There's always an artist in each of us. In my case I should add the word frustrated. I'm definitely not note-worthy and I haven't sold any of my works ever (just gave some to very close friends). Funny thing is the painter in me has an on and off switch. That's why I can't call myself straight as an artist; there's always the word frustrated somewhere.
Since I was a kid I always wanted to be an artist. I tried drawing and doing crafts and stuff. When I was a junior in high school, I participated in a summer art workshop which fed my frustration. Believe it or not, I actually cried my eyes out to join the workshop because I really wanted it. That's how frustrated I am. During that workshop, I concentrated on learning how to paint. For the culmination of the workshop, we had an exhibit and our guest speaker for the event was French-Filipino watercolorist, Gion Gounet. He appreciated my work and invited me to put up one of my works in his one-man show in Bool Church convent. I was pretty amazed and happy to know that my work has caught the attention of an awesome artist. In college, I joined a little group of young artist from our university called the Order of the Golden Palette. We had an exhibit in the College of Arts and Sciences building showcasing our artworks based on song lyrics. While majoring in nursing, I was busy for clinical duties and paper works. Without the luxury of time, I only get to channel my artistic side through writing poems since I'll only need paper and pen or even only my mobile phone, hence, I can practically do it anytime and anywhere. I'm kinda lazy, so I don't get to make a lot of visual art everyday. I actually need a little push to make art. I'm just making excuses, I'm really lazy to say that again or I'm just not that artistic.
My artist mode has been turned off for a while, I became a very boring, stagnant person. Good thing, I got involved back in 2011 in an all-women artist collective-- Baji, that hosts an annual arts exhibit for Women's Month. The artist in me resurrected from the dead and I got inspired again to do art. For this year, I made a painting especially for the event, which I was happy about because I get to share again a piece I can call my own and the speaker cited my work during her speech.
I hope the inner frustrated artist in me never goes to sleep again. I just have to keep inspired. Note to self-- keep calm and make art.
My works and I:
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| Reproduction pieces and original ones when I was in high school |
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| Behind me is my entry for Baji 2011 |
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| First artwork for the year 2012 |
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| Matri, oil on canvas. 2012 |
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| Painting and poem; my entries and I during Baji 2012 |
