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January 23, 2014 by Kat

Dealing with Disappointment

Yesterday I found out that something I applied for, related to my photographic art, I didn’t get. It’s one of those things… Lots and lots of people applied. Only a few were going to be selected. The odds were low. The selection process is always subjective with the jurors. The other work submitted was amazing. There are so many reasons I wasn’t selected. I can list them all.

Yet… I’m still disappointed.

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It always happens when I hear I wasn’t chosen for something I applied for. Even though I know the odds are really low in anything art-related, I always apply with hope. There is always a piece of me that believes I have a chance at whatever it is. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t spend the time, energy and (sometimes) money to apply.

And so, there is the disappointment. It’s usually short, but it’s there. I feel the anticipation and excitement of receiving that letter or email or phone call… Hoping for the answer I’ve dreamed of… Only to get a sinking feeling in my gut as I find out the real results. It’s not me. I wasn’t chosen. As my dream world reconciles with the real world, the disappointment sets in. For a brief time, my inner child comes out: Why not me? What’s so great about this other work? What’s the point of it all? I hate to admit it, but that is almost always the first reaction.

And then… I take a step back and look at it more objectively. I turn on my mother voice, to talk to that petulant child… Now, you knew the odds going in. These things are subjective. And wow, isn’t the art that was chosen amazing? See what you can learn.

So I mentally pick myself up, brush myself off, and start all over again.

Such is the life of the artist. If we are going to put our work out there, if we are going to submit, there will be disappointment. The funny thing is, we usually only share the successes. So on the outside it looks like it’s smooth sailing. That someone is blessed, getting everything they want. I tell you, from the very real inside, that’s just not true.

For every success I share here, there are five times… no, make that ten times… the number of disappointments. For every step forward I make, the are many, many more steps back. It’s only because I have some inner drive, some passion for what I do that I continue on through all of the disappointments. I have belief in myself that I can succeed. And so the disappointment is all the more real.

Being an artist is not for the faint of heart. We put our selves, our soul, into the work we create and then we put it out there in the world. We open ourselves, knowingly, to the possibility of hurt. By the very nature of a selection process, we open ourselves to the likelihood of hurt. And yet we do it. Over and over again.

It takes both courage and resilience to be an artist. I’m calling on both today, to deal with my disappointment.

Filed Under: The Kat Eye View of the World Tagged With: abstract, creative journey, personal growth, tree, winter

July 25, 2013 by Kat

Dear Winter Trees

It’s been a while since I’ve seen you, and I wanted to let you know that you are on my mind. I’ve been missing your interesting shapes against the sky. I find myself seeing glimpses of you in your summer cousins. You know, the ones with fewer leaves? I see you in their branches and shadows. And I miss you more.

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Don’t get me wrong, I love summer and don’t want to hasten its end. I love the long days of light, the heat, the fresh fruits and vegetables, running around with bare feet, wearing sunglasses and crop pants, and no homework. There is too much good in summer to hurry it along.

But the summer trees? Not as interesting as you. All their best features are hidden by their summer finery of leaves.

So know that when the time comes for you to return, at least one person will be rejoicing. I’ll be excited to see you this fall, with my camera in hand. I already have big plans for us.

Yours,
Kat


My latest article, Smartphone Art 2: Improve your images with basic editing, is up on the Seek Your Course blog now. Stop on over to get an overview of basic photo editing, selective adjustments, and how to find and choose apps. Let me know what you think!

What else do you want to learn? I’m prepping for my Smartphone Art workshop here in Oregon in a couple of weeks and starting to think about an online class. Now is the perfect time to let me know what you want to learn. Where are you having trouble? What makes you say, How did she do that? Drop me a note.

Filed Under: The Kat Eye View of the World Tagged With: Corvallis, shadow, smartphone art, summer, tree, winter

June 7, 2012 by Kat

Things I Love About Mornings…

I love the quiet.
Sipping my tea.
Seeing the sky lighten.
Pen on paper.
Me and my thoughts.
Reading for inspiration.
Allowing new thoughts to swirl and coalesce.
And then… when I’ve gone inside long enough…
Emerging to connect with others.

This image is from this last winter, when I was enamored of silhouettes. Remember that phase? Even though the photo is now out of season, it represents the morning to me. My special morning time which allows so many things to take root, grow and expand within me. And after this quiet time each morning, I love to reach out and connect.

I am reminded of this wonderful morning time as I did one of my favorite things this morning… visiting new links to the Photo-Heart Connection. Visiting the links for the Photo-Heart Connection or visiting the discussion group when I have an online class going on are one of the best parts of my day. There is something wonderful about the connections that form between us when we share our art and our heart. I thank you for that.

Today is the last day to link in to the Photo-Heart Connection for May. Won’t you join us in sharing your heart? Just think, not only will you gain from finding that internal connection, you’ll brighten my morning tomorrow too. It’s a win-win all around. I hope to see you soon!

Filed Under: The Kat Eye View of the World Tagged With: Corvallis, Oregon, silhouette, sky, tree, winter

March 13, 2012 by Kat

Beauty and Grace

Beauty and grace are performed whether or not we will or sense them. The least we can try to do is be there.
— Annie Dillard

Filed Under: The Kat Eye View of the World Tagged With: Corvallis, landscape, Oregon, quote, snow, winter

December 13, 2011 by Kat

Wintering

Let us love winter, for it is the spring of genius.
~Pietro Aretino

It seems that many of us are feeling the same this winter, slowing down, hibernating and allowing what comes next. My dear friend Tara Leaver, whom I connected with at the Do What You Love retreat last spring, has a beautiful guest post today on “Wintering” at Creative Every Day. She reminds me that I am not alone in my feelings, being in the down part of the creative cycle. She tells me it’s ok to watch seven seasons of Buffy the Vampire Slayer (or, I will translate that into watching Battlestar Galactica and devouring some novels). Thanks for the permission Tara! Do check out her post if you have time today.


A couple of unrelated notes:

Don’t miss Many Muses Musing today! I am giving away a spot in the full January-February series of Find Your Eye. If you’ve wanted to take the class, today is your lucky day! You get an entry for a comment AND for a link in, so get yourself musing on today’s prompt GREETINGS and head over to link in.

Did you catch my post on Help-Portrait on Sunday? If not, you can read about my amazing experience here. Jones Oliver, our wonderful organizer, also blogged about it here. Visit his post to see more amazing images, including one with a snake!

Filed Under: The Kat Eye View of the World Tagged With: Ashland, black and white, fog, Oregon, tree, winter

May 10, 2010 by Kat

Winter in Spring

It’s become normal, each day, for me to pick a photo to post based on a random impulse. Call it my intuition. Then I just write what comes to me based on looking at that photo. While there is sometimes a plan or a “theme” week (like when I show a specific place we visited, or show several pictures with similarities), they are usually just selected based on what calls to me that day. It has worked very well, and I’m often surprised by what comes out.

It’s not intuition that makes me choose today’s photo, it’s my body. I have an icky cold, it feels like winter to me. So I’m going to drink my tea, finish this post and then crawl back into bed. Because my body is telling me to. I guess sometimes you have to listen to your body too.

Filed Under: The Kat Eye View of the World Tagged With: Italy, Parco di Monza, snow, tree, winter

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