Do you read Robert Genn? If not you should, here's his facebook page. You can read his twice weekly writings via the FB page or you can find his website through the page. He writes short, to the point nuggets of artistic wisdom. His work is amazing. His site has years of his writing and it's all inspirational.

This week's writing was about hopelessness. An artist wrote to him about his deep depression and his unsupportive spouse. He included some images of his work, which, in my opinion were quite good. Having had an unsupportive significant other I can tell you how it eats at your self confidence and brings you down. The summer after we split up was one of the most gloriously artistic summers of my life. I had this crappy little part time job to pay the bills but I was selling my art on eBay and painting everyday. Suddenly I didn't have anyone bringing me down about my art. I was free to create as I wanted, with no worries she'd look at it an say it was awful. My work progressed leaps and bounds that summer. I had a definite style.

Today my significant other is supportive of all that I do and want to do. I know that is not the case for all of us out there. I guess the real question is how do we all deal with it? When you bring home a piece or share your art with your significant other, how do they respond? When I was first making books my ex used to ask me "What are you going to do with that one?* Now that you've learned this, what are you going to do with it?" With a final exclamation of "Useless." Sometimes it's not the hurtful statements but simply ignoring the art that hurts.

I'm often brought back to my college years when I think of hopelessness. My parents would tell you that even when younger, though capable of much more I needed extra motivation to get A's, if it had been up to me I'd have been a solid B student. In college I got just the grades I needed to maintain my scholarship and frankly I floundered in college art classes. I wasn't inspired by the art classes frankly I was bored in them. After 4 years of being allowed to pretty much do what I'd wanted in art class I'd been spoiled, being directed to make art in a specific way pretty much killed the urge to create. Add to that the the new freedoms I found in being away from home and I had a severe hopeless feeling. It lasted well into my 3rd year of school. I look back and regret that those 4 years I had where I could have devoted myself to art, I didn't. (Don't get me wrong I did a lot of personal growing in those years but I certainly was not as academically motivated as I should have been nor did I focus on art.)

I know what made me helpless do you know what makes you feel helpless. It's something to journal about eh?

*I showed her when 3 months later I was selling them like hotcakes on eBay and taking custom orders.