We recently connected with Diane Belgrod and have shared our conversation below.
Hi Diane, 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 have always intrinsically believed that everything will work out, even when it most looked like it wouldn’t. This is not to say I don’t have fear, and I definitely suffer from some anxiety and have my whole life, but at my core I always believe that everything will be ok. Some of the hardest things I’ve gone through in my life have brought me to the most beautiful places within myself and the world around me. So in that sense it all does work out, even if I can’t see it when I’m going through it.
I think about nature a lot. The earth creates so many beautiful things. Roses bloom for no one in particular, they just do it because that’s what they are designed to do. For all the beauty that is here on this planet, that we are also a part of, why would we be any different? I think we are here to be beautiful and to share our gifts and shine our light. That thought gives me comfort and hope. Even if we are off course or playing in shadows, the light is just on the other side of that. Nature is built on cycles and spirals and patterns and timing that we are only beginning to understand. A tree doesn’t know when it will rain. It can’t go get water when it feels thirsty. But it is a part of a greater system which is conspiring to help it thrive. There is so much trust built into the cycles of nature.
My two year old was very impatient the other day about something and was getting very upset. I think we were making banana bread and he wanted to know when it would be ready because he wanted to eat it, and he started melting down, and I told him, it’s going to take as much time as it needs to take but trust me, it’s coming and it will be delicious. So, you can choose to be upset for that time or you can choose to feel patience, but it won’t change how long it takes. All that will change is how you feel while you are waiting. Sometimes I tell him these profoundly wise things and I realize I’ve been having the same issue, but instead of banana bread its paying bills or some version of that, and I try to step back and take my own advice. I can either be optimistic about the present moment and the future, or not be, but the only thing that will change is my perception of reality and my reaction to it. I find life is much more in partnership with me when I am positive instead of negative, and I trust that life is working towards my highest good, because why would it not be?
Thanks, so before we move on maybe you can share a bit more about yourself?
In my paintings I am seeking to explore our connection to nature and to each other. Specifically, I am interested in the powerful undercurrent of the divine feminine and how this force presents itself within us and our society. My most recent series of works, large scale acrylic on canvas paintings made with bright, luminous colors, is a reflection of my first year as a mother, through which I am seeking to understand my relationship to joy, isolation, expectation and fulfillment, and to myself.
If you had to pick three qualities that are most important to develop, which three would you say matter most?
I’m not sure that I can think of three offhand, but I have come to understand one important thing, which is if something is your passion you can’t give up on it because it won’t let you. You will feel terrible from the not doing it, so you have to do it. It’s ok if it’s not “successful”. Don’t worry about that or what people think. Lock those people outside the door. They don’t have to know anything about what you’re doing or understand it. You don’t owe them any explanations. Social media complicates this too because as an artist you need to show your work, because people need your gift and because your ego really wants you to, but also if there is a desire to be a part of that world you have to open the door a little. There is a lot of pressure on artists right now to constantly be creating content. But good work takes time, and it takes making mistakes and failing into some other version. which shouldn’t have to been done publicly. I believe in having a semi-private process and leaving things open to interpretation, and not needing to give a full exposition on its meaning. It’s your passion because it’s your gift. Let it into your life as much as you can. This is me saying this out loud so that I follow it too. It’s a constant struggle but it’s fun. What else are we going to do?
One of our goals is to help like-minded folks with similar goals connect and so before we go we want to ask if you are looking to partner or collab with others – and if so, what would make the ideal collaborator or partner?
I would really love to be more a part of a community of artists here in San Diego, which was something I had in New York where I am originally from, and have been missing. Together we curated shows of our works and did weekly live model drawing sessions. I moved to San Diego from NYC in January of 2020. A week after moving here I found out I was pregnant with my first child and then the pandemic happened, and then I had another baby so it made it more challenging to meet other artists. I have started to build that, but I I would love to connect with more artists here. I think San Diego sometimes gets left in the shadow of LA a little when it comes to the “art scene”, but I know there are incredible artists here and I want to meet them and talk to them and see their work.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.dianebelgrod.com
- Instagram: @dianebelgrodart
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100071752370028
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/diane-belgrod-7713ab2a/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@airport8754
Image Credits
Diane Belgrod
