Robotagami Sale

I have made an executive decision about my Robotagami line. Once they are made, they will NEVER be made again. That being said. There is a quantity of 4 mini Chimera's and 6 Stealth Assault Robotagami left in my inventory at my Etsy shop. They are priced to sell at $20 each. Cheaper than I have ever listed them, and cheap as they'll ever be. Once they're gone, they're gone. Get it now or be sad...very very sad.    

www.reaver.etsy.com

 

Making a Living

One of the articles I have been dying to write since starting my blog up again is the viability of making a living as an artist and relating it to my own feelings and experiences.  It has been a boggy experience as of late trying to make a career from the ground up.  It may be a negative attitude seeping in after a few years of small growth as a career seeking artist, but it doesn't seem like making a living is as possible these days in the creative field.  Moreover, I don't know if I care about making a living at it anymore anyway.  I have primarily experienced burnout making the same merchandise over and over again.  Production work just simply sucks the soul out of you if you are looking for rewarding creative ventures as an artist.  Some of the best moments are when I have been in the thick of a large project and enjoyed every minute of it.  There's nothing like the moment where everything comes together.  For example when I first completed the transformer, Homage 1.0, I was transported to being about the age of 10 flying it around the room making jet noises.  That is the experience I look for and what is rewarding about creating art for me.  It takes you someplace else, just for a little while.  Escapism is my basis for creating art, creating something new and exciting, at least for myself.  The thought I have lately is that I need to get back to roots, so to speak.  I need to create for the love again and be inspired by an idea that sweeps me away to the places I wish to visit.  I am starting to think I was misguided to think that I could make a living as an artist, at least the way I perceived.  It requires a business mindset that takes the fun out of it all.  Plus you wind up creating for other people instead of for yourself.  That being said, commissions that I have been lucky enough to receive have been great learning experiences and I wouldn't trade them for the world.  I simply had more fun when I created art for art's sake, or just for simply myself.

 In this way, art truly is selfish.  You are lucky if anyone likes it besides you, but at least you enjoyed creating.  This approach may not make you famous, but it will make the best artwork you can possibly make because you enjoy the process and you are enthralled.  Maybe I'm justifying not approaching the difficulties of making a living in the real world as an artist, but I feel that if you make great work, love what you do, and put it out there for people to see, the world just might bend to your will.  Even if it doesn't bend to your will, you can be happy making what you love.  So, I am not out of pocket, I am not quitting.  I am just reorienting my thought process on how art makes me happy.  I am already looking forward to the next project. 

The Art of Pierre Matter

I have been looking at the art of Pierre Matter for a while now and he has expanded his work to include some awesome pieces.  I recommend you take a look.
http://www.pierrematter.fr/

Inspiration

Where do you turn to for inspiration? For me it's always been an array of entertainment media such as movies, music, books, and video games. I can remember watching several movies as a child and even as a college student where I was inspired to create.  Other people's ideas and creations became strangely connected to my own. Sometimes the two have been blatantly similar and other times, you wouldn't guess the connection. Many people look at my work and say it reminds them of __________. I usually say they're right because it has to be in there somewhere. One of my favorite quotes is "Originality is undetected plagiarism" by William Ralph Inge. Odds are there is some old inspiration from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Hellboy, Robocop, Doom, Macguyver, Mario Bros, or Lord of the Rings in there somewhere.

Lately I have to say the inspirations have been a little lacking. I don't know if this is due in part to my not looking hard enough, or if the creativity is lacking these days. Everyone has been writing about this lately reflecting the movies we see in theaters currently. Everything is a sequel or a remake. There are exceptions such as the movie Inception which as convoluted as some people criticize it for, was an excellent movie. There is an abundance of comic book movies out, which I can't complain about much because I have always loved comics. The quality can vary, but I love the comic book movies anyway. I just don't find myself inspired by truly original and daring content like I used to. Maybe I'm getting older and more jaded, but I'm not finding what I'm looking for these days. Maybe there needs to be some new blood. Maybe the younger group of artists need to create something interesting to inspire people. This leads to the question, when do the inspired become the inspiring? I assume the torch needs to be passed. I hope there are some people to pass the creative torch to, because imagination seems to be in short supply these days. Many artists these days are simply focused upon surviving let alone coming up with their own creative masterpieces. Maslow's hierarchy of needs takes precedence. You have to feed yourself before enjoying the fruits of creativity. I'm not sure the next generation of artists and creators will be there when the torch is being passed. They might have changed careers or given up by that time. I hope that something redeeming starts to happen in our culture to create something to be appreciated and inspire future generations to create that which they imagine.