113 - Painting for Joy with Sandi Hester
part 1 of a wonderful conversation + start of the "30 days of vancouver" project
👋🏼 Hello, reader!
(and welcome, new readers!) Every Friday on the SneakyArt Post I share good ideas from my work, and the best insights from conversations on the SneakyArt Podcast.
Today begins the 30 Days of Vancouver project. More on that below. I am also proud to share the new episode of the SneakyArt Podcast. This episode and the previous (with David Morales) are major inspirations behind the 30 Days … project.
If you like what you read, share this post with someone else who might enjoy it too!
🎙 Ep 38 - Painting for Joy with Sandi Hester
Tennessee-based painter Sandi Hester shares her life’s journey with art, the ideas behind her wonderful YouTube channel, and how she keeps joy at the centre of her creative process.
📹 Sandi does many things I find impossible. She is open and vulnerable on her YouTube channel, unafraid to share her hesitations and misgivings. This makes her videos personable and engaging. I am inspired to do similar work on YouTube myself.
🖼 We spoke about the importance of contentment — with one’s style, process, abilities, and inabilities - and also how that differs from laziness or lack of ambition. I share with her the concept of having goals v systems, as discussed with Koosje Koene in Ep 28.
🔁 We spoke about the value of constant iterations. By making lots of bad paintings, Sandi says, she allows for the good paintings to emerge. Two thoughts from this:
(1) Iterations are often difficult not because we have trouble starting, but because we have trouble finishing work, or letting go. Letting go is crucial.
(2) As skill improves, standards improve faster. So we can make a lot of progress while still feeling the same dissatisfaction. It is important to satisfice - a useful portmanteau of satisfy and suffice.
“Over time I have reached a level of good with my art that is further ahead than my idea of perfect five years ago.” - Nishant.
👨👩👧👦 We spoke about the role of YouTube and Instagram in helping Sandi find not only an audience but also customers. On the subject, check out this amazing vlog:
Listen to our conversation on your choice of podcast streaming service, or use a link below:
Spotify | Apple | PocketCasts | Google | Web | Gaana
💭 The decision to release in two parts
This episode is being released in two parts. There are two reasons:
First, the conversation itself happened in two parts. We were able to record for two and a half hours the first day. And because there was so much more to share, we decided to set up another recording for the next day.
Second, as a single episode this would be 3h50m. While I enjoy long podcast episodes myself, I can see how such large numbers intimidate and put off other listeners.
I believe in the value of deep conversations, and I want to share that with the most number of listeners. Breaking this episode in two parts is a test. I am curious to see if this helps more people listen. At the same time, I want to make sure maximum number of people get a chance to listen to the wonderful second part.
🗓 30 Days of Vancouver begins
Today is Day 1 of my daily drawing challenge for the month of April. I am pleased to welcome many new readers who have decided to follow this project. And I am delighted to welcome lots of new SneakyArt Insiders, who have decided to support my work.
Here is how I will share my progress:
✍🏼 Daily posts will be made in a new section of this publication.
📥 Readers will receive emails on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays for the next 4 weeks. Today’s post goes out in 12 hours!
📬 SneakyArt Insiders will receive a special Sunday edition with - 🎁 weekly giveaways of original SneakyArt, 🏷 a behind-the-scenes look at how I am sustaining the daily challenge, and 🎙 early access to audio and 📹 video content.
To become an Insider, grab the special offer below.
Below, last month’s giveaway winner Lisa, a SneakyArt Insider from Minnesota.
Some reasons I like doing giveaways.
🎙 Next week — Part 2 with Sandi Hester!
In Part 2 — which releases next week! — Sandi and I speak about her art process, the intentionality behind her choice of mediums and materials, and the role of nature and observation in her practice.
Something that made me very curious during the conversation, and continues to intrigue me — how I dealt with existential questions from an atheistic perspective, and how Sandi arrived at similar answers from a faith-based perspective. I am always fascinated by how people think. This is because I find the individual journey fascinating, not only in how it traverses the physical realm, but also in the mental models of the universe it adopts to make sense of its experience.
I feel like I also noticed this because I just completed a short biography of the French philosopher Voltaire, and have since plunged into more reading around 18th century European thought. This was an interesting time when Western philosophy, empowered by the Industrial Revolution and on the heels of the Renaissance, began to break away from religion. I am also curious because this is considered the origin of the zeitgeist of our times - individualism and the search for a purpose-driven life.
📚 Related book recommendations: The Story of Philosophy by Will Durant, and Identity by Francis Fukuyama. I have written previously about Identity.
Thank you for your time and attention. See you Monday.
