Art of the Mind
I've been doing art for around two years or so now, all self taught. I have looked at some online and YouTube tutorials, but no classes or school or formal training. It's been a lot of fun, and while I don't sell much, it's very much a part of my mental health journey and healing. Without going into gory details, I was diagnosed with bipolar disorder about five years ago after a bad break down. I almost blew up everything in my life. After treatment and therapy and some witchcraft, I was on a good healing path.
About mid-2023 I discovered art and began teaching myself to draw and doodle just to relax. Several months and piles of used canvases later, I got a tablet to do digital art just to save space and save on supplies. One thing about bipolar, when I meditate or sleep or dream I often see things in wild colors and patterns and eyes, lots and lots of eyes. So that is what my art reflects. It looks weird to most people and doesn't make a lot of sense to folks, but some really like it. I really love it and love weird art.
I've done some art shows and tried selling online in various formats and styles, but only ever sold a few things here and there. So, I'm shelving that whole idea for awhile. I'm still doing art and lots of it, but showcasing it here on this blog. Oddly writing about my art is almost as cathartic as doing the art itself. One wouldn't think that would be the case. In another life I used to write full time, that lots its joy for me after a few years and I had pledge I wouldn't write another word, but this isn't fiction and not trying to sell it per se other than hoping people subscribe to read more of my blogs.
Though its hard for me to imagine anyone paying to read anything I have to say or look at my art. Either way, I used to love blogging about 10 years or so ago and feel like its becoming a lost art. So here we are, though there are still a lot of great and thriving blogs out there. I hope this becomes one of them. Maybe I'm too candid on here, but I feel that being real will show someone else that its ok to have a mental illness. You're not broken and there is nothing wrong with you. And its ok to seek help.
Back to art, I sometimes like to draw, though I struggle with drawing people. I'd love to do animals or portraits, but they all come out looking deformed or like weird cartoons. So I lean into the weirdness and run with it and I figure, if its gonna be weird I'm going to go all out. That is the beauty of art. There really are no rules. Make it crazy, make it wild make it unhinged. The weirder the better. Portraits and animals and landscapes are great, I love looking at them, but they also are very common. I sadly don't see the world in such sharp and pristine lines. I see things messy and sloppy and off kilter. So that is how my art plays out.
Maybe one day my art will find an audience willing to launder their piles of money on it, but in the meantime we are going with this. I should note here, I do have a day job. I've mentioned this in previous posts I work as a paralegal for my wife's home law office and generate my own income. So, I'm fortunate in that I don't have to sell art to live. Though I would like to one day. The legal work is nice and I'm very thankful for it, but if I could eek out a living blogging about my own art, that would be even better. For now, its a side hustle and one I'm happy with for the moment.
We'll see how this all goes, and so far on Bluesky everyone has been great about sharing it around and giving me feedback on these posts. I'm very grateful to everyone. I hope to continue putting out honest, and quality pieces and hoping everyone continues to enjoy them. I sometimes wonder if I'll ever evolve past the weird liquid art and eyes look, but part of me doesn't want to. I guess that is my style and every artist has their own style. I guess my manic brain thinks every single thing has to be completely different.
One thing about Bipolar is even on medication, I find myself being hyper productive, which is good. I'd rather be over productive than getting into trouble. Today I wrote several blogs, two of them over a thousand words and wrote out three legal documents for work. Pretty good I think. Plus all the logistical stuff of setting up this blog, transferring my domain, etc. Good times. I guess when I get something in my head I run at it full speed.
My wife said sometimes thats really neat, and other times she's like dude, SLOOOOW DOWN. But that's what makes me who I am, I don't do anything halfway. On a good day I may paint three or four art pieces. Today it was blogs, tomorrow I may do blogs and art. We'll see what happens. I have some errands to run in the afternoon, so that may slow me down a bit. I'm usually pretty tired after I've been out in the world. The down part of being a hermit. I was kind of a hermit before the pandemic, since then I've become a total recluse and have to go out of my way to get out in the public. I'm doing much better about getting out and finding some kind of balance. Which is the key to most things. Thank you again for reading. Please share and/or subscribe and comment. I'd love to hear from you.