Synchronicity

Synchronicity— n
	an apparently meaningful coincidence in time of two or more similar or identical events that are causally unrelated

"Flying Lessons" With Kelly Rae Roberts this week has been fun and informative. No, I'm not learning how to fly a plane, I'm learning how to soar with my art biz. I'm amazed that I had become so well versed in how to connect my musician friends in the online world but clueless as to how to do the same for myself in the artist world. That' a well trained woman for ya. I would insert a LOL here but I am realizing that putting myself on the back burner for a solid 56 years has not served me.
Okay, so timing is everything. I don't think I was ready to soar before now. The synchronicity involved in my decision to sign up for "Flying Lessons" is more than perfect. I read somewhere that when you are on target, synchronicity happens. I have been somewhat focused on my art my whole life, but I sensed that this year was time for me to soar in my art biz. This transformation didn't come without growing pains. My new "Luna Chick Series" evolved from a place of deep healing and that, my friends, is another blog.

Rene's Red Guitar By Christina

Painting by Christian Ethridge

I have been a mixed media artist since the 90s. For four years I had been creating mixed media pieces with the focus on music and vintage nudes. Thank you Rene for sending me in the direction of music. I wanted to go there, I just didn't know how. I have lived in and around the Austin music scene for the better part of 30 years. My friends Rene and Danny had just bought a new house twice the size as the one they had been living in and had to buy all new everything. They needed art. Rene saw a painting of a guitar in a furniture store that she liked but the guitar was brown and she wanted a red guitar to match her lamps. She asked me to paint one as a gift for her husband. I had NEVER painted a large canvas painting, not even in art school. It was scary and fun all at the same time. My son was staying with me at the time so I asked him to join in on the fun, well actually I asked him to draw a large guitar so I could paint it and I came home from work and he had gone off in a whole new direction with the painting. So I bought another canvas and did it myself. Our paintings turned out vastly different but equally wonderful and Rene bought them both for her new house.

Red Guitar Butterfly Blues - SOLD

Shortly after that I started dating, Tony, a Gypsy Jazz guitar player. I started listening to lots of Django" Reinhardt music and as usual, my art seemed to have followed the music. Naturally, I painted and sold lots of guitar paintings, mostly RED guitars.. Because Gypsy Jazz music originated in Paris, France, I became very interested in the art of that time and at the same time was exploring the idea of selling art on ebay and discovered ACEOs. I started creating collage art with vintage nudes and music. I thought this would be a great way to break into selling on the internet without hurting myself. ACEOs would be easy to create and cheap and easy to mail. That was four years ago and I am still selling my ACEOs on ebay and Etsy.

ACEO By Christina

Then after a very rough few months, my artwork took a turn to being a muse to dive deep into some old wounds. I ended up with my Luna Chick Series, paintings that looked much like myself as a teenager but more angelic. I had a  article written about me in a New Mexico newspaper it opened all kinds of doors.  After seeing the paintings on Facebook a friend approached me to create "Angel Greeting Cards." That same day I got a package in the mail from another friend with a Kelly Rae Roberts "Create" angel ornaments and a crystal as a gift. It felt like a message from the Universe saying "Yes! Create Angels!" My friend and I continued to throw ideas around, we painted a few angels then she backed out after realizing there wasn't much money to be made selling cards at local stores but the wheels kept turning in my head, I already had product in stores and online so I continued on track. That very week another friend of mine invited me to hang some of my art in a new flower shop. I went to the flower shop to meet with the owner and she had a Kelly Rae Roberts skins on her Mac. Later that day I went to a gift shop where I have my art and two booths down was a booth full of Kelly Rae Roberts art. The messages on Kelly Rae's art were the same messages I had been painting and she was obviously doing very well financially doing her art.

Luna Chick By Christina

So, long story longer, I am learning from the best and taking notes. The message, dream big and work with a team!