Fairy, Angel, Spiritual and Fantasy Art by Carmen Keys

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Carmen's Artistic Progress Since Childhood

**There are a lot of images on this page, patience required!**

I personally find it very encouraging as an artist to see how other artists have developed their skill over time. Everyone starts at the beginning, whether we are "talented" or not. I also personally believe that everyone starts out as an artist when they are children, for children naturally love to draw--many of us just get talked out of it by well-meaning relatives or teachers (or the not-so-well-meaning!). They might tell us not to color outside the lines (I once got an "F" in kindergarden art for doing just that!!), that we aren't doing it "right", that we aren't good enough. Ignore them! There is room for everyone's artistic expression, and the only qualification we must have to be an artist is to pick up a pencil and do some art.
*Steps off of soapbox*
Anyhow, here is my own personal artistic progression over the years...

Age 7 "Waitress"

Age 8 "Rainbow Unicorn"

Age 9 "Winged Things"

Age 9 "Fairy Story"	Age 10 "Pegasus"	Age 10 "Unipeg"
Age 11 "Dancing Cat"	Age 13 "Rainbow Bird"	Age 14 "Emerald"
Age 14 "Aquamarine"	Age 14 "Beautiful Lady"	Age 15 "Elf Woman"
Age 15 "Elf Man"	Age 16 "Math Fairy"	Age 16 "Night Elf"
Age 17 "Fantasy Ballet"	Age 17 "Victorian Cat"	Age 18 "Iris Fairy"
Age 18 "Froudish Fairy"	Age 19 "Rebekah"	Age 19 "Virgin Mary"
Age 19 "Noblewoman"	Age 20 "Elf"	Age 20 "Travis"
Age 21 "Bound"	Age 21 "Charm"	Age 22 "Kristin"
Age 23 "Elf Guy"	Age 23 "Country Cat"	Age 26 "Cute Fairy"
So that is basically the art I was doing up until I decided to launch into it seriously as a career. As you can see, there was a several year gap after age 23 where I hardly drew anything! And, since I wasn't practicing, my skill was also declining. Not to worry--getting back into art after a long time might make one rusty, but it quickly comes back. I finally decided to take myself seriously in 2004, at 27 years of age. :) I started painting things slowly, and then as 2005 came around I started painting like a madwoman! Sometimes as many as 20 little paintings in a month. Painting so much helped me rapidly improve, as you will see. I think I will continue adding to this page as the months go by!
Oct 2004 "Five Generations"	Nov 2004 "May Dance"	Dec 2004 "Queen of Poppies"
Jan 2005 "Ballroom Dancer"	Mar 2005 "Remembering"	May 2005 "Phlox"
Jul 2005 "Witchy Cat"	Aug 2005 "In the Night Garden"	Sep 2005 "Blueberry Tea with Mrs. Mouse"
Oct 2005 "Mischief Maker"	Nov 2005 "Book Magic"	Dec 2005 "Angel of Regret"
Jan 2006 "Little Friend"	Feb 2006 "The Enchanting Mr. Codswallup"	Mar 2006 "The Poisoned Apple"
Apr 2006 "Bohemian Spring"	May 2006 "Summer Daydreams"	Jun 2006 "Winter Offering"
"Green Girl" July 2006	"Garden Party Lurker" August 2006	"Hamadryad" September 2006
"Eveningtide" October 2006	"Moonlight Rose" November 2006	"The Sparrow" December 2006