Usually it’s something that I’ve bought and sold. Or a story about the transaction. But never has it been something of my own hand. Let’s change that. A few years back I was living in Massachusetts, exhibiting at a show in High Point, operating my own shop in a strip mall next to a laundromat and 7-11, shoveling upwards of ten feet of snow in the winter and feeling exceptionally isolated. I am not one for the suburban lifestyle. But I am one for making the most of a situation. Even a situation in which I feel completely uncomfortable.

My friend had approached me and tasked me with creating art on the walls of her sprawling family home in Central Massachusetts. What? I had no experience in this. Wondering if she had simply sensed my feelings of struggle and wanted to challenge me to break free from the self imposed mindset or if she too had feelings of breaking free from something. I declined. This was no easy choice as I knew it would be liberating for us both, yet I lacked the confidence to believe it was possible. We spoke again a few days later. I had been thinking of her proposal every moment in between those conversations.



The bold choice was to say yes. The safe choice was to say no. And so I boldly went where others had gone before. But who was I to follow in their footsteps? I was a mere vendor, not an artist. Did I have something to say? Was I ready to share it? Would our friendship be intact? Quieting the questions, I simply said yes to them all. And so I dipped my brush into the paint, closed my eyes and visualized a language to communicate that feeling. Of freedom. Of power. Of belief. Of saying yes. I didn’t think about who would like it. Or not like it. I thought about what I wanted to say. For me. For you. For us all.



I wanted to create and communicate movement. Whether we go forward or back, up or down... we are moving. And it is in this movement that we must stay focused on our own journey. We cannot be free to move when we second guess every step and whether it is right or will be seen favorably. So keep going. Keep doing. Keep communicating. ;-) hkv