After a long winter, spring is particularly appreciated this year. I always feel energized by the change of seasons and welcome the longer daylight in March. Perhaps this is a good time to tidy up the studio and do some spring cleaning. Too much clutter leads to a smaller working space which in return may lead to excuses and inertia.
If you have been painting for a while you probably have accumulated “surplus stuff”. You may even have some paintings you forgot you had. Take inventory. I know I have a number of paintings that no longer matter much to me for one reason or another, I simply have moved on and have embraced new directions. Please understand, I do not mean paintings that fall below my standards, those are long gone and recycled; I never hold on to a painting I consider inferior. What to do with the “surplus stuff”? Why not donate such paintings!
I have decided this year to donate my surplus artwork to local homeless shelters. It would please me enormously to know that some of my paintings will brighten the wall of a shelter and bring perhaps a little cheerfulness to not such a cheerful place. There are many such places and managers are usually eager to coordinate a schedule with you. I have chosen to focus this year on shelters for women and safe house for victims of domestic violence. For sure I contribute regularly to fund raisers and auctions, but the smaller local shelters tend to get forgotten.
Each piece I donate will be framed and ready to be hung following the same rigid standards of presentation required by galleries. Upon completion and delivery I make sure to have a donation slip which includes the fair market value and have it signed by a person in charge at the shelter; this will give me a tax break.
Whether you are an artist who feels compelled to create, a collector who follows a desire to surround him or herself with art, or simply a viewer who stops in front of a piece of art to contemplate, art’s mystique can draw us in, art has the power to heal and elevate the spirit. Bringing art to people, who may not have any access to viewing art, is both a unique and rewarding opportunity.
| Southern French Mimosa in bloom now |