Wanna hear the story? Fine. Here goes...phew...
I take pride in my own work. Always have. As any true artist would. We all like to be original and create our OWN work. And I did until a fateful moment.
This was back a few years. I was just getting started and didn’t know much of the “rules”. But I had (and have) a big conscious. I just know...
I was approached with a painting and asked if I could make something similar. I looked at it and thought it will be hard since I saw it and the image is in my head. With that, I said sure and painted the painting. It was beautiful but VERY similar to what I saw earlier.
They loved it and we called it a day.
I had no idea about who painted the original painting. Didn’t know if it was a male or a female, alive or not. I didn’t think to check. I didn’t know.
But what I did know was that I had NOT created an original piece of work and transgressed one of my highest values. It NEVER sat well with me.
Until one day, as I was walking down the stairs to grab breakfast, an email came in. I glanced to check. It was from a lawyer. What?! Who?!
I quickly scroll and skim through, grabbing bits and pieces.
It showed both paintings side by side, explaining that mine is clearly a copy of the other. It said that I need to have my painting DESTROYED within a week.
My mind began to spin and I felt mush in my thighs. I didn’t know lawyer talk. I phoned my husband.
He then called his lawyer friend and spilled the story.
This was right after another copy case which had won and the lawyer told me to buckle forward because this could be won. 80%.
I then told him - BUT I DID COPY. He calmly told me that I was thinking like a woman and I could put my emotions aside and fight it.
In my spinning mind, I thought one thing very clearly. There was no way in hell that I was going to lie. I don’t lie.
I hung up. I called my husband back and told him I’m not fighting. I told him I 100% did something wrong, it’s been bothering me ever since I did it and I want it erased from my conscious! I was dancing somewhere deep inside even though I wasn’t feeling it then. I KNEW it was the right thing.
Then the most dreadful part of it all. Calling the collectors. They didn’t answer. The dial tone. Felt endlesssssss. I said I needed to speak to them immediately. They called back. They were obviously shocked. But within 15 minutes they texted me the images. The sight on my screen was one of the ugliest sights I’ve seen. Squares of rip and ruin! We then settled with either repainting a different image or a refund. They said they needed time to think it through.
I sent the images to where it was supposed to be sent.
I felt FREE and then I felt MAD. What in the world just happened?!?
It was one of the coldest days of the year. My gallery was in my garage at the time without any heating.
I wasn’t going to be defeated and I definitely wasn’t going to wallow in my sorrows.
I was on a mission! I put on my coat and gloves and got to work!
It was going to be the same concept but MY OWN!
I thought, I schemed. I cropped, and edited, combining two wave pictures into one in my head and then on screen and began painting.
I was so mad, that a life force overcame me. I wasn’t cold, time flew by and within three hours the Yam Suf that you all know and love was staring back at me. It was a moment.
It was a moment of TRUTH!
Go INSIDE and there you’ll find your answers!!
It felt so concrete to me, so strong - I could touch the feeling in the painting!!
I texted the painting to a few friends and they told me it was my best yet.
I then decided to title it LET GO AND LET GD TAKE TWO.
We all fail at it. It’s hard . But when we do, there’s always TAKE TWO.
The hardest part is, admitting it.
