Rich Sigberman Art & Illustration 90

At the Community Integral Transformative Practice grouop I'm a part of, this past Saturday's "assignment" was to bring in an artifact of some kind that spoke to your soul, or symbolized something important to you. Had I gone to the group, I would have brought a 1959 Action Comic that portrayed Superman on its cover in apparent self-exile, underwater in the ocean, but sill doing good deeds and fixing a floundering submarine. What a guy!

It wasn't the story that made the comic book significant to me. It was the fact that this was one of the "original comic books" that my Aunt gave me in 1960, ("Here! Take them all!") when she opened up a drawer in her basement and I was nearly blinded by primary colors. My mind was blown permanently, and I was on the road to becoming a cartoon artist. I can't tell you that I still have that comic book; I re-purchased it some 15 years ago, but its significance staggers me to this day. And, yes, I did subsequently thank her (she brushed it off).

We have now been invaded by ants, due to rain and colder weather. They're in the kitchen, and down in the basement. Now, every pepper corn, or coffee ground that has spilled on to the counter looks like an ant, but it's the ones that move that get my attention. I'm waging war on them, and, while I have the size, they definitely have the numbers. Maybe the 10 ant-traps that are supposed to poison them and their nests will discourage them from coming in. I'll keep y'all posted on this drama.

And, I've spent a few hours filling out cards to former clients who purchased art from me over the last few years. I'm taking a chance that a few of them will get their memories jogged and come to me again, for more art. It's all part of the marketing campaign.....Happy New Year!

Ok, so this "daily blog" has become "monthly". It's hard to explain, but I haven't much felt like writing, and haven't known just what to write about if I did. It's December 23, 2007, so summing up this year would seem to be timely.

There has been a re-definition in my own being of who I m, what I am. True, I'm still an artist, making his watercolor and ink work his life's work. The work still ranges from commercial collateral to pieces that are totally abstract. While this is still my work, as it has been full time since 1983, I somehow am not taking it so personally, and am no longer entirely defining myself by it. I have no idea if this is a good thing or not, but I suspect that it is good. There is a real danger in defining oneself by what one does for a living in that the work can be yanked out from under one in a flash. What does that leave if that happens? A person who is "nothing"? I don't think so.

So, for me, I have been more at ease in a pursuit of generating income via commercial art, and relegating my more adventurous art to the background and giving it less time. There is a sacrifice of a type, but it is my decision to go this way, rather than the old "starving artist as victim" cliche we've all come to know and love (as long as we're not it). I miss the excitement of creating something I believe is great and unique, but I don't miss seeing the finished piece languish here against a wall, never generating a penny of income. I believe that both are necessary for happiness and fulfillment: success on both levels, financial and creative. I think I come close often enough, and sure, I'd love to increase the frequency of both of those feelings in the coming year. I believe that I will, too.

Things that used to really get me riled up are not throwing me nearly as much, if at all. Something inside me has changed enough so, even when the impulses are there, I am able to avoid acting on them or giving in to them. This has not happened all on its own; I've been working on it. Call it what you will, "maturity", "being centered", "having a sense of perspective".....or "getting older". Whatever it is, it makes life a lot easier.

The sense of ease seems to be missing for many. I hear of so much inner suffering by friends who have so much materially. I feel sad for them, and know that life has many challenges. How we meet them defines who we are, a lot more than what we do for our living.

So, my wishes for counting one's blessings, good health, great moments of joy, and happiness for every living thing on this planet.