Building A Community of Photo Souls

One of the things that is meaningful to me about being a part of the art community (and I include photo-graphy here too) is that most artists are generous. It feels good. And that is demonstrated partly by the willingness to help others grow their own creativity.

Just for that reason I recently joined a group as one of the five founding photographers and instructors of Hold The Eye Images. I hadn’t expected to do anything like this ever. But the idea of sharing my ideas about creativity and fine art photography in a workshop setting, along with this group of highly skilled photographers and all-round great guys, was too exciting to pass up.

We call our group Hold The Eye Images and today we launched our offering at www.hteiw.com. It’s been fun building a roster of workshops that address a variety of interests and skill levels, because I kept envisioning people I know who love photography and would enjoy learning from Bill, Mike, Rick and John ~ and maybe even get a kick out of the workshop I am leading, “Unleashing Your Creativity.”

So what we are doing now is publishing the first round at “introductory pricing” hoping it will tantalize a few to join us. And when I say “a few,” I mean just that: our intention is to keep each of these workshops to only 12 participants because we want to make sure everybody gets the kind of personal attention that it takes to really absorb this stuff. (I’ve been in workshops that have many tens or hundreds and frankly they suck. The expertise demonstrated might be awesome but I leave wondering what I actually learned.) Plus, every Hold The Eye Images workshop participant will have the opportunity to have a personal critique of images s/he creates during the session, which is really a valuable proposition for an artist of any level.

Hold The Eye Images is located in a freshly-appointed and full-of-natural-light studio at 1044 Dell Avenue, Campbell, California, near Highways 17 and 85. We’ve got a range of studio lights and, this is what makes me drool, a humungous Epson 9900 printer.

And, maybe the most important thing that we are doing is building a community for photographers who want to be a part of something where they can learn, meet others, be inspired and have fun. 

This time it's Art!

It's been difficult to cast off the cape I wore for so many years as Marketer, Writer, Business Coach, and all-round Entrepreneur. But, I am shrugging it off in fits and starts as I step down from some of the professional association boards I have been on and eschew marketing project involvements. It's hard to do; I had been hustling work for so many decades that letting go has been akin to scuttling an addiction. Is there a 12-Step Program for those attached to their market-carved identities? Being a marketer and design manager had been so satisfying on so many levels.

But now I am ready for this new challenge. I know that to be true because it feels more like my new vocation has chosen me rather than me choosing it. I mean, why else would anyone choose Art as a career in an economy like this? 

I just find that when I am creating something or producing framed prints from my digital images, hours go by without 

my noticing. In general, I have a much higher spirit level than usual and I look forward to getting back to the studio or to working on new concepts. It is a wonderful way to live.

One of the things that I like about this process the most is how warm and supportive everyone has been as I tell them what I am doing -- business colleagues, other artists, friends and all of my family. Indeed, my family has asked me consistently for decades "When are you going to do your art?" Recently when I told one of my daughters that I was declaring myself an artist, she replied, "Mom. We all knew it. It's like you're gay or something and you think you're coming out." An apt metaphor.

So...this blog will now be dedicated to all things Art: my work and thoughts and processes, plus my role as a Commissioner on the Palo Alto Public Art Commission, sharing the spotlight with fellow artists when I feel like it, and more. I will also post a new image or two from time to time just to share what I am doing, and whatever takes my artist fancy. Comments and feedback would be welcome and fun.