The Reason I Love to Paint

There might have been many reasons why I started painting, but none as important to me as making a decision after raising my family to do something for myself.

As a teenager I had loved to paint in art class in high school. After I graduated I went to business school and went into the business world. A while after that I got married and had my family. Of course, like everyone else we put the things we like or want to do on the back burner and take care of the more important things in our life. My family was and is always important to me, but the realization that I wanted to start painting again began after my youngest daughter got married. I decided to paint again and just try my hand at simple things, like painting note cards. It was a great hobby. I used to bring my note cards to my friends homes as hostess gifts and also give them to family and friends as gifts. Family suggested that I try to sell them. Not having any faith in myself and being intimidated by people who have had more experience than myself in trying to market something, I attempted to approach one shop in our town to take on my cards on consignment. That went well, then asked two other shops to take them on and to my surprise they accepted my notes as well. From there I decided to paint larger paintings, i.e. landscapes, still life, etc, but did not want to display them as again, I did not have any faith in what I could do. I finally entered an art show and to my surprise sold 2 paintings. Since then, I have entered several shows, sold my art, designed my website and still till this day sell my notes in several shops.

Why do I like to paint...it relaxes me. If I have something on my mind, I seem to go into another world when I paint. Just like knitting, reading, or doing sculpture, painting relieves all stress and anxiety. It is something in my subconscious that I always wanted to do, but could not. There is nothing more relaxing to see the colors on your brush take shape and form on your watercolor paper or canvas. Then, there is the satisfaction of seeing someone really enjoy looking at a painting you have created and giving you their opinion. This is so encouraging and rewarding.

Source : Ezinearticles