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"The Work of Art": A New Blog

When I began painting in June, 2003, at age 52, I had little idea what I was getting into or why. I wasn’t looking for a hobby or retirement pastime; beyond a general art appreciation, I had no particular interest in art and no conscious desire to make it. Further, I didn’t believe I had any talent.

My art-making history: In my early 20s I’d tried weaving, but gave it up after several years; it was boring and working on a loom was tough on my back. Then, while working as an R.N. in Intensive Care and recovering from a divorce, I spent a year in a figure drawing class at the University of Montana. There I received the high marks the instructor gave my drawings with a grain of salt: I was convinced he was not really evaluating my work but hitting on me instead. After that I signed on with another instructor for an oil painting class but I didn’t like his gruff manner and after 3 weeks I stopped going. For the next 20 years, I made the occasional drawing in a travel journal and that was that.

In October of 2002, however, I experienced a sort of epiphany. No longer a nurse, I was now transitioning out of my second career as an ordained Unity minister. I’d resigned my post as spiritual leader of a church I’d pioneered and was working in an unofficial capacity as an advocate for a group of women who in 1962, along with me, had been molested by a priest in Marietta, Georgia.

More history: In January of 2001, after an exposé of Catholic clergy sexual abuse aired on “60 Minutes,” I’d given my story (much like those recounted in the Academy Award-winning Best Picture, “Spotlight”) to the Atlanta Journal & Constitution. When it was picked up by both local and national press, my former classmates began leaving messages for me indicating they’d also been molested by the same priest. Seeking whatever justice might be available, I spent several years doggedly attempting to get those involved to take responsibility for their actions. Since statutes of limitation had expired in our particular case, the local Catholic hierarchy, following the lead of other bishops across the U.S., was loathe to admit any involvement, much less a moral responsibility to compensate for the wrongs done.

Looking for support in my efforts, I became a member of SNAP (Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests) and over the course of eighteen months attended meetings in Dallas, Louisville and Boston. By the time I got to Boston, I realized I’d reached the end of my capacity for dealing with the darkness of this issue. At SNAP meetings I’d heard too many sordid details of how priests had done physical, emotional, and spiritual harm to those in their care. I wanted to help but mostly I wanted to find redemption for the pain, my own in particular. In Boston, then, for 3 nights running, I couldn’t sleep. But as I tossed and turned an inner voice seem to whisper, “Do Art, Do Art, Do Art!”

As I mentioned, I had no interest in “doing Art” and even less idea about what to do I were to try. Since, however, I’d also had a similarly unlikely call to ministry (around the time I’d dropped out of that oil painting class) I wasn’t inclined to ignore intuitive nudges such as this. Instead, when I returned home to Atlanta, I bought art supplies. The easel, a stack of canvas, and a paint box sat in a closet, unopened and unused for 6 months. Then a moment arrived one sunny June day when I looked out the window and spied some blue asters and orange tiger lilies growing in the back yard. I grabbed a handful and stuffed them in a small ceramic pitcher. I set up my art equipment, squeezed out some paint and, without realizing it, began an apprenticeship that relentlessly offers opportunities not only for artistic development, but also for (and perhaps more importantly) psychological and spiritual growth.

In my dedicated art life I am a prolific oil painter. I show and sell my work primarily from my home-based Studio & Gallery in northern Michigan. I've achieved a modest amount of recognition (mostly, but not entirely regional) and comfortably support myself with my artwork. I've written a book (7 Habits of Deeply Fulfilled Artists: Your Aesthetic Needs & How to Meet Them) and I conduct mentoring workshops for artists of all skill levels. I do my art 24/7.

This blog is for all of us who are engaged in doing the Work of Art and those who think they might want or need to be. Please know that I’m writing this mostly to clarify my own understanding of this huge subject. Nevertheless I hope that this blog will also inspire, encourage, and enlighten others. If you have suggestions for a topic, or a question from your own art practice efforts, please feel free to post in the Comments. As much as time will allow, I’ll try to respond, either directly  or in a subsequent post. Please share this with others who you feel may benefit from these reflections.

Thanks for reading!

Ellie