Dancing Flame, A Commission

DANCING FLAME, Leah Campbell Badertscher, Copyright 2015, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

I have quite a bit of catching up to do to fill you in on ALL the paintings/art I've made in the last year.  Now that my children are all in school, this is the most time I have had in seven years.  In the past, the most time I've had to myself (to work, is what that means, though I'm grateful to have work I love!) has been 12-20 hours of childcare a week, averaging around 15 hours, and until recently anywhere between 5-8 of those hours was spent teaching yoga.  Which I also loved, but between teaching, writing, coaching, painting, and family...something had to give!  That, in a nutshell, is why I have been a half-assed online presence in the past.  Well, that's not entirely true.  The other reason is that I am still conflicted about how much on-line presence to have (you'll notice how I'm so carefully avoiding the bl***** word - rhymes with "logger" and it's not because I don't love reading certain ones, I really do, it's just I have mixed feelings about whether that's what I should be doing myself!)  ANYWAY, I digress....let's go back to the paintings, shall we?! :)

Dancing Flame (above and below) is a commissioned painting I did for a beautiful, special woman.  This is probably a good place to mention a couple things.  1) That I do commissions.  The second thing to mention is that of the many ways I might describe my painting and painting process, one way would be to say that I am an intuitive artist. 

Confession:  I often work to avoid calling myself an "intuitive" painter simply because the first time I saw an intuitive painting is seared into my mind.  It looked like a swirly, tie-dyed colored, finger painting of lima beans.  Gah.  I am all about - ALL ABOUT- everyone being more creative and not judging, but at that point I have to admit I thought to myself, "I have no idea what intuitive painting is about, but if this is it, I want no part of it!"    

Well, sense of humor that God has and all, an intuitve painter is exactly what I have become.  Minus psychedelic legumes (though I do often paint with my fingers and my palette tends to be unconventional).  Intuitive painter was, for me, a WAY OUT OF MY OWN WAY.  It's a spiritual practice, it's the most fun for me, and I am pretty dang amazingly intuitive, that is definitely my wheel house, and so painting is a joyful, challenging, and powerful way to play with that, grow, and explore.  

So, the way I do commissions is also unconventional because it is this intuitive process.  I ask the person requesting the painting a bunch of questions (that have nothing to do with the kind of sofa or armchairs they have, I don't make paintings to match couches, because there are just plenty of other places for that (Target)) and I also might ask them for photos of something ("something" is very vague here but it depends on the person - could be a cherished place, travel photos, childhood photos, etc....).  And then I trust what I get and try to keep up with it, try to stay awake and try to do justice to it.  Some people say, "Ummm, sounds like a reading.  Is it a reading?"     Nope, but it is special and it is different.  I love doing commissions this way- it's fun and such a great honor to make something so personal and so meaningful that will be in someone's HOME, their sacred space.  And they are also quite a bit more taxing for me and requires a fair amount of mental/psyche real estate for me and in my art-making calendar, so that is why they are priced the way they are.  But I do love to work with people this way (it's like the work I do coaching, but like making a gift as well), I do love the process of creating them and have been so delighted at the way they take shape and turn out.  And, most, most, most, most MOST importantly - my clients have all loved their commissions. 

If you have ever wanted to do something like this, create a precious, sacred, powerfully soul nourishing heirloom as a gift to yourself or your family or a loved one (and something incredibly meaningful to pass down), then I am your girl.  I know there are other intuitive painters out there, but I don't know anyone else who does this like I do. 

If you are interested in a commission, prices are currently (as of 2019) $10/square inch and a 50% of the total, non-refundable deposit is required at the time of our initial, ummm, "non-reading" but interview-like-conversation (which is a lot of fun!). :)  I am currently working on a few commission projects right now, so the length of time to complete your project will vary depending on when you contact me and how large a piece you are requesting.  But I do everything I can to get the commissions to you in a timely fashion.

Here is one such commission, Dancing Flame, that I completed for a special client last year. I love how she turned out! 

Thanks for reading!

Love,

Leah