The Original S.E.L.F.I.E…

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art, artists, creating, drawings, Forgiveness, frida kahlo, Instagram, joy, paintings, self portrait, self portraits, selfie, selfies, suffering

Self Portrait

Mixed Media Art Painting Collage

Sharon Cummings

2014

Long before the Internet, cell phones and the modern day “selfie”, artists were hard at work creating self portraits.  It was a right of passage of sorts for some and for others it was just practical.  It wasn’t always easy to get models, nor could the average artist afford to pay.  So naturally, they turned to themselves.

Frida Kahlo is one famous example of an artist who mostly painted her own image. She is noted as saying:

“I paint self-portraits because I am so often alone, because I am the person I know best.”
― Frida Kahlo

I believe this is true for many artists.  We spend a lot of time in solitude working tirelessly to perfect our craft.  We curse to an empty studio when we are agonizing over a piece and we dance in delight to ourselves as audience when all goes well.  And yet, the “self portrait” has fallen from grace as an art form.  It has been replaced with quick snaps loaded to Instagram.

I have drawn myself in Egyptian headdress in the past.  One teacher challenged me to draw myself as an old woman.  And I have sculpted my body and face in clay.  Each is an exercise in self reflection that cannot be garnered from a quick snap of the cell phone.

Self portraiture is a challenge.  I’d love to see more artists take the plunge by using Photoshop, paint, clay, markers and anything else that requires time and thought.

It is like a forgiveness of sorts.  A raw honest look at life and your place in it.  An exercise of thankfullness to the Universe for the gifts that you have been given to create with. You do it for yourself…

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P.E.A.C.E. With The Past…

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I think one of the hardest things to do in life is to make peace with our pasts. So many of us let memories, words and actions from years ago punish us in the present moment. For me it had to do with forgiving each person who offended me. I had to let go of resentments. Then I had to forgive myself for all of the things I had done to hurt others including me. I wrote letters to a few people. Some I sent in the mail and others I simply burned afterwards. As I realized that I had made a lot of mistakes it helped me to allow others to do the same. I also made a conscious effort to not repeat the behaviors and actions that I had been taught. I became attuned to my feelings and learned to stop the patterns. And a huge realization for me was that I could not control other people or make them change. And I got some professional help. It’s all been worth it as at this time I am able to look back and focus on the good things….the pleasures…..the peace.

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Forgiving Our Fathers…..

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Artist, Dad, Daddy, faabest, Family, Father, Father's Day, Fathers, Forgiveness, hope, love, Men, sharon cummings

This is my second Father’s Day without a Dad.  I lost my “Daddy” when I was 10 years old and my “Pop” two Summers ago at age 43.  Both loses have their own particular kind of sting. That’s me in my Daddy’s arms as an infant in the first picture and me in my Pop’s in the later.  As with Father’s Day in the past, forgiveness always comes to the surface.  It isn’t that I have not forgiven these two men for their shortcomings.  Both had many and I have long since come to terms and found peace.  It is more about the fact that without either of them here, forgiveness is something that I can cherish.  It is much easier to celebrate someone’s life and their positive role in yours if you can let go of past hurts.  If you can see them for their humanity.  See the ways that they must have felt pain inside and the ways they tried to make themselves feel better.  I have had to forgive alcoholism, physical abuse, suicide and more. I have had to go beyond my inner child to see theirs.  It took years for me to fully open up and allow their love to move freely through my thoughts and my heart.  But I have and they do.  So today on Father’s Day I want to celebrate love and be thankful for forgiveness which truly has set me free!

Peaceful Understanding

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What is forgiveness?  Wikipedia says:  Forgiveness is the intentional and voluntary process by which a victim undergoes a change in feelings and attitude regarding an offense, lets go of negative emotions such as revenge, with an increased ability to wish the offender well.^[1][2][3] Forgiveness is different from condoning (failing to see the action as wrong and in need of forgiveness), excusing (not holding the offender as responsible for the action), pardoning (granted by a representative of society, such as a judge), forgetting (removing awareness of the offence from consciousness), and reconciliation (restoration of a relationship).^[1]

I believe it is a peaceful understanding that your health and happiness are more important than a painful event or the person that inflicted it.  It is a letting go and a knowing that you no longer need to keep being punished by the past.  That you deserve better than those memories.  It comes from loving and approving of yourself.

Peaceful Understanding……

Is Love Worth It?

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art, Artist, betrayal, Forgiveness, friends, friendships, healing, health, love, lovers, mosaic, mosaic art, mosaics, paintings, prints, relationships, romance, romantic relationships, self help, self improvement, sharon cummings, tampa artist

Is love worth a second chance?  This piece from my popular Labor of Love series is titled “Second Chances”.  These truly are a labor for me, but I love creating them.  I have been in many relationships, both platonic and romantic where giving someone another break was warranted.  Sometimes it was worthwhile as you watched the other person mature as a human being and become a true friend or loyal lover.  Other times it resulted in only more disappointment and heartache.  Real love is indeed hard to find.  In friends or lovers it is elusive as so many people are either shallow, self hating or unwilling to be “real”.  I believe in love and I believe in Second Chances.  Third Chance?…….not likely.  The last of my Labor of Love for now as a BRAND NEW series is coming tomorrow.  I am pumped about it too!

See more Labor of Love here:

http://fineartamerica.com/profiles/1-sharon-cummings.html?tab=artworkgalleries&artworkgalleryid=40827