BOMH Presidents Letter – Lee Richards – Contemplating Rejection

Contemplating Rejection

As I sit here filling out one of many art show applications, I think about my masochistic tendencies, and wonder why we artists feel the necessity to set ourselves up for the inevitable “Dear John” or “Dear Jane” letters. You know, those emails that begin, “Dear Artist —Thank you for applying to the Hotsy Totsy Art Festival. Unfortunately…” Those are the letters—the ones we wait for with hope (and trepidation) following this frenzied period of applications, preparations, and submissions.

We are an enigma. I can’t think of another demographic who puts its heart and soul into a piece or body of work– and then says, “Here it is world; let me know what you think.”

We invite complete strangers into our personal spaces to share our joy, our pain, our vision.  We open ourselves to criticism or praise and are astounded by the vast spectrum of emotions our work elicits. We are amazed and excited at the emotional sway that our media can evoke.

We are the visionaries who see the world not through rose colored glasses, but through a spectacular rainbow of color. We see the dew in the spider’s web, the ladybug on the blade of grass, the tear in the eye of a soldier; we hear the symphony of the stars, the crescendo of the universe. Both the insignificant and the majestic inspire us. We are mankind’s conscience.  We are the caretakers of our world’s creative soul.

The year is fast unfolding. ZAPPlication, Juried Art Services and EntryThingy patiently wait for us to meet deadlines. Amidst the turmoil of the applications, the jury submissions, and the show preparations, I urge you to find time to re-energize. Revel in all that inspires you. Feed your soul, and create anew.