It was my first ever art fair. Surrounded by hundreds of other artists and galleries, I almost died of stage fright while setting up my own booth. I had no idea whether my paintings would stand up to the critical Berlin audience, let alone how to price them. But after the first day, I was able to breathe a sigh of relief. My portraits in particular attracted more attention than I had ever hoped for. And in the end, it turned out to be one of my most successful art fair appearances ever, with an almost sold-out booth. And my very first mention in a publicly published art review, with just a single sentence. But it was precisely this one sentence that seemed to give me permission to continue painting and possibly make it in the art market someday.
