Some good news on the horizon at last. Disney turned out to be my best show ever. And I’ve been accepted for Images in New Smyrna and Naples National.
I did some talking to other artists at Disney about acceptance and rejection and I learned some things about myself. While I’ve always been an artist, it is only in the past few years that I have been displaying and selling my photography. So I’m a late comer to this world of acceptance and rejection. One artist explained to me that we wear out hearts on our sleeve and hand an ice pick to every customer that walks into our booth. A hundred people can come into my booth and tell me my photography is wonderful and one walks in and says something negative. Guess which one I will remember and turn over and over in my mind?
Although… Those negative comments have sometimes been very helpful. I remember one very clearly. I had been complaining about my poor sales on a photography forum I belong to and someone responded, “That’s because your work looks like everyone else’s”. That stung for a long time but it also caused a major shift in my photography. For the better, I believe.
On the other hand I found this quote about compliments by Chazz Palminteri -
“Oh, great reviews are the worst. They mislead you more than the bad ones, because they only fuel your ego. Then you only want another one, like potato chips or something, and the best thing you get is fat and bloated”.
I remember my first award. It was one of my first shows and the judge walked in the booth and pointed directly at one of my photographs and said “that one”. It was a complete surprise and I just barely found the awards ceremony in time to hear my name called for honorable mention. There was no stress, no pleas to God. I try purposely to get back to that place when the judges come by and the awards are announced but it is too late, I’m addicted.
Which leaves me with this quote by Ray Bradbury:
“You have to know how to accept rejection and reject acceptance.”
I did some talking to other artists at Disney about acceptance and rejection and I learned some things about myself. While I’ve always been an artist, it is only in the past few years that I have been displaying and selling my photography. So I’m a late comer to this world of acceptance and rejection. One artist explained to me that we wear out hearts on our sleeve and hand an ice pick to every customer that walks into our booth. A hundred people can come into my booth and tell me my photography is wonderful and one walks in and says something negative. Guess which one I will remember and turn over and over in my mind?
Although… Those negative comments have sometimes been very helpful. I remember one very clearly. I had been complaining about my poor sales on a photography forum I belong to and someone responded, “That’s because your work looks like everyone else’s”. That stung for a long time but it also caused a major shift in my photography. For the better, I believe.
On the other hand I found this quote about compliments by Chazz Palminteri -
“Oh, great reviews are the worst. They mislead you more than the bad ones, because they only fuel your ego. Then you only want another one, like potato chips or something, and the best thing you get is fat and bloated”.
I remember my first award. It was one of my first shows and the judge walked in the booth and pointed directly at one of my photographs and said “that one”. It was a complete surprise and I just barely found the awards ceremony in time to hear my name called for honorable mention. There was no stress, no pleas to God. I try purposely to get back to that place when the judges come by and the awards are announced but it is too late, I’m addicted.
Which leaves me with this quote by Ray Bradbury:
“You have to know how to accept rejection and reject acceptance.”
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