The Artist, Formerly Known as Karilyn

With the Royal wedding of William and Kate just over a week ago, I was interested and sometimes amused at some of the titles that the royals use. There are probably those like Princess Diana that grew into her title and I am sure that there are others that never seem to measure up to or feel comfortable in taking on a royal title. In the real world, people take on the titles of doctor, lawyer, professor, general, senator, etc. In the case of such titles, one has to work for it by earning a degree, working through the ranks or kissing a lot of babies to get elected. Basically you either are a doctor or you are not. You do not have to have a degree to be an artist and there is no governing body that licenses you or grants you that title. I think one of the hardest things to do is to label or title yourself an artist. I think it is hard to do because art is so subjective. Art is very personal and not everyone will connect with it....that being said, if someone doesn't like or 'get' a piece of art, the artist is still an artist. I remember when Charles Barkley was playing in the NBA, Jim Rome (a radio sports commentator) would ask if Barkley was any less a great player than Michael Jordan, Larry Bird or Magic Johnson because he hadn't earned a Championship ring. I found myself yelling at the radio that there were a lot of bench warmers on those winning teams that got rings, but didn't have the talent Barkley did. Barkley's game play and passion for the game made him one of the greatest players, not a ring. The same goes for artists. You don't have to have paintings in auctions selling for thousands or millions of dollars to call yourself an artist. Your skill, passion and imagination are what make you an artist. And it just seems fitting to give oneself a title if that is what you are engaged in. I have been calling myself a 'mixed-media artist'. That title feels comfortable to me and I don't feel silly telling people that that is who I am. I think the reason I chose that title is because it doesn't sound stuffy, it is a true statement or label about what I do and I don't believe that people automatically assume that I do some kind of highfalutin fine art akin to Renoir or Van Gogh. Giving myself a title does make me take my art more seriously. It makes me work a little harder or be more in tune to what I want to accomplish and produce in my artwork. I think choosing and using a title tells people that you are serious about what you do and it tells yourself the same thing. If I really wanted to go beyond a label or title, I could always come up with a symbol that represents me....like Prince did. Hmmm....now what would that look like?