Letting your paintings go

Last week somebody asked me how hard it was to let my paintings go when they're sold. She obviously presumed it was hard by definition and only wondered how hard. She looked at me with a bit of disbelief when I said it didn't bother me. A painting has to be looked at, not stored somewhere. But she's got a point: there are quite a few artists who have a hard time parting with their work.

For example a dear friend of mine. Every time he drops off his work at an exhibition, he's in doubt. The reason is that every work is like a page in a book for him, they're all interconnected. Tear out a page and the story doesn't make sense anymore. Every time a work is sold he wants the address of the buyer, just in case he needs this page for a specific exhibition. This Sunday, at the opening of a show he participated in, I purchased one of his small works, but only after inquiring if it was okay with him.

Windfall, oil on panel, 15.7" x 47.2"

For me it's totally different. In every painting I'm trying to say more or less the same thing. I just try to say it better or from a different angle. I'm still not exactly sure what it is I'm trying to say, but I'm pretty sure it's always the same thing. And when a painting is sold, I still get a buzz. It's very rewarding, in a non-financial way, if someone spends a considerable sum to own one of your works. And the money is nice too, let's be honest. A fellow-painter said to me: "Would I paint if I wouldn't make any money with it? Yes, I would!" Same here. The money just makes it better.