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I don’t just sell art. I form relationships with my collectors. I bring people together, make a house a home or an office a welcoming place. I create and inspire.

A few years ago one of my collectors contacted me with a very special request. She said it took her many months to get up the nerve to ask because she thought I would say no. Her Mom had passed away and she wanted to do something special with her ashes. She wanted to know if I would be willing to incorporate some of her mother into one of my pieces. A commission based on “Fire Over Copper Lake”. I did not hesitate and said yes.

I was soon touched to learn that we shared a Native American ancestry. Her Mom was a healer in this life and touched many souls. In my lifetime I have had a spiritual guide named Ama which means water in Cherokee. The piece I would be creating had to do with a “lake”…or water. Her mother’s Indian name was “clear water”. Creating this memorial painting felt more than right for me….it felt like a homage to my own spiritual mother as well. She arrived in a beautiful pouch surrounded by the sweet smell of sage. I handled her with care and blessed her ashes before I mixed them with the paint. The piece turned out beautifully….my collector was moved beyond words…and I like to think that a few ashes are here in my studio still and that Ama is with me always…..

The point of power is always in the present moment. This tenant is something I try to live by. As a self representing artist there really is no other way to live….for my sanity. I cannot focus on sales in the past or sales in the future. I can only look at where I am right now…can I afford my mortgage? Yes Can I afford to eat? Yes Can I create new work with this mind and body? Yes It is much more satisfying to look at all of the “yes” answers than to ruminate on the “nos”. Art is a passion and it cannot be reduced to a marketing and sales pitch. A true artist has an irresistible urge to create. Einstein knew this and so do I. Each day is filled with endless possibilities to which my soul always says yes! Sometimes I paint a beautiful painting, sometimes I design work on my computer and sometimes a day might revolve around a new and exotic recipe I will “tweak”. The business of art can be heartbreaking. It can take you to the highest of highs with that amazing sale or take you to the lowest of lows when you go weeks or for some even months without a sale. I do not have time to be discouraged as I am too busy working on new things. What will it be today?

Please enjoy my piece “Point Of Power”…..you can learn more here:

http://fineartamerica.com/featured/point-of-power-sharon-cummings.html

I am certainly no Aphrodite, but my first love is music too. A lot of my art reflects my natural rhythmic thinking. Patterns that move and flow. I grew up with the sounds of the Beatles and the Rolling Stones. Later when my family moved to the country I was introduced to the sounds of Marty Robbins and Charlie Rich. I love all music….classic rock….country….classical…50′s….60′s….70′s…80′s….contemporary pop and even some rap. When I am painting, I am always listening to music. Sometimes I dance around with the paint brushes. At other times I am sitting still…concentrating. It is in these times of stillness that I prefer simple music…an acoustic guitar….a piano…solo. Perhaps a solo guitar or just the sound of piano is to music what abstract is to art.

Learn More Here:

http://fineartamerica.com/featured/aphrodites-first-love-guitar-art-by-sharon-cummings-sharon-cummings.html

The weather in Florida is really lovely right now. It is not too hot yet. I have been working really hard on commissioned paintings for the last two weeks and am taking a much needed day off. A nice stroll by some water…getting in touch with nature…..taking photographs with my husband. This is what a day off looks like for me in the art above titled “Summer Stroll In The Park”. I absolutely love what I do when I am creating for myself or for a collector. Art is my passion! But even I need to take breaks now and again.

People often ask me about what pieces of art I have in my own home. I not only create, but I also collect. I have some amazing pieces from all over the World. Paintings and sculpture. Fine art from artists from Canada….Australia….Japan….France….The United States…and more. I am highly eclectic in that if I see art that I love and can afford, I just buy it. I do not worry about whether or not it will match the sofa. It matches my soul. The piece above titled “We Make A Family” was painted (by me) around 10 years ago. It symbolized me, my husband and our daughter and the bond we share. It hangs over my bed and I sleep under it every night. Enjoy!

You can learn more here:

http://fineartamerica.com/featured/we-make-a-family-abstract-art-by-sharon-cummings-sharon-cummings.html

I am working on a commission today called “Hearts On Fire”. Creating paintings is a messy process, but the results are worth it. Some of my art pieces, such as this one, require a lot of paint even though much of it is wasted…sopped up by paper towels and sprayed off onto the table. If I could somehow recycle it, I could enjoy a nice week long vacation at a luxury spa each year.

My "Tropical Fish" is my BEST seller on Fine Art America. But he wasn't my idea. 9 years ago I got a call from a woman in St. Thomas who was in desperate need for artwork. Her home had been destroyed by Hurricane Ivan and while they had rebuilt, they had no artwork for the walls. Living on a small island left her with no choices for huge abstract paintings.

Debbie found me online and fell in love with my style and color choices. She needed 27 over sized paintings for a June wedding that would be held on her property. Her home would be filled with guests and she needed big bold splashes of color. The clincher is that she called me in April...and needed 27 paintings by June! Never one to back away from a challenge, I accepted her order and got to work! I painted daily...Some requiring 3 - 5 days to complete. I had pieces at all levels of drying phases on every table in my house.

The fish was the last piece. She called me when I was close to being complete and asked if I could do a large tropical fish instead of the other style she had chosen. I agreed.

I did not sketch this fish out. I simply painted intuitively. I didn't even look at tropical fish online for inspiration. I just selected bright colors and painted him just as you see him (in my mind's eye). All spontaneous squirts and blobs of paint. I did not use a brush for this work in any area. Water and paint only.

I photographed him and sent him on his way to his new home in St. Thomas. Little did I know that all of these years later, my "Tropical Fish" would be so popular.

There is nothing fishy about the link below...click on it to enjoy more!

I have always enjoyed the female form for it's interesting curves and shadows...at every turn there is a soft hill or burrow. In college I volunteered as a model for many figure drawing classes. I was always struck by how professional and non-sexual posing for a class was. Afterwards, many thanked me for my time and shook my hand. No one ever checked me out or came on to me.

It was so very intriguing to walk around and see the many different ways that individual artists interpreted my body. Some making me Rubenesque while others took away my curves. Larger breasts. Smaller breasts. So many styles and creative minds.

I am the model in most of my nude paintings and my husband is the photographer.

"Vulnerable" is a very personal piece. A woman's back has always seemed to me to be so very sensitive, tender and exposed. My Labor of Love pieces are one of my most recognizable and collected of my styles. It was a challenge to transform a painted medium onto the computer, but the results were fantastic. Sections of my Labor of Love arrangements hand sewn to form exquisite patterns. Stone Rock'd Art was born.

She is on her way to becoming one of my best sellers.....feel her vulnerability by clicking the link below: