(This is an opinion piece more than anything which some of you may agree with, others will not. I respect your opinions....)

As a single artist in this increasing world of many, it is sometimes hard to know where we fit in. Are we a still life artist? A landscape artist? Do we create portraitures or illustration? What style should I create in? What style is selling?

Let's take a look at what drew us (pardon the pun) to creating our artwork in the first place. No matter our training, formal or self-taught, we all have the desire to express ourselves through the visual media. But, even though our main starting point is nearly the same or goals are all different, unique. Some artists long to reach out to others who are in sorrow with images of hope and inspiration. Others wish to capture the beauty of a sunrise, the gentleness of an Autumn breeze. My goal is simply, to make others smile. But not only is the type of artwork unique to each artist, so is the style...think of it, if you will, as an artist's thumbprint --what makes each one of us, with our individual hopes and dreams--US!

Creating what we truly love is a wonderful blessed feeling, until....we get lost in the fray. Our sales increase (YAY!) then decrease (GASP!) coming and going with the changing tide of buyers. Some of us push on and continue to create according to our chosen path perhaps slowing our listings according to our sales. But there are many of us who have begun to look toward the "trends of the week/ month." We watch our favorite sellers list, noting whether the mermaids or the collages are selling better than the rest. And...if so, we follow suit. This may seem to work, our sales may (for the time being) increase. After all, isn't that what the buyers are after now? But, what does this do....really? In short spurts, this works fine, but continuing on as a follower of trends, in my opinion, adds to the already staggering number of similar items that eventually get pushed aside. (disclaimer: Now, I'm not discounting mermaid or collage artists! Not by any means! This is just an example. The same would go for any category of art.) :) 

Following the crowd does not set your work apart and really does nothing to help yourself as an artist or to help the over-all art community. Eventually, your style loses its "thumbprint." And, your artwork, its heart. What set you apart--your unique REASON to create in the first place is diminished and the stress of making a buck sets in. This tarnishes the glimmer that only shines through work created by an artist who creates for the sake of creating.

Bidding tides will come and go, and this IS a venue for sales, that is true. Times get tough and at times we need to change, but please don't trade your inspirations for pay expectations and lose the art in your heart.