50 Over 50: Don't Wait - Donna Budzynski's Nighttime Art

Donna Budzynski showed up at her first art fair at 60 years old without a tent. She had no clue what she was doing. When she arrived and saw all these younger artists, she immediately thought she didn't belong there because of her age.

But she had a fabulous welcome. She was juried into some big fairs in the Twin Cities. People told her how awesome her work was. Customers contacted her wanting pieces. And at 64, she just completed her first 30 ft. x 11 ft. mural inside a mall—not on a flat wall, but a heavily textured wall that had to be done by paintbrush only, working off a ladder and lift.

It was hard. But she did it.

Before 50, she didn't have time for herself. She had children and grandkids and put them first. Now she can devote her time to be selfish and create all the art she would like. Her work is hard to describe—all of it is mixed media of some sort. She can go from detailed pieces to bold, bright characters. Flowers and fishing lures. She doesn't follow the rules when it comes to her art.

Her motto: she has daytime art and nighttime art. During the day she's more serious. At night she brings out the colors and characters.

The nighttime art helps with her depression. Her characters have bright colors, but some people see sadness in the eyes. Most smile and love them, but there are some who see that sadness, which she finds very interesting. It's the way her mind works—the things that come out at night when she's creating for herself.

The hardest part about being an artist at this point in her life? Getting it out of her head that she's too old to start now. It's harder to set up and take down at art fairs as you get older. Some days are extremely hard when your mind is telling you that you're too old and not good enough.

And then a customer contacts you wanting a piece. Or you do a show and everyone tells you how awesome your work is. That's what keeps her going.

She doesn't worry about what others are doing in the art world. She just does what makes her happy. She's currently working on dimensional art, building her characters up and out with wood. She's self-taught and enjoys trying new things—oils, acrylic, air dry clay, professional polymer doll clay. She loves to sculpt when she's not painting.

Her advice to anyone who says they wish or want to be an artist? Do it, don't wait. Don't waste anymore time. Don't worry about all the little things that could stop you from doing the things you love.

She wishes she would have just jumped and followed her passion earlier. She wishes she would not have waited. But she's here now, creating her nighttime art with its bright colors and sad eyes, building dimensional characters that come up and out from the surface.

Donna Budzynski is a self-taught artist based in Grasston, Minnesota. Her mixed media work ranges from detailed pieces to bold, bright characters that most people smile at and love. She creates more at night than day, and her nighttime art brings out colors and characters that wouldn't exist otherwise.

She started selling at 60. She's 64 now. And she's just getting started.

Connect with Donna: Website: highlandwoodsstudio.com Instagram: @Highlandwoodsstudio