Hi, I’m Chris Beaven, an artist living in Washington state and I do some kind of art every day, at least 30 minutes in duration, and plan to continue for the rest of my life.

I’ve been an artist since I was very young when my mother, with her wonderful insight, saw that I was drawn to art and enrolled me in classes. However, after 38 years of life, on January 26th, 2013, I looked back at my life of art and realized that I wasted most of that time. There were multiple years where I didn’t do any artwork at all and my soul suffered for it. But what suffered most of all was my ability as an artist. On that fateful day at the beginning of 2013, I realized that I had lost most of what I learned.

Art is NOT like riding a bike!

Art making is complex and it takes constant practice to get better and my previous 38 years were wrought with a severe lack of practice. Over the days, months, and years where I wasn’t doing art my ability was eroding, and by the time I noticed, it was almost as if I was starting over.

But I didn’t quit!

Creating is what I do. For me it is akin to breathing. There is no “have to” or “must” it is a part of me. To stop is to begin to die. So, I did the only thing I could do. I made a plan to never let complacency happen in my art again. I WILL DO ART EVERY DAY FOR THE REST OF MY LIFE!!