Insulted and don't know what to do (kinda long)

[Cataboo]

I'm not sure what to say about your husband, it defintely doesn't sound very nice of him - but I went over to your flickr stream and you have some really great photographs. Take them to the gallery and see what you're told. I didnt really look through much, but it looks like your strengths are definitely in your pictures of animals, and I like the sense of whimsy in some of your composition - and you definitely have lots of people commenting on flickr that they like your photos

I've found that photography (as with all art) is somewhat personal - I had a boyfriend once who flat out told me that photography wasn't art (we were in an art museum and he didn't want to look at the photographs, I didn't want to look at more smeary impressionist paintings)... Not the most tactful thing to say to someone who has photography as a hobby... But I'll often look through photographs with others, and what speaks to them or doesn't speak to them is completely different from what I like... And it may be that for some reason, some of your photos just don't speak to your husband while they will to a large portion of the population... and that having a BFA or working in design has sort of made him rigid in his opinions or how he looks at things... and freshness or a different approach is quite often really appealing in art...

[Flur]

Thanks for all your kind words. My husband did come out and apologize, stating that he was annoyed/upset about something else, but it really felt like cold comfort after everything he said earlier. The more I think about it, though, I can imagine he's a bit frustrated. In our relationship he's always seen himself as the artist and I'm the "responsible one" who's good at facts and figures. Now I have this invitation that I didn't really work for and probably don't deserve (my assessment, not his). I don't think he's insecure about his success as an artist - he's shown his work in this very gallery, has his work hanging in New York bars, has been invited to teach at his alma mater and is very successful in the design field. But I've been unemployed for over 6 months and I've spent that time learning photography while he's been working to pay the bills and hardly has time to even think about painting let alone do it. If I was him I might be a bit annoyed with me too. I'm not making excuses, just trying to understand where he might be coming from.

I still haven't decided for sure if I'm going to meet with the gallery owners. I think I probably will, but I know that I'm better at making decisions with a clear head when I've had a good night's sleep, and things always seem to be less of a big deal in the light of morning. I have a handful of shots selected to print tomorrow afternoon before I meet with them, so I'm prepared if I decide to go, but right now I think I need to but the evening behind me and get some sleep!

[Mr. Bloom]

I still haven't decided for sure if I'm going to meet with the gallery owners. I think I probably will,

You should go. Good Luck and let us know how it goes! Remember, the worst case outcome is not that bad and will offer a learning opportunity.