Evelyn Mount Presentation

Hi, my name is Gini Campbell Annis and I am an artist and a teacher, not a public speaker.

How many of you are involved in art? Paint, draw, sketch, doodle? Why do you enjoy doing that?

Many people think that a person is born with the ability to draw or paint. That we just whip out our paintbrushes and presto…we have a beautiful painting. This is one of my pet peeves because although many artists have a passion, they also need to develop the skills and knowledge. It takes learning, dedication and practice. Do you expect to hand a bassoon to a person and have them play beautiful music? No, what you’d get is a lot of noise.  A musician needs to learn the notes and fingering and practice, practice, practice. The same is true for a painter. Just because there is paint on a canvas, doesn’t make it art.

Not everyone who studies music plays at Carnegie Hall. Not every artist can expect their paintings to hang in the Museum of Art. So what is it about playing music or painting that makes people want to spend their time and energy doing it? Any ideas?

Creating art helps us in many ways.

1. It can be an escape from the daily stresses of the day. When you paint you focus so much that the rest of the world goes away. It is a meditation.
2. It helps with self-confidence. You step back and say, “look what I just did!” Especially in the beginning, not every piece is going to be wonderful, but if there is an area where you nailed it, take pride and know that you are taking steps on the journey. Art is a journey, not a destination. We never see the paintings that Rembrandt stashed under the bed. We don’t see the trials and errors, only the master works. We can take satisfaction in working our way through a problem. On the other hand, sometimes the painting just ends up in the closet.
3. Expression – What you paint depends on what you want to say. We all have different life experiences from which to draw. Some artists understand that life can be tough and want to give the viewer a respite from the stresses of daily life. Other artists think they need to tell their viewer that life is full of injustice and strife. Whatever you have to say, painting gives you a venue to express yourself and your feeling.
4. Recognition and attention – goes without saying
5. It helps you to see the world around you differently, to see the beauty in the ordinary. The taken for granted things around you.
6. Identity – I have always been drawn to the visual arts. Coloring, drawing and then painting is just something I’ve always done. It gives me great satisfaction to complete a project, to watch myself grow as an artist and a person. Looking at my paintings, you see me…who I am. They are traditional and realistic. I did not come here wearing a boa and sequins. Just like handwriting, painting reflects the individual. I have had students with strong personalities who painted with strong darks and lights…not much middle tone. I also had students who painted in the middle tones…not any strong darks or lights. These were a shy, self-conscience people.

I went to college during the Hippie era where there was a lot of doing your own thing. That was not who I was. I didn’t know what my thing was, let alone how do it. So I thought I must not be an artist because I wasn’t like them. It took some soul searching and a good instructor for me to realize that art has room for everyone.

Why you paint is not as important as that you paint.

Art is a journey, not a destination.