[Art Connoisseurs (AC)]

• [AC] When you're not creating art, what other activities do you enjoy?
  
  [Sharon M.] When I'm not painting I enjoy spending time with my family and friends. I love to travel and see new and interesting places and cultures. I also enjoy going to galleries, art shows, museums, painting workshops to study with various teachers and getting to know other artists and seeing their work.
  
  

• [AC] How would people who know you best, describe you?
  
  [Sharon M.] I think my friends would describe me as talented and creative with a good sense of humor and an appreciation of the creative process.
  
  

• [AC] What is your greatest source of inspiration?
  
  [Sharon M.] My first inspiration usually begins with shapes I see around me. It may be bicycles lined up in a rack, shoes scattered on the closet floor, deckchairs in the sun, models striking poses to show off clothes or interesting architectural shapes that inspire a geometric abstract painting. Each painting starts with shapes, but color and pattern are my passion and I see them everywhere I go. How I can use them in creating a composition for a painting is always in the back of my mind.
  
  

• [AC] Who is your favorite artist?
  
  [Sharon M.] You probably mean which famous artist is my favorite and I do love Monet. However, my favorite artists are the four artists I have painted with almost every week for over twenty years. We met in art class and after several years decided we were ready to paint on our own, but didn't want to give up painting together. We critique each other brutally, praise, encourage, inspire and support each other and have a wonderful time.
  
  

• [AC] The best advice given to you came from whom and what was it?
  
  [Sharon M.] The best advice given to me regarding my artwork was from a teacher I've taken workshops with a number of times. I was very frustrated with my drawing ability as I wanted everything to look perfect. He said, "Wrong is right and right is wrong." In other words, if a painting is drawn and painted perfectly, it looks like a photograph and has no movement, no creativity or life to it. Those words gave me the freedom and confidence to draw and paint my own way.
  
  

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