AUTHOR: Alisha TITLE: Ending AND Beginning DATE: 11/18/2005 06:53:00 PM ----- BODY:

I've had some difficult personal questions I've been juggling lately. The 2 questions that might sound most familiar to you... - When is it the right time to spend more time in the studio and less time at your day job? - How do you jump from being a working world, career climber to being a career artist? - What does the sign look like that points toward spending more time making art? My personal questions were answered over the past few years, as I worked with more and more artists who balanced their careers with art making. On most accounts, I've had a luxury in this regard. I've been able to see so many models of how to dive into the studio and find success. But if helping other artists succeed before I've helped myself isn't pressure, then I don't know what is! My answer to the questions above is that we all will have different answers. Some of us want to do the show circuit. Some of us want to have gallery exhibits and let others handle the business side of art making. And some of us have career goals that mean just as much as our artistic goals. I can assure you there is no magic, flashing sign! I can also assure you that you won't wake up one day knowing exactly how to shuffle your priorities and feel secure with the path you've chosen. The challenge in being passionate about a dream is that you may always wonder what's on the other side of that dream. For me, NOW is the time when I will strike a bigger balance. As of next Monday I will be stepping down from my full-time career role and stepping into a part-time position of flexibility. My studio will see my face more frequently. My work will reveal itself more quickly because I will finally have time and energy scheduled for it. And, who knows where it all will lead... but there will be some exciting new projects on the table soon too. And... of course... this change will also now allow more time for me to post on my blog!

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