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As the presidential debate again invaded the TV screen tonight it was a scramble for the remote even more so than normal...but hey wait a minute....why should I get up out of my nice cushy chair,she's gonna change it just as fast as me! And since the debate was on all channels...we settled for some symphony music from Carnagie Hall on public television. It was relaxing at times and then intense within seconds...the performers are so passionate about their music.There was a piano soloist who was actually in tears at one point,his face so expressive..talk about your heart on your sleeve..! I remember when I first decided to learn all about sign painting,I went at it with all the passion I saw on the screen tonite...And while it is true..I never brought myself to tears over the execution of that first non eggshaped "O"....nor did my work ever come close to projecting as much emotion as the symphany can deliver as a result of a fine piece of music so masterfully performed...I remember the passion I had for my craft...and still do . These days I find the fire is a lil subdued in comparison to yesterday but it still burns... I think the computer has become a necessary tool in the sign shop today.While it is true that a shop could get along without modern technology,it would definately be a lot more difficult. I see the quickie shops that are poppin up all over..that so often get mentioned. Passion for the trade is not there...thats whats missing!Duh! The message is simple.It doesnt matter what tools we use to produce a sign...its HOW we use em thats important... Wow..I oughta listen to more fine music....that was fun!
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Michael,I know exactly what you are talking about.I've been at this since 1964 and have as much "passion" now as I had the day I started. I have noticed however,I never shed a tear til I bought my first computer,now I cry regularly, especially after working on a design fo 4 hours only to have the puter tell me I have "performed an illegal act" then as all my work disapears I suddenly have more tearful passion for the days of hand lettering...ya know what I mean?
------------------ Monte Jumper SIGNLanguage/Norman.Okla.
[This message has been edited by Monte Jumper (edited October 12, 2000).]
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Of course you're never free to let loose with your passion until you are confident with your technique. When you are no longer concentrating on getting it right you can let your feelings flow. This is my goal in all the art that I do, to be so natural in my technique that I don't have to think about it and I can just paint from the heart. I got pretty expressive with a mural I did today, resulting in a green stain on a brand new carpet. You should have seen the passion on THAT guy's face when he saw that.
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Very well said Michael! I know for a fact in the beginning I had much more passion. I just couldn't get enough. But when I got my computer I was 'oh so excited' too. But that seemed to fade after about 8 years. THEN..... (drum roll please) I found my thrill.....on Letterhead hill!!!! And now I must say......my passion is back. whew!
------------------ "surf" or "MoJo54" on mirc Cheryl J Nordby Signs by Cheryl (206) 300-0153 Seattle WA.....!
Make your own glitter. Then follow your own shine. Linda Knight
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Could it be the computer is the sign biz's synthesizer? Fair.......ya better watch it, using the name of one of my favorite groups in the same breath as politics.......this ain't no party. this ain't no disco, this ain't no foolin' around!!!!!!
------------------ George Perkins Millington,TN. goatwell@ionictech.com
"I started out with nothing and still have most of it left"
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wife was watchin yoyo ma...on pbs the other nite doin classical-bluegrass.....the man was just lovin what he was doin....and as for sign painting i still get much more excited about a sign ..that iam painting then something iam doin in vinyl..as for the computer.. i lov it...remember "save your work every 5 mins"...then you wont lose it...and i really like the way computers make things that i used to do..so easy...now
------------------ joe pribish-A SIGN MINT 2811 longleaf Dr. pensacola, fl 32526 850-944-5060 BEWARE THE TRUTH.....YOU MAY NOT LIKE WHAT YOU FIND
Posts: 11582 | From: pensacola, fl. usa | Registered: Nov 1998
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Hello Michael, This is a topic that I feel "passionate" about. Nine years ago, I sold my computer, and looking back, it was the happiest day in my sign career, which dates back to 1977. I realize that when I switched the computer on, a part of my brain (the artistic part)turned off. I do custom hand lettering on drag race cars. Most jobs feature a new typeface of some sort, and I work hard to bring each detail--curvature, line width, character--in sync with what I am trying to convey with the letting. In addition, each color is custom mixed until just right. I love what I do, most every minute of it.
In Boise, I hosted an impromtu workshop called "A Joyful Craft". It was attended by about a dozen people, and each had stories to tell about the sheer joy that they experience in their work. We all had different versions of a similar story: That like the musician, there is a sort of intimacy that occurs when the human and the materials (paint, brush) become one. And when you feel it, you know that there is a kind of energy or spirit flowing through you. I don't hate the computer, and I do not intend to get into a debate over the values of the machine. But in my own experience the computer separated me from what was real and true about why I'm doing this instead of something else. Thank you for bringing up the topic.
------------------ Bruce Deveau 331 Main St. Amesbury, Ma USA 01913 pop04667@tiac.net
Posts: 139 | From: Amesbury, MA USA | Registered: Jul 2000
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ahhhh Passion..... I do love the computer... for all the pleasure it brings me... but there's NOTHING like that hand eye coordination with brush and paint... the FEELING... both physical and emotional, of puttin' down MARKS. Of course, it's controlled passion... Then there's making music.. that's UNcontrolled passion...or that really great fine painting like the Fauves did. LE
------------------ LazyEdna in RL known as Sara Straw from southern Utah 5 National Parks within 3 hours drive Red Rock Heaven
Posts: 776 | From: Aurora, Utah, USA | Registered: Nov 1998
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Micheal, what a wonderful subject to reflect on! Recalling those feelings that at one time were almost hourly, and now are occassional. I don't know if I ever get them from a computer design. The combo of good design, letters that swing, and the right brush, right weather condition, and paint mixed just right, can still bring a sparkle and song into my heart that's about identical to the experience from the smile of a beautiful young lady!
------------------ The SignShop Mendocino, California "Where the Redwoods meet the Surf"
[This message has been edited by Rick Sacks (edited October 13, 2000).]
Posts: 6718 | From: Mendocino, CA. USA | Registered: Nov 1998
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Passion. Yup I feel it in my work every day. My work is somewhat different from the "normal" sign shop but that is a matter of choice and the result of lots of dreaming and subsequent hard work to make it happen. And I have a big passion for that too.
I love to color outside the lines. And my passion for creating dictates what I do every day and the jobs I decide to take on. It doesn't come without a fight from the sensible side of my brain that tells me "I need the money". But I simply remind myself of why I do what I do... That is for the passion. And this passion makes for better work.
This passion keeps me creative scribbling down ideas. A pen and notebook are with me always. I have enough ideas to last years. When the idea is solid I then use the computer tool to refine it and produce the finished design before getting out the hand tools and making the real thing.
Life is fun and my passion for art is a big part of it.
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Passion is defined in the dictionary in simple terms, "A very strong feeling, emotion, etc. I believe it is truly the thing that differentiates a true professional from the rest.Without it you are just working to make a living or feed yourself. I have passion for computers as well as brushes. When I first started using the computer I was afraid to turn it off, because it said "this will end your windows session" and I certainly didn't want it to end. I used to hide my computer in the back, and never let a customer sit in front of it with me, while designing. Now I have the confidence to do layouts on the fly, if it is something I need input from the customer, like a boat name, or letterstyles. My dad used to entertain customers with sketches and talk while he sold them what they wanted or needed.He would write their name upsidedown and backwards on the work order, to start with, from there the talk and chat opened up and he found what he needed to know to sell and create to the customers order, that is passion, it is still alive and well at our shop, I hope it always is! Bill
------------------ Bill & Barbara Biggs Art's Sign Service, Inc. Clute, Texas, USA Home of The Great Texas Mosquito Festival Proud second year Supporter of the Letterheads Website MailTo:twobeesusa@netscape.net
Posts: 1020 | From: Lake Jackson,Tx | Registered: Nov 1998
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