In this age of social media we are bombarded with imagery. It may be good to see what everyone else is doing. Follow artists whose
work you admire and most want to emulate. There is value in setting the bar high, it
keeps us reaching and hopefully teachable. But a constant game of comparison
is not healthy, in fact it can be downright stifling to your own growth.
Sometimes I think we are not even aware of it with all of the liking,
hearting, thumbs up, thumps down, all the signaling of satisfaction and approval (or of rejection or failure) cannot be healthy in the long run. It is
very easy to get caught up in all that social media “trophy hunting.”
The answer to combating all the digital noise for me is to simply turn to the process, the act and craft of
painting.
Quiet the inner critic by focusing on what the
painting experience is teaching you. Fall in love with the process; the whole creative learning process, the
ideas and concepts which go into the creation of a painting. Recognize that
part of the process is failure, be willing to fail and be teachable. This is where the best lessons you learn come from. “Failure is success in
progress” to quote Albert Einstein.
Don’t block the process with endless comparison, you have no
idea what their journey is all about. As
artist we are supposed to create a personal voice within our artwork. It should be stamped with our unique DNA filtered through our experiences and
knowledge of the world expressed in and through our art. Our emphasis should
not be on producing a finished “work of art” but rather on the practice and
development of a fundamental skill set.
To accomplish that - work at your craft daily, it is progress
not perfection.
As the process is more important than the finished work.
Explore - Question - Learn - Enjoy, Jim
Website - jimserrett.com
Studio Blog - jimserrettstudio.com
Landscape Blog - Pochade Box Paintings
