Claude Monet and criticism

I frequently like to include artists – both well-known and lesser known – in the Potpourri section of Brain Aerobics Weekly . . I especially like to include information many people may not know, such as how Claude Monet’s palette changed before and after his cataract surgery. And because one point of brain aerobics is help others tap into their creativity, I often find that anecdotes about artists provide some life lessons. Here’s one told by Monet himself: Manet wanted one day to paint my wife and children. Renoir was there. He took a canvas and began painting them too. After a while, Manet took me aside and whispered, "You're on very good terms with Renoir and take an interest in his future - do advise him to give up painting! You can see for yourself that it's not his metier at all."

Which just goes to show you shouldn’t let the naysayers darken your dreams.