The Heart Artist’s SECRET NEWS IS OUT! Japan here I come!
Many people ask me, “Where do you get your inspiration?” I find this question challenging in it’s simplistic & complicated swirls of memories that float in my heart. So I decided to share a story to hopefully answer the question in terms that one can easily grasp.
A few months ago, I kept running into a particular woman, and every time I saw her, I just knew we had to meet. I knew nothing about her. Just that she felt familiar & kind, like a long lost friend. To satisfy my desire, I asked around to find out who she was. I found out that she was from Japan and was an art rep for a famous artist from NY. A dear friend of mine knew her well and said she would introduce us.
I almost blew it off. Unfortunately, we never had a chance to meet in person before I was leaving for another ART SHOW tour. But as we were literally driving away from the hotel where I knew she was staying, I made my hubby stop our giant RV. I grabbed a scrap of paper, wrote a long note to her, along with my colorful business card, and dropped it off to the Receptionist to deliver for me. To my surprise, Rika emailed me and said that she had noticed me too and wanted to meet me. Funny right?
She also asked if we could meet, but by that time, I was in Las Vegas. She asked if I could send her some art right away, that she wanted to take it with her to Japan and see what her team thought about my art. Needless to say, we overnighted 35 samples of my art and off to Japan they traveled.
About a month later Rika wrote to me and said that she would love to meet with me in person in Hollywood in January. Of Course I said YES!
Lesson #1. NEVER blow off what your gut is telling you, even if fear gets in your way!
You probably are asking me how the heck does this answer the question of what inspires me to paint? Well stick with my story and you will see.
In January, Steve and I set up a lunch date at the Renaissance Restaurant at Celebrity Centre International in Hollywood, where we frequent for spiritual retreats. As Rika, with her husband and business partner Miko walked up, not thinking of Japanese protocol, I immediately reached out and hugged them. Exciting to say the least, it was like meeting a long lost friend.
That ½ hour meeting took 5 hours of getting to know one another, sharing stories as best as we could and showing the my art, my portfolio. We laughed. We pushed through language barriers and just had a great time. Near the end, Rika asked me if I could paint live in front of them. And I said yes.
So off the cliff I jump: The next day I set up my easel in the Rose Garden Café and painted the beginning stages of the Red Orange Poppy painting. Was I nervous? YES! It was like a live audition, except it was for painting. It was exciting and nerve wracking all at the same time.
Just a side note. A lot of what goes into my painting is emotion, a feeling, and I usually have a particular emotion or concept in mind. This was pure spiritual passion sprinkled with a bit of overcoming some fear.
The end result was the start of a new relationship and the beginnings of a passionate painting. Rika and Mikio, as well as guests in the café, watched the painting transform. Since I usually paint my flower paintings in oil, this was a challenging live demo with learning curves presenting themselves left and right. Keep in mind I was painting this live and all these people were watching me at the same time. Finally I just ignored everyone and just did my thing.
Lesson #2. Jump off the cliff and ignore the negative voices.
The BIG NEWS REVEALED: A few days later, we had another meeting and I painted a heart. That is a story for another time. Rika and Mikio announced that they would like to do a test market of my art in Japan and would place an order soon. Japan here I come! The entire concept of spreading more happiness through my heart art thrills me beyond words!
By March I received an email from Rika with a substantial order and I knew this was not a dream. It was the beginning of a new friendship and an adventure that would be full of surprises. My art will begin a journey in a new country and the new poppy painting is called “Soul’s Inspiration.” And the friendship we have started I am sure will blossom into a beautiful bouquet!
Where do I get my inspiration? FROM YOU, from Life, from unexpected adventures that surprise me all the time.
Debbie Arambula, The Heart Artist 