SEASONS OF THE SOUL ~ symmetry

     ..... balance

Detail from SEASONS OF THE SOUL
© 1993 Stephanie E. Robinson

I believe it was a year or two after Seasons of the Soul was published, I received a phone call from a woman who had purchased the lithograph soon after it had come out.  She shared with me how this artwork had been so important to her.  When she first saw Seasons of the Soul, she had just begun a 12 step program.  She purchased one and hung it up so she could see it every day during her recovery.  She told me that she had a friend who was just beginning her own process of recovery and she wanted her to have one of the prints.  Needless to say, I was very touched and honored.  But after I got off the phone with her, I just sat there stunned.  

Up until this point I had devoted a significant portion of my creative efforts toward commercial art.  At the same time, I was also spending time making art for the sake of art.  One thing that I had realized was, for me at least, there were two completely different mindsets required for commercial art versus art for art's sake.

I had recently moved from a very small town in north Georgia where I had developed a small free-lance business designing and painting signs, logos, illustrated brochures, menus, etc... I had moved to Durham, NC and at that time Ninth Street was a thriving little bohemian arts district.  I worked at a frame shop on Ninth Street and it provided me an opportunity to display and sell my art.  It also gave me an opportunity to interact with people who were interested in my art.  This is when I first began to realize the importance of the story behind the art.  People want to know the story.  It can lend authenticity to the work and it also gives the art a context it would not have without it. 

It was right around this time that I made a conscious decision to abandon my efforts as a commercial artist and devote my creative efforts to work that emanated from a deeper truth within me.  And Seasons of the Soul would be my compass.