In the final voting round, and why does this make me uncomfortable?!

I just want to thank you all SO very much for your super support of my card design. I'm in a contest through PSPrint.com and this is final week of voting for your favorite designs. If you'd like to continue supporting my design, you can cast a vote each day this week - voting ends on 9/28.

 

click to vote here

Truth be told, I am a bit uncomfortable with posting this post..knowing that it is a blatant request for viewing and voting for my design. It's a numbers game and I suppose I have a bit of the competitive nature in me. I worry, I wait, I worry, I wait. And then, usually, almost always, I lose. It's made me wonder about myself and the motivations I have for doing such a blatant thing.

So the contest is up for public voting..and whomever gets the most votes wins. Amazon gift cards and printing of the final cards are at stake and to be honest, I envision the fun it would be to "win" the card and have it apply to something as grand as a new iPad, or some awesome art supplies! As I type this today, I reflect upon my very first "win" when it came to illustration, and what it did for my confidence and movement towards endeavoring in the field of creative arts. It was in college, and my poster won for the local festival. I remember winning a cash prize, and getting my photo taken for the city paper, but the most awesome thing that happened was getting my poster PRINTED. The poster was then sold at the festival, and funny thing, is still being sold today. This was 24 years ago! Crazy huh? I remember the thrill of being able to sign the posters and giving a few away to my family and friends...but what is even more fun is knowing that the poster was even spotted in Italy (Gilroy's sister-city is in Italy) and other parts of the world. To have your image distributed and to have a physical copy was and still is what delights me.

So regarding my "Ode to San Francisco" Card Design: whether I win, or lose, I have decided to print these up for my holiday cards this year. It's already brought me out of my office-cave to connect with family and friends and dear bloggers who mean a lot to me. Though I still am embarrassed to "get my work out there and request consideration of a vote", I am delighted to know that the positive part of this is connecting with all of you...and touching base again for it's easy to let time fly without so much of an "update".

The act of putting one's work out there for a public vote has made me think about why I do what I do, and what is the point of all of this..it's not about the win, but it's about the connections. It's about the drive to create (for this is HUGELY important to me as I now understand the depths of which this means to me), the drive to connect with others, whether it's a smile, a chuckle, or even a frown. You know how it is when you pick up a book, or see something that makes you react. That is art at it's finest, and I remember hearing the question posed in college: What is art? Is it the finished product or the act of making (say, Jackson Pollack's work). I took this to heart and have still to this day wondered what it means to me..and I must say that my view of art is that it is both! A quick summation is that I feel that art is whatever visually connects with me, whether it's the process (a play, an opera), or the finished piece (2-D, 3-D). Wow, who'd have thought entering a contest would cause such reflection?! HA! : )

Well, thank you for reading this long-winded post...and I send my thanks for all of your past and future potential votes and for visiting here..it means a lot to me. Hope you are all well! ~ Shirley

PS - if you'd like me to add you to the mailing list this holiday, please send me your address, ok?!