I've had the choice experience of having many readers leave some very sweet comments on the last post (the giveaway one). So many of you have made me smile and giggle. It's been a great way to spend a Saturday.
When I was making some creative decisions a month ago, I had a long discussion with Hubby. I expressed to him that I want to share my creative work with others. I told him that I was acutely aware of how badly the economy is affecting so many people right now, and how that made it extremely difficult for others to enjoy my work unless I gave it away as gifts. I've heard so many stories of an artist giving a painting to a neighbor or a friend just because they wanted to share their work. The problem was that the "neighbors" and friends I wanted to give my work to stretched all over the globe. Quite a dilemma.
Then it dawned on us that I could do that very thing by having a weekly giveaway every Saturday; by continuing to share my work on the blogs; and to offer some of my digital work for free download using Flicker. I felt peaceful with the thought of being able place my work in homes where it would be viewed instead of having it sit here in my studio collecting dust and only being seen by me, Hubby, the cats and the occasional visitor.
Shortly after that discussion, I heard a quote that went something like, "You can have a whole stack of canvases, but if they only sit in a closet what good are they?" That really solidified my decision for me.
As I pondered further, I've realized that we are entering a very different landscape thanks to this wonderful technology called the internet. You don't have to know the "right people" in order to publish your thoughts on a blog. You don't have to "be connected" in order to expose your creative work to the world. I've even read an online article entitled "Why Your Images Are Worthless" by Nikonian Martin Joergensen that pretty much says because of the combination of the internet and digital cameras, a lot of really beautiful photography is worth nothing monetarily because there is such a deluge of beautiful images available everywhere.
At first, I thought, "Well, what the heck am I doing then?"
Then over the next day or so I realized that if I valuate my creative work based on monetary value then, yes, my images probably are worthless. But if I valuate my creative work based on how much it makes someone else happy then its worth could be inestimable.
Over the past month, I've told Hubby more than once that I've been concerned that the blog readers will misinterpret my giveaways as a way to increase visitor traffic or gain exposure. I've really fretted over this, because I know in this coarse world we live in that it's hard for people to believe that everyone isn't out to get something from everybody else. I've worried about alienating friends that I've made over the past year of blogging. It's been a real concern particularly since a few of my favorite blogging friends have seemed to drift away over the past month.
So I pose this question to you all... what are your thoughts? Is it possible to give to others unconditionally in today's world without being misunderstood? Or has the world coarsened so much that it isn't possible? Will a giver's motives always be questioned thanks to this wonderful yet weird technological world we exist in? I'm sincerely interested in what all of you have to say. What do you think?
