It May be Fast, but Now I'm Drawing Nice and Slow

I've turned down the commission. It's been worrying me all week as you know--so many people involved who's approval I would be seeking. That's not what I want to do with my art. I don't want art to be a job--I've got one of those. And yesterday I was busy doing it after so many months of being laid off. I was exhausted by dinner; It's hard to rev up your engines after they've been in low gear for so long. I needed some less serious activity to get my verve back.

I took an hour to work on the boat. Just because I gave up the boat as a job, doesn't mean I gave up the challenge. I'm liking using colored pencil--except I'm not that thrilled with the Derwent brand. They're too soft. I need harder leads for the details. I have some Prisma leads somewhere and will look for them after work. I hear Faber Castell makes a good pencil? Next time I buy, I'll give those a try.

As I was working on the background, I noticed I was feeling a sense of relief. With no one but me to like the work and no deadline, I felt much more relaxed. What was somebody else's boat, was now my boat. I had the freedom of interpretation back. I felt good about my decision--just sorry I had delayed the client's project while I debated the commission aspect of the art market.