It is so important as artists to take stock in our work, particularly to look back at what we’ve done and recognize what went well, what didn’t, and where we’re going. I’m basing a lot of my forward momentum now on intuition and a certain blind eye to what others are saying. My last blog post details that. But for now, I’m looking at this past year as a way to do three things:

1. Critique my recent portfolio.
2. Appreciate the work that I put in.
3. Fall in love with art.

Critiquing the portfolio is easy. I can, within about two minutes, pick out my top favorite images and my least. My favorites are so because of innovation, technique, and concept. Specifically, creepiness without being vulgar or crude, presenting a new way of looking at an idea, intentional backgrounds, and muted colors. My least favorite are my least because of: pastel colors, cut/paste editing, and lack of planning.

It is good to step back and look at what you’ve done so that you don’t fall into the rut of focusing only on what you are doing right now. While I completely believe in doing that to create in the present and not let distractions derail you, artists still need encouragement. You might be in a dry spell right now and haven’t created anything in a month – so what? That doesn’t mean you’ve never created anything (hence looking back) or that you never will. This is a long journey, not a short one.

And finally, I want to fall in love with art. And not just any art, MY art. I want to look at what I’ve done to remember why I’ve done it. I create images the way I do because I love it. I love what I do. PLEASE, shout that with me! We SHOULD love what we do! It is our heart/soul/imagination/SELF. Please, for goodness sake, love what you do.

Next year is looking beautiful. I’ve scheduled myself 4 months in a row off from traveling to truly focus on my crafts – mostly photography and writing, but we’ll see! I’ll be visiting India, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Greece, Egypt and Hawaii, so far…but I don’t plan to book any more travel. Next year I’m very committed to my health. Every single one of those trips is either for some much needed R&R, or for charity work.

I would LOVE to see your favorite creations of the year.
Please share link below so others can find you!

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If you’re wondering what I got up to this year and what’s changed, here are a few highlights:

I taught a 26 hour class on Creative Live called “Fine Art Photography: The Complete Guide”.
I had my debut exhibition of my newest series, “Fourth Wall”.
I hosted my 3rd annual Promoting Passion Convention.
I started a new Light Space school in Thailand.
I became a Sony Artisan of Imagery.