I know the economic downturn is starting to hit Houston because the only calls I get lately are from people trying to sell me stuff. Well, that’s not entirely true, but at least one potential job has dried up and blown away and another asked for a revised proposal that was less ambitious. Certainly not the first time. We’ve weathered several serious downturns in the local economy but in the past, other parts of the country were still doing well and we were able to get work out of state. The whole country is in the tank this time with Texas seemingly being the only area that is holding it’s own, more or less.
The problem with being an artist is that when money starts to get tight, art is the first thing people stop buying. Even in the functional architectural work, the decoration gets dropped. Right now, I’m thinking, I should have been a jeweler. People always buy jewelry, no matter how bad things get. I try not to worry about it overmuch. I might get hit by a bus tomorrow and the whole thing will be moot.
The drop in sales at the galleries (and not just my work) is discouraging for me. I know I should continue to do the pate de verre work and I have a lot of pieces in my head that I want to do, but I just can’t seem to get motivated to invest the time and money in a piece that is probably just going to sit around. Besides, I need the time to do the architectural jobs I have to make the money to fund the pate de verre work. It’s a hard balance to strike sometimes. I enjoy the architectural work, mostly, but it is work to please other people. The pate de verre work is done to please me. Part of the problem is that half my stuff for casting is here in Houston and the other half is at the country house.
Ah, well, it is just an interlude and this too shall pass.
No comments:
Post a Comment
I opened my big mouth, now it's your turn.