No One Can Make You Feel Inferior, Without Your Consent.

No One Can Make You Feel Inferior, Without Your Consent. 05/28/2010

That is one of my favorite quotes by, Eleanor Roosevelt.

How do people who patronize others, make you feel?

A man and woman demanded, rather than asked, to see my art work, over several days. When I put on a private showing, just for them, they said they would return when they were ready, (like I am to put it out on demand any time they ask), and she acted patronizing to me telling me, ‘how to sell my art work’. I had already told her I had owned and run an award-winning, gallery. I am obviously not an amateur so I did not like the assumption that my exhibition time was theirs to command, or that I needed to be told, how to sell art when I am, as I had informed them, now retired, to a hobby business level, due to my carer duties.

Then the husband met up with my husband on the beach this morning, where my man was happily fishing and so proud of his efforts, having caught 10 small whiting with a small rod and light line and 1 large whiting on his first try with the new heavier line I bought him yesterday. This man, through his choice of patronizing words, made my husband feel, as if he was not an angler’s bootlace.

He also ordered, my husband to throw back the one fish he caught, saying ‘it was undersized’, yet it was the same size, all the other anglers there were catching and keeping. I believe he was just picking on my man, because I was not there to protect him. I can only think that both members of that couple, gain some sort of superior feeling by speaking to others as if they were somehow inferior, using a patronizing way of expressing themselves.

He knew my man was like a child in looking to others to guide him so he took advantage, bullied, and strived to make him feel inferior.

I had politely ignored the patronizing of my art, that’s what I get, for putting major art work outside a caravan, I once had an art teacher tell me that if you placed a Sir Hans Hysen landscape in an amateur art show, most people would have no idea what they were looking at.

I express my feelings here in my blog. If the couple I’m referring to, read my blog and recognise themselves through the eyes of those they have been trying to act superior to, then that will give me a tad of satisfaction. Mostly I hope to help other artist, recognize that when people strive to put you down in any way, it is a reflection on them and their life situation, nothing whatever to do with you and your art. Keep your head up and do not let them spoil your beautiful creative day.

“No one can make you feel inferior
without your consent.”

Eleanor Roosevelt quotes

Artists rarely work just for ‘the money’, we are motivated by ideals, though if we earn our income doing what we love, as I have been able to do, then that is wonderful. I have refused, to sell to people before, (not often, they have to have acted very objectionably to me, for me to do this), but on previous occasions I have told people, ‘Sorry, I have nothing available for sale today’, and I have never regretted the few times I have done this.

I have fond memories of every piece of art I have created, but also extremely fond memories of the client who appreciated my work enough to have fallen in love with it and bought it.

Tonight I go fishing with my man and protect him from nasty two-legged groper, sharks, lol, because his welfare and happiness is my major creative activity these days, work I do with love and pride.