Comments on: Identity Crisis

By: Bea the Mouse

Bea the Mouse — Fri, 04 Nov 2005 00:17:31 +0000

It´s so exciting to see you walk along your own path! And also very encouraging and inspiring! What a great adventure! I know this “get obsessed, stay obsessed” attitude all too well, but I found out recently that it just drives me crazy. So for now I´m just taking things at my own pace, one step at a time. Feels a lot better!

By: michelle

michelle — Tue, 01 Nov 2005 19:31:21 +0000

Swirly, congrats on your sale! As I read through all your thoughts about your venture into fine art and people judging you I felt sad. Sad that as an artist we feel judged by other artists and sad that we judge ourselves so harshly. Your art makes you happy, and I’m sure there are plenty of other people it will make happy too. And anyone who belittles your fine art because you have done commercial art – well, they just need to get over themselves and not be such a snob! I know it’s easier said than done, but keep doing what makes you happy and try not to let other people get to you. It really is the only way..
Take care…

By: Alex

Alex — Thu, 27 Oct 2005 14:20:13 +0000

your write beautiful true struggles thanks

By: christine

christine — Thu, 27 Oct 2005 10:24:20 +0000

I’m feeling less than eloquent today, but I know it will all get done and you will figure it out. You will shine as you always do. xo, c.

By: Feisty

Feisty — Thu, 27 Oct 2005 09:29:45 +0000

Congratulations on your sale!!!
And what a fantastic post. I, too, feel relief that I’m not the only one madly racing around and thinking that I have to get everything done _now_.
I have a post-it on my wall by my computer that says, “It won’t all happen at once.” I try to remember that it’s there as often as possible and tell myself that going slowly is better than rushing through everything.

By: Jackie

Jackie — Thu, 27 Oct 2005 08:21:42 +0000

Swirly, First I just wanted you to know that your bolg has so inspired and encouraged me. I am in the very beginning stages of trying to dream about a full time career creating art again. This post totally validated all the swirl of emotions I have been going through lately trying to move out of the “dream” into the “reality” phase. Thank you so much for your honesty and transparency. You are a mentor to me even when though you don’t know me. You are where I want to be in 10 years. jackie

By: penelope

penelope — Thu, 27 Oct 2005 07:55:16 +0000

I know that “hurry up! hurry up!” feeling exactly. I find my thoughts snowballing to the point that eventually I think if it doesn’t happen right this second…all is lost!
I have a really hard time laughing about that and putting on foot in front of the other.
I’m not happy you struggle with that too, but I am glad to know that it’s a normal phenomenon.
I am looking forward to seeing this new identity come to life…I’m sure you will mesh the two beautifully and seemlessly.

By: Enid Yvette

Enid Yvette — Thu, 27 Oct 2005 06:28:53 +0000

Congrats on your sell. I can definitely relate with this post. I’m just now starting my journey into selling my work, putting myself out there. I’ve actually been promoting myself lately which would normally be hard for me. But I have been able to do it with an ease that I never truly expected.
While I’m quite insecure about my artwork sometimes and unsure of my direction as well. I know if I didn’t do this I would be incomplete. I think the most important thing that you mentioned which I have slowly come to realize is everything has to happen one step at a time.

By: maria

maria — Thu, 27 Oct 2005 04:54:43 +0000

Swirly, this is another wonderful post, and you’ve hit the nail right on the head for what a lot of creative people go through. I think being a creative person, by its very nature, means you continually keep exploring and evolving, and at each stage, you’re faced with the question of how to express who you are, and that means first figuring out that question (who are we …) for yourself. For me, anyway, that process is never as clean or as fast as I’d like. I also find that most people associate you with a particular identity long past you’ve already evolved into a new one … sometimes I feel weird saying I’m not doing ‘that’ anymore; now I’m doing ‘this,’ as if I were somehow flaky for not sticking with one thing for decades. But, recently I realized that I much prefer to be the type of person who’s constantly evolving and trying new things, because that’s my true nature. For some people, perhaps, maintaining one identity, career, etc., for a long time is their nature. But hey, Madonna keeps reinventing herself, and she’s done okay .
Anyway, what I ended up doing last year was just creating a ‘portal’ at http://www.mariasariego.com. I figure my name is one thing that will never change (at least I think not!), and from there, people can go into the various areas/projects/websites I have going on at the moment. Some of the areas are standalone websites that I just point to, and some sections (such as ‘the writer’ and ‘the person,’ which I’m still working on) will just be pages within the main site. I find this format lets me add, delete, and morph things as I go. Not sure if something like that would work for you … where you have a main site (unfortunately christinemiller.com is taken, but how about planetchristine.com? , and then people could go from there to ‘Swirly Girl,’ or ‘Fine Art’ or ‘Photography’ or ‘Journal.’ Each area (which could each be separate sites) could have its own distinct look and feel. Just a thought.
Do what you can before your trip, without wearing yourself out, and know that it’s just what it needs to be for now, and trust that things will unfold in their own way and time. Travel is great for that … maybe while you’re in NC, you’ll have a great epiphany and come home knowing just how you want to express the you that is emerging.

By: melissa

melissa — Wed, 26 Oct 2005 13:31:11 +0000

Congratulations! I’m so happy for you…and I’m so glad you’re not stressing out about your visit! We’ll have a great time and if you need to work..I’ll give you the space