Myself and Natasha. Artist and Muse. Creator and Created. Visionary and Fantasy. I know I've posted her before, but I just feel I broke down a self limiting belief with her. I've always wanted to paint beautiful women, but always felt I lacked those skills. I wasn't good enough nor did I know how. So back in August I decided to do a show that pushed my limitations. I decided to make a show about beautiful women and I was going to do my best. If anything, it'd be a great time with a few friends and we could joke about how I should stick to trees and oceans 😂. But something happened with Natasha and my other paintings. I discovered something I always knew was deep down in there. Buried under self-limiting doubts, negative comments from strangers, and beliefs that I couldn't possibly capture the essence of a woman because I'm just not that talented. It's been there all along. I remember when I first started painting and posting, so many people cheered for me. I am so grateful for that because without that encouragement I don't know if I would have ever taken it to the level I'm at now. Also, so many people doubted me and said I'd be laughed out of Orlando and I would never sell another piece because I wasn't allowed in their group shows. I was also told that if I showed publicly along with a certain group of other artists my paintings would be slashed and torn apart. I'm not making this up, the hate was overwhelming. Since then, I haven't shown in public venues with any other artist partly because I didn't want the drama and partly because I was afraid. I'm only bringing this up to show you that anything is possible. It's possible to overcome your self-imposed limitations, and it's possible to prove people wrong. Fast forward a few years; I don't need group shows, I can have solo shows that major corporations reach out to me to sponsor. I can bring a crowd, something I never thought possible. And most importantly, I can paint beautiful women! 💋