Pieces of the Heart

Red House. Oil on canvas, 11x14, $85.

Of course, I love it when people buy my paintings. But every time they do, I feel a little pang.

When I went back to Maine this week, and opened the door of the Denmark Arts Center, I actually said hello to my paintings. Sounds nuts, maybe, but I felt like I was seeing a bunch of old friends I hadn't seen in a while.

As I took my paintings down, my uncle said he felt something like this, too. He and my aunt and the other folks at the Denmark Arts Center loved having my paintings on their walls. My art brightened their rehearsals, cheered their meetings, added another element to their performances. My uncle said he'd miss my art.

When someone buys one of my paintings, they're buying the art, for sure. They're also taking home a little piece of my heart. And that's fine. It's good, even! After all, if I didn't put my heart into this, it would be worth nothing. So that little pang I feel, that's what it's all about, I think.