THE COURAGE OF AN ARTIST

David Limrite-Artist, Coach, Mentor, Teacher

Working on a pair of heart paintings.

"Go on working freely and furiously, and you will make progress."

~ Paul Gauguin

Progress is really what it's all about. Steady progress. And that takes courage. Every day. In the studio. Making choices and decisions.

The courage to decide to even paint today. The courage to walk through the door of your studio.The courage to decide which project to pursue, which painting to work on, or which painting to abandon.

The courage to begin. The courage to pick a surface to work on, a brush to use, and a color to start with. The courage to make that first brushstroke. The courage to stay put long enough for something to happen. The courage to avoid distractions. The courage to be alone with our own thoughts.

The courage to take risks. The courage to make mistakes. The courage to fail. The courage to succeed.

The courage to like what you have just painted. The courage to hate what you have just painted and have it be ok.

The courage to give yourself permission. The courage to allow your work to be something you didn't expect or to take you places you did not expect to go. The courage to go there. The courage to get up the next day and do it all again.

And the courage to love every minute of it.

While you will not be successful at summoning the courage to tackle all of these all of the time, you will battle and persist and push through.

Because that's what artists do.

Yes. You do have the courage of an artist.

Best,

David