Right now my apartment smells like cinnamon, eggnog, and coffee. No, this is not a blog with too much information about my personal life before I share my recipe for how to make cinnamon eggnog coffee. Just mix the 3 and let me know if you like it because I haven’t tried it but it sounds good.

This blog is only about too much information about my personal life, which also happens to be my professional life. Being an artist, the line between personal and professional is often blurred.

Although like many others, my goals and plans were thwarted by a pandemic, there are still things I’d like to celebrate that are professional but personally important to me. “Celebration” is just another word for “gratitude”. Look it up.

• I’ve had the privilege to focus on my art this year, allowing me to further evolve and develop my style.
• I started making “Pieces” again.
• I set up my website to be my main place of selling my artwork, like an independent online gallery space. Basically, I’m a business owner.
• I created a show in the style of a mockumentary called Artist, which so far I’ve been able to put together 2 videos episodes but will make more as I get into a better flow of, like, actually documenting my work and talking about it. I’ve always said in job interviews that my weakness is letting people get to know me. So I’ve been working on that, including making those videos episodes and writing this blog.
• A few days ago, I posted a Reel on Instagram that got 1K+ views.
• During the entire year of 2020, I’ve lived and worked in Los Angeles, without which I would not have been able to make such progress during such a rough year.

This #ArtVsArtist2020 image is the first year I’m participating in the #ArtVsArtist hashtag, even though it’s been a thing for a while. Because of how much I use social media on a regular basis, I’m so ashamed that I’ve missed it before.

From what I understand is: an artist chooses 8 of their favorite artworks that they made during the year, and includes 1 photo from the year of themselves, and posts the complication image on Instagram and Twitter. My painting style evolved further around late Summer, and I’ve been very happy with that so far, so the work I’ve chosen I created all after that. And the photo of me I chose posing with my favorite tequila, Espolon Blanco, while I was making a margarita in November.

Not everyone loves social media, but as an artist I do because I use it to show my work to lots of people (who also may or may not love social media but are still on it). And my social media is a form of documenting my work and its progression. It’s like a public diary that everyone gets to comment on.

Can you imagine living your everyday private life while anyone and everyone watches you and comments on your every move?