Limited Art Supplies

by Rose Herczeg
(USA)

Mixed Media Art Questions for Milliande

Hi Milliande,

I've been a fan of yours for some time now, but I have to tell you that in every video I see, there is always a myriad of new art supplies and as a mom and wife looking after the finances, there is no way I can afford even a speck of what you are sporting online. Your studio must be an actual art supply warehouse with all the things you have. I am lucky to have a set of colored pencils, some paper, and a few acrylics around. My space is limited and I find that it's very frustrating to watch one of your videos only to drool at the sight of new supplies that I will never be able to use. I don't know how you afford it.. do you have any advice and how are you able to have so much?

Not many of your watchers have a dedicated art studio or even a place in the home to spread out. You are so lucky to have that. I know that not being able to have a huge space hampers one's ability to feel free and loose. I have to worry about getting paint on the rug or disrupting the children when they sleep. I know this is not a worry of yours, nor should it be, I'm just making an observation.

I get a bit depressed when watching your videos showing all the gobs of new things you have around, much of what you are not even taking care of! I see you just slop on paint and sprays and whatever else you are using, knowing how much these things cost.. I would never treat supplies like that.. but to each his/her own. I'm not here to poke at you, just to make you realize that there are many people who would LOVE to have all that you do, and to be able to create in an unburdened way, but don't have the resources or the space.. yet their heart yearns for that freedom.

I was wondering if there is a way you could do a video explaining to others the reason why you are able to have all the treasures that you have at your disposal and maybe tape a scaled down video of how to do an art journal with limited resources. If your list of supplies each week costs more than my husband makes in a year, then obviously you are just doing justice to folks who like eye candy but will never be able to create.

I'm sorry if this sounds like sour grapes, it's not. It is more one person who lives frugally seeing another who lives lavishly and carefree but maybe not realizing that the world is made up of many people who do not have a fraction of the art supplies that you do, and that it's a dream for many to even have a complete set of anything.

I hope you have a great day and realize how much you are blessed with. I don't know much about you or your lifestyle, but God has truly given you much and I cringe sometimes at the lackadaisical ways that these treasures are used.

The best to you, Milliande..

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Mixed Media Art Questions answered by Milliande

Hi Rose,

interesting observations that you put forward to me...

Let me see whether I can find a reply ..

I believe in being me .. not altering who I am to suit anyone .. I could change the way I play, I could change the way I am presenting myself in videos, I could choose to pretend to be someone I am not ..but that is not a direction I wish to explore at this time.

I grew up without any access to any art materials in a communist country , escaped when I was in my twenties and worked very hard to arrive where I am today.

I started with a couple of stamps and a heatgun demoing at craftfairs, opened and run an artstore a year later and held that for 10 years until I decided to homeschool my daughter and sold that business.

Having changed direction I retrained myself to become a webdesigner, and today I work from home designing websites , homeschooling my daughter and playing art on the side.I mainly work often 12 hours a day in winter on my business and choose to live life more out in the open in Summer...

I am fully aware and appreciative of my lifestyle and have made choices that allow me to be truly and authentically me

I share videos of my art process , I do not charge , I do not teach workshops, I simple facilitate space for women to observe what I do, to observe each other and hopefully find themselves in their art somewhere in between ..

Sharing art ... without being judged, without the need to prove themselves for their art , their style, their resources ... just simply being...creative women from the core .. some richer, some poorer, some beginning, some running ahead, some fearful, some fearless... and every nuance in between..

I have a lot of art resources because I have been playing art for nearly 20 years, owned an art store, taught workshops .. all in all that is my job

.. I am aware many people may not be in the position to play with all the art materials that I own .. many may have one or 2art supplies , many ask me to demo a particular art materials etc .. there are a myriad of reasons why I choose to use any art material at any given day in my video..

I also have a lot of recycle videos, using common household objects for printmaking, carving your own rubberstamps , use a lot of recycling in mixed media projects because sometimes I feel like it ...

I have no plan ... I have no agenda .. I simple create art the only way I know how with the resources that are at my personal disposal ..

.. I am messy, I create right in the middle of my eclectic chaos and I work best surrounded by color, texture, form, shapes .. and when I cannot find solitary time my daughter usually sits right alongside me creating too ..

I am untidy, I dont do housework, I dont worry about spills, splatters, how my house looks, etc..I make conscious choices to be in the moment

If what I do resonates with people .. they follow my process.. People can freely choose to watch my videos or move to some other artists that resonates with them ..

I hope that helps a little in understanding where I come from in my art ..
..milliande