I’ve been sick these past few days, so I took advantage of being couch bound to get some computer work done and also submitted to a show about rejection that is being put on by the local collective I am a part of. The show is called Shit Show and the piece above is the one that I submitted today in between fits of coughs. I love this piece and I am so happy that it will be seen outside of my home and studio.
When I first started showing my work, I submitted to a lot of shows. That’s how you start. But when I started to get invitations and representation, I stopped submitting as much because frankly, it’s expensive. Those entry fees add up. And then sales are never guaranteed, etc. etc. But here and there if I see a call for art that sounds interesting and I think I have a shot at getting, I’ll submit. I saw a call for art and submitted my painting above and unfortunately it didn’t get in. But fortunately, since it didn’t get in, I could submit it to the current call for art.
Before I even started selling my work and had just left my job in the career I had studied for, I was working in a frame shop. A woman used to come in all the time to get mats cut for her watercolors that she would put into shows. I loved helping her, as she was very nice. One day she asked me if I was an artist. And I said, no, yes, well no. I said well I don’t show my work. She asked, why not? I said, I’m scared I guess of rejection. And she went on to tell me a long story about rejection, where the moral of the story is that if you don’t have a room filld with rejection slips then it means that you aren’t trying hard enough.
Her story alway stayed with me and when I first started the baby steps of approaching places to show my work, i remembered her words. She had said, think of a rejection as a badge of honor into the club of being a creative person. And honestly even if your work does get into a show, it may not sell, another rejection slap in the face, if you choose to look at it that way. It’s all part of the game. And it’s not for the faint of heart.
Around the beginning of my journey, I came across this book. I have no idea where. It must have been an independent book store in Seattle. The Art of Rejection is a book of illustrated rejection letters that the artist, Arthur González, created. They are so funny. He takes the rejection letter, which back then were actually typed out and mailed, and he would draw on top of it, sometimes talking back to the person who wrote the letter. His sharing of his rejection letters showed me that it was just part of the process, and it really isn’t personal.
“What most would have taken as a stumbling block, González uses his accumulation of 25 years of rejection letters as a stepping stone- to enliven our spirit and remind us that most of what we see, hear, and read is often sanctimonious, perfunctory, and certainly mot a measure of who we are and can become. The distillate of his effort shows us that life is unreasonable and not particularly noble, but in spite of this, it is what we make of life’s vicissitudes that matters the most.” – Judith S. Schwartz, Ph.D, from the forward
That last sentence! Love that.
If you want to submit to the XoXo Gallery show in Baltimore, we’re still taking submissions until March 20th or until submissions are filled, whichever comes first. So there’s no rejection happening, unless of course your procrastinate. Which I get, it’s a thing we all struggle with. You can read about the show and submission guidelines here and the links to submit are in the Instagram profile. The call for entry is also on the collective’s Facebook page.
“I love my rejection slips. They show me I try.” – Sylvia Plath
Honestly, i don’t love rejection slips, but I’m putting this here to remember that it’s a good thing.