I’m not sure why I have given my shop the cold shoulder. I haven’t had negative feed back, though I am always worried when there is no feedback.
Perhaps it is the medium itself that is the difficulty. Painting isn’t the problem, I have lots of paintings and only have a few listed on Etsy. It seems fake to sell prints even though the majority of art sold on Etsy is not original artwork. I am trying to teach myself some graphic design skills to transition into a more digital/repeatable artist. Maybe I don’t like that idea and that is why I am ignoring my Etsy shop.
Seth Godin is a great writer and pod caster. I recently listened to his episode about wabi sabi. The basic gist of wabi-sabi is that the imperfections are what makes us love something. The unique qualities impart an essence made more powerful because it is not repeatable. For me, the magic of creating a watercolor painting is the variability of your results. No two paintings are the same. The intersection and interaction of the pigments, paper and water create happy accidents.
Selling a print of a watercolor ruins the wabi-sabi. Or does it? If the image is moving and worth looking at, couldn’t more than one person possess it?
Clearly, I need to refine and define what exactly I am trying to do with my Etsy shop. I need to do something about all of these painting or I am going to end up on an episode of Hoarders.
Until I figure this out, I will continue to paint my happy river rocks, the perfect yet imperfect leaf, and to seek the most vibrant shade of green. For now, I will ignore the Etsy shop in the room.
