When I first started painting
I had no idea what I was doing..
but that didn’t matter.
All I needed
was the unshakable
unrelenting desire
to create.
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artist
Secret Galleries and the Art of Home Repairs
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We had an art show a few weeks ago
with a single attendee..
the handyman who came to repair our wall.
.
He examined the paintings that surrounded him
while he worked..
and as the plaster dried
he walked around
staring at all the art.
.
He spoke to us about our paintings
and shared stories of his own collection of art..
his father’s landscape paintings
which he treasured.
.
As he was leaving
he thanked us for the experience
and his unexpected trip
into an art exhibit.
.
This is art the way it is meant to be
not cloistered away in a sterile, white-walled gallery
but as a part of everyday life..
living in our homes
like family.
.
Dollhouse Paintings and the Art of Giving Your All
My sister asked me to make a painting
to hang in her dollhouse.
So I did.
With squinting eyes,
I leaned in close
and poured my soul onto that tiny canvas.
Is it a waste of time to put so much of myself
into a 2″ x 2″ square?
No.
Art is all or nothing.
Every time.
The Art of Painting Below the Surface
“Assemblage” by Michele Bledsoe
If you look at a photograph of me
you see the face I wear,
the body I walk around in
and a few items of clothing;
unlike my paintings..
which show you what I look like
on the inside.
Predestination and the Art of Call Waiting
“Under the Pillow” by Michele Bledsoe
No one rolls out of bed one day
and decides to be an artist..
you were meant to be one.
Even if you don’t answer the call for many years
it has always been there
inside you
waiting.
Snowmen, Ice Cream Cones and the Art of Doing the Best You Can
Me and Anna under the rainbow..
My husband and I volunteer as art teachers
for a group of inner city kids in downtown Phoenix.
One evening, we were joined by a particularly shy little girl.
Sitting in front of a blank piece of paper,
she whispered that she couldn’t think of anything to draw.
I asked her if there was something she wanted me to draw.
“A snowman!” she said, touching the picture of Olaf on her t-shirt.
“Okay,” I said – rising to the challenge..
“I never drew him before, but I am going to do the best I can.”
The girl watched me intently.
A few minutes later, I showed the little girl my drawing.
Smiling, she looked down at her blank piece of paper
and announced with great conviction,
“I am going to draw an ice cream cone. I never drew one before
but I am going to do the best I can.”
She drew a wonderful ice cream cone, covered in sprinkles with a cherry on top..
and after that, she drew the picture you see above.
I thanked her
and then I got something in my eye.
Terrifying Visions and the Art of Trusting the Gift
“The Ghost and My Obsession” by Michele Bledsoe
Several years ago I was sitting at my desk
in my high-level corporate job
and I had a terrifying vision.
I imagined myself far in the future
sitting at the same desk..
doing exactly the same thing
and wondering to myself
what life would have been like
if I had decided to pursue my art instead.
Not long after that, I quit my job..
and let my path take me to where I was meant to be
instead of where I thought I should go.
In life, as in art
we must be fearless.
Trust the gift.
