Team Wet Dog

december doubt

Happy December everyone … It’s hard to believe the end of 2006 is really just a few weeks away.

Before I launch into rambling, here’s the news: Sunday, December 10, I’ll be teaming up with two other Washington photographers for an open studio holiday art sale. You probably need gifts for people (or yourself), and we are hoping to clear out some of the work that’s been building up in our portfolios.

Not to sound too much like a used car salesman, but we’re cutting the price on all the photographs we have, so this is a pretty good deal. If you can’t make the actual event feel free to email me about pieces you’re interested in.

Open Studio Art Sale
Time: Sunday, December 10, 2 p.m.
Place: 2800 Wisconsin Ave., NW, #707, Washington, DC
Who: — Matt Achhammer
         — Alexandra Silverthorne
         — Robert Walton

Anyway, I hope to see you there. We’ll have drinks and snacks and so on… Now, on to the rambling.

For anyone who keeps up with the TeamWetDog blog, you know it’s been a pretty hectic year. I finished up the Mount Pleasant Project, released Twelve Dreams, started a new job and began the culinary arts program at the Art Institute of Washington. The last few months have been exhausting, and I can’t help but feel that my work has suffered.

The truth is, I’ve had doubts about a lot of things I’ve done. And it’s forced me to spend some time thinking about accomplishments and perspective, how we see ourselves and how others see us.

I’m convinced that most of the things we do, with a few exceptions, can be made to sound Big-And-Important or Small-And-Insignificant with just a few turns of phrase. Aside from those in the world who are best at their sport, are read by millions or hang gold records on their wall — those few for whom there are substantial milestones, records, trophies and proof — the relevance of what we do is pretty much in how you want to think about it, and how significant you want it to be.

Which is to say, ultimately we all have to decide for ourselves what we want to do and how we want to think about it.

I’ve spent the past month feeling a little down about a lot of my work: feeling like I’ve moved from medium to medium, thought to thought, skill to skill, without really mastering any one thing.

Even now, writing this, I’m not sure I can refute that thought. But maybe it’s not necessary.

I don’t have any answers. I started writing this wanting to get down one thought — that the most important thing is to feel satisfied with your own work, your own impact, your own ideas, whatever they may be. You must do things that are significant to you, and not look externally for approval.

Ultimately, it is all about perspective. Finding the things you care about, the space to pursue them, and the faith in your own decisions. Self-doubt, I suppose, is inevitable at times. But hopefully that doubt, and the self-examination that will accompany it, ultimately lead to understanding and direction, be it a new direction entirely or staying the course already set.
 

— Robert

(12/4/06) 
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