I need to make art like a caged bird needs to sing. (Look up Maya Angelou.) It is my calling, my life blood.
This is not for the faint of heart.
Many artists, of all kinds, struggled with mental health challenges. Famous examples include Vincent van Gogh, Edvard Munch, Beethoven, Georgia O’Keeffe, Sylvia Plath, Kurt Cobain, etc. Something about being creatively gifted brings the curse of madness with it.
I am no different.
My life has never been easy, as much as I’d love to tell a happy story. I’ve overcome abuse, abandonment, betrayal, along with much else which I don’t often speak about. Such experiences bred “demons” with names like anxiety, depression, PTSD, and suicide. Those monsters have left many scars, metaphorical or otherwise.
Art was the light at the end of the tunnel. I was creatively gifted so, as I once sat there, listening to some wise inner calling, contemplating whether a 4th suicide attempt or a great life change would be most challenging, I came to a compromise. If I do not waste my life, then neither can I waste my gifts.
Why would I be given a gift if I was not meant to use it?
This was why I was sick, unfulfilled, and on the edge of death. I was not on the right path. God, in whichever form you may choose, put me on this planet for a reason. It does not include a normal lifestyle or a 9 to 5 job that erodes my mental health, killing my spirit. Money is not so important as completing my life’s mission and staying healthy.
Art keeps me sane. It gives me strength. It makes me feel I have something valuable to offer this world. That is why I do it.
If you would like to help support this struggling artist on a mission, I’ve created a GoFundMe page for those who may not be able to afford my art yet wish to support my journey:
I am forever grateful!
Harley Makes Art 