Jim Petty
Artworks-Watercolors / Original and Giclee Prints Figures,Urban Landscape, Still Life, Landscape
BAILEY Colorado

    As a child, I was always drawing spaceships, airplanes and cartoons from the comic strips. I was encouraged in school by classmates and art teachers. My abilities were not special. I was like a sponge waiting to soak up anything concerning creativity and the art spirit.

    My personal feeling about being an artist is that artists are trained and skills honed. My opinion is that you are not born with talent that allows you to magically start drawing and painting with out lots of practice or training. I believe you need one main ingredient: you must have a high interest in art and wanting to be an artist.

    I have taught art classes and workshops and I have never had anyone that did not improve. Everyone wanted to improve and expand their way of thinking. With lots of practice and hard work drawing and painting is sharpened and skills and abilities get better. I believe drawing and painting are a reflection of your confidence level. Practice and confidence feed off each other, the more you paint and draw the more confidence you have in your abilities that allow you to approach that blank surface and produce a successful result. I was taught in art school, draw-draw-draw. Drawings are the bones for a good finished work of art.

    I think that we all have a vision in our minds of how we think the painting: sculpture or pottery will hopefully turn out. When we are finished and the piece looks close to what we envisioned in our minds before we started then it is a success. When asked what I think is my best painting I always respond "the next one". I always think the best is yet to come and keep your expectations high but realistic.