Some years ago my wife Jan and I were at an art show in Tennessee, trying to sell a few pieces and make a few connections. That’s how we made our living back then and it wasn’t particularly easy or glamorous. Believe me, I know all about being a starving artist! Now the headline artist at this show was someone who’s work I’d admired for years. So when I found out that if I bought something at the show I’d get the chance to meet him and have it signed, I jumped at it! Imagine my disappointment when I got to the front of the line and the guy didn’t even look up. He just scribbled something illegible and I was more or less shooed out of the way.
I swore to Jan then and there that if I was ever lucky enough to have people want my signature, I would never forget the honor, I would show my appreciation and at the very least give them something they could read! And over the years, I’ve come to realize that’s part of the fun of what I do, interacting with people who share my enthusiasm, getting to know them and engaging folks when I can. I sign every piece like it’s the first one...or the last. I can’t imagine doing it any other way. It just wouldn’t be any fun.
I’ll be on the road quite a bit in the next couple of months. Click here to see where I’m going to next and come out to one of my stops if you get the chance!
P.S. Thanks to the many Friends I’ve had the pleasure of visiting with already this year. Check out photos from these events on the Events Gallery.
