EDon Arts

➕ Part-time oil painter, full time day-dreamer
➕ Painting the southwest
➕ Originals and prints👇
www.etsy.com/shop/EDonArts

06/07/2023

"laredo hustler" original + prints just posted. see link in bio for etsy

03/28/2023

i’ve realized that when i draw faces or bodies, they tend to look masculine in form. i was a tomboy growing up (still am, i suppose), probably because the embodiments of strength and courage that society showed me were all men, with only a few exceptions.

so it was only natural that my younger sketchbooks were full of swashbuckling guys - cowboys, pirates, samurai - because those were the only heroes i knew to look toward for adventure and daring. my hand got trained in drawing broad shoulders and beards, and now i still struggle to depict womanly features with finesse. even though i’ve learned that women can embody those adventurous qualities ive looked up to, i’m still needing to re-train myself in how to put those embodiments on paper.

although i don’t have a ton of followers, it’s still important to me to incorporate female strength and beauty in my work - for both my female followers and for myself. These paintings are a narrative in my little slice of the art world that say, “yes, we are brave; yes we are strong”.

02/20/2023

there’s a lot of sketches and paintings buried away in my studio that won’t make it onto feeds and cardstock. so much artwork just doesn’t work out or gets abandoned, but that’s no tragedy. all the little mistakes and failures build up to something bigger over time.

when i was young i did really well in school, maybe too well. the grades came easily, but that kind of reward system doesn’t set you up well for the real world. perfect scores and extra credit don’t exist out in real life, and it takes way more effort to see a modicum of success than a few hours of studying. it’s taken me a lot of years after leaving that world to learn that you have to endure a lot more failure and f-ups to get even just a little closer to where you want to be. i’m learning that it’s important to rejoice in the sh*tty paintings, because for every good one you make there were at least 10 kinda-sorta-not-really-that-good ones that came before it. same goes for every bombed job interview, every disappointing workout, every unanswered text. exult in the failures and the f-ups because they’re what make your great works all that much greater.

02/06/2023

Lots of people are freaking out about ChatGPT and generative AI. I’m going to take off my artist hat for a moment and put on my engineer hat to offer my thoughts on the latest AI revolution.

As for job security, advances in technology always accompany a rise in new jobs that take advantage of that tech. After the invention of the steam engine, cars, computers, the internet, everyone predicted that these time-saving machines would eliminate the need for certain types of work and that we would all be working less in the near future. All of these predictions have failed to come true - we’re still working 40 hours a week and are enjoying some of the highest rates of employment in history.

True, certain occupations may become obsolete and we’ll have to adapt to the new AI reality. But this doesn’t mean everyone has to become an AI engineer. Email was invented 50 years ago, and only a handful of people knew how to use it. Today, you’d be laughed out of a job interview if you didn’t know how to send an email. Yet you don’t need to know what email protocols are nor know how to build your own GMail to check your inbox. Using AI effectively may be a requirement in the near future, but it should be something the average person could learn how to use.

For creatives, generative AI art feels threatening, but we’ve had tech revolutions that threatened artists before. Photography was predicted to make the painter obsolete, photoshop was supposed to put photographers out of a job, and digital art was again supposed to threaten the livelihood of traditional artists. Yet here we are in 2023 and people are still plying the centuries-old trades of painting and sculpture, alongside fellow artists in photography, digital painting, and graphic design. If anything, technology has created new avenues for artistic expression and sharing our work.

So if you’re worried, take heart, it’s all happened before. Learn what you can about AI, and play around with the new apps. It’s here to make our lives better and more productive, after all.

01/30/2023

i should update my website.

"waiting on spring", 12x9" oil on paper. available.

01/07/2023

somehow painting on paper happens more naturally. i’ve been liking my sketches better than my paintings on canvas that are supposed to be “finished” pieces. lately the finishing part doesn’t really happen, i get cramped up and overwork sections and end up hating it and getting tired of trying to make something work. ironically, the disposability and impermanence of paper seem to relax my style, and i can actually finish a painting that i feel happy keeping around.

for now, enjoy the sketches while i work on my mental blocks.

“handlebar”, 11x8” oil on paper

01/02/2023

finally made my new year’s resolutions - i’m always a few days late. unsurprisingly, painting more is on the list this year. what are your aspirations for ‘23?

10/04/2022

There’s a lot of uncertainty in life, and I’ve been thinking about that lately. I’m not really sure whether I’ll become a career artist, or even if that’s what I want to do with my painting. Add on top of that the uncertainty of the current economy, political issues, COVID, and it’s all enough to make anyone afraid and confused, no matter your situation or your goals.

What always grounds me though is putting paint on a canvas. No matter how unsure I am of where life is going, whenever I’m in front of the easel I know I’m right where I need to be. I feel really fortunate to know what my North Star is, the thing that brings me fulfillment and that I want to keep doing no matter what. Maybe for you it’s a hobby or a job or your family or a cause, but the journey to find that North Star is worth it. No matter how confusing life gets, it will bring you a little more clarity on the way. I feel really fortunate to know that when uncertainty around big life questions come up, there’s answers in the paint. I don’t have to have it all figured out, I just have to get in front of the easel and that will set me in the right direction, always.

09/20/2022

after much convincing, matt agreed to let me sell "hector". we've enjoyed him on our mantle for the last month, but it's time he left our den and found a permanent home.
the original painting is available on my etsy, and if you'd like smaller/less expensive art, prints start at only $16.

09/04/2022

"sedona cliffs" is signed and dry and up on etsy. if you've followed me for a little while, you know how many times i've tried to work on this scene 🙈 please give it some love.

09/03/2022

so I realized yesterday my Etsy shop had been suspended because I didn't verify a payment method 🙄 we're back in business now. look out for new work this weekend, including this little cow.

Address

Albuquerque, NM

Website

https://www.edonarts.com/

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