Alright, I’m researching shows and submitting to a handful more. The shows where there are jury fees involved, those are the ones that harm me. Being a starving artist and shelling out hard-to-come-by-resources in the off chance I’ll get deemed “worthy”; makes me wince. If ever you’ve gambled and found the process did not light the pleasure centers of your brain; instead, you felt taken advantage of, that is what paying juried fees feels to me. I can’t tell if my wager is legitimate or I’m being swindled. Feeling as I do about the whole process, does it stop me? No. I paid. I submitted to a couple of shows. Even so, you’ll find my current and future submissions will revolve around low-to-no jury fees.

I feel more comfortable doing art fairs and the like. I’ve only ever seen a return for my investment doing those. The gallery showings do feel more legitimate. In all my years of an artist, though, I don’t think I’ve ever come across an interested collector. Well, maybe one, but that was at an art fair.

You can tell by my –I don’t know what to call it, “talking point” that I am committing. At least making a stronger effort at this thing called art. Saturday, I will start on a fresh painting so that I don’t forget how to actually do the “art” part of the equation. Among my to do lists, of which there are many, taking an inventory of my paintings and measuring what it takes to finish a new book. I can tell you now, it’s not much. I have a lot. No false hopes, though. it’ll be done when it’s done. I’ll blather about it here occasionally in the future.

In there here and now, I’ll get back to looking over opportunities. No more fees, I’ve paid enough. Now we’ll just look for art fairs and maybe some gallery representation.