We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Shane Walsh a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Shane , thank you for being such a positive, uplifting person. We’ve noticed that so many of the successful folks we’ve had the good fortune of connecting with have high levels of optimism and so we’d love to hear about your optimism and where you think it comes from.
I consider myself lucky because my general outlook and attitude toward life is set to extreme optimism. This is essential if you’re going to be a studio artist because rejection and disappointment are such a big part of the journey. You have to have really thick skin and trust that something amazing is just around the next corner. For me the experience of being a painter is all about optimism, new ideas, new forms, new materials and possibilities keep me in a state of constant anticipation and this permeates every aspect of how I view the world.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
Being resilient, being curious about others and the world around you, and not being a jerk are the 3 most important qualities if you’re going to make a go of being an artist.
All the wisdom you’ve shared today is sincerely appreciated. Before we go, can you tell us about the main challenge you are currently facing?
Carving out enough time to be fully engaged in the studio is always the number one obstacle in most artists lives. You have to be really self disciplined and committed, sometimes this is really tough especially if you want to live a well rounded life. Making time for the people in your life and balancing your obligations but also being somewhat selfish with you time is necessary if you’re going to make a life in the arts.