need to value his advice and then make up your own mind.

My friend Mildred was the one who guided me many years ago. She told me to enter shows. 
I said, "I don't have anything to enter. "
She said, "Yes, you do." She then told me to enter some of the works I did.

Lo and behold, I won!

That was the beginning of me getting into painting.
Mildred, thank you.
So I am doing this with some young friends of mine. I am their Mildred now. 
One of them is a student of mine who has only been painting in oil for a year. She is doing so well and she is beating me. I am proud of her. Of course, I am not her only teacher. But still . . .

When she wanted me to take her on last year, I was reluctant. I did not wish to waste my precious time on giving lessons to someone who merely wanted to paint to pass her time or to "visit."
Not so with Sunkyung, she is passionate about painting. It overwhelmed me. On top of that, she has talent.

Teaching has taught me more than I ever learned in classes. I am glad she made me her teacher.

I am her other pair of eyes, and someday, she will be mine.
Thank you, Sunkyung.