Why would you give away your art?
1 – I had a cupboard full of art – lots had sold, don’t get me wrong! – but there were a lot of pieces in there that I had framed up for past exhibitions but that remained unsold, the ‘last of the line’ as it were. I needed the space. When a whole collection sells apart from 1 or 2, and those don’t fit with the next collection, there really is no exhibiting them again. I like my exhibitions now to look cohesive, rather than a selection of different styles and subjects.
2 – I paint for my work to be enjoyed by others, to be seen, not to be stuck in a cupboard.
3 – I felt unable to create truly new work – the ‘unsold’ work was holding me back.
So, it was time to let go.
I had two Sundays in a row where I opened up my house for a Great Art Giveaway. Well, I was asking for donations of whatever the work was worth to the taker and whatever they could afford. This seemed to work well and I was delighted with how many people came and how much of my work was taken. I took most work out of frames and gave those away too, the remaining ones went to a charity shop as I don’t intend to exhibit framed works any more. I am turning more to ‘commercial art’ – I had photographed all of my work ready to edit for making high quality prints and will be selling these prints (print on demand – POD) and exhibiting a sample of these rather than originals, plus my lino cut prints. I’ll see any original work I create as ‘Transient’ – I’ll make it, photograph it, then repurpose it.
It’s been liberating, I feel a lot more creative but I must admit that I haven’t finished any new creative artwork yet! I have taken on a commission, have been doing some (existing) lino cut printing and have done lots of demonstrations to art groups. I’m busy with the music for the next few months and don’t intend to take part in any more exhibitions until September so need to wait to get my ‘mental space’ empty ready to create some new lino cuts and more ‘transient’ works to photograph for POD printing.
Josie Tipler 