I collect quotes about art, and these can be a great source of encouragement. Many address the tendency we have to be self-critical of our work.
Pablo Picasso said, “Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up.” Children don’t even consider the possibility that they can’t draw. In fact, Howard Ikemoto said, ”When my daughter was about seven years old, she asked me one day what I did at work. I told her I worked at the college – that my job was to teach people how to draw. She stared at me, incredulous, and said, ‘You mean they forget?’”
As we grow up and become more aware of the possibility of humiliation, we develop fears. Joseph Chilton Pearce said, “To live a creative life, we must lose our fear of being wrong.” Folks, art is free therapy! If you want to work with fears of inadequacy, try art. It will force you to be courageous. Anne Tucker would agree, as she says, “All art requires courage.”
It’s very common for artists to feel “stuck”, feeling that creativity and good art is out of reach. There are days that I wonder if I’m really an artist. I also get stuck trying to decide what to paint. Gordon MacKenzie says the biggest obstacle to creativity is “attachment to outcome. As soon as you become attached to a specific outcome, you feel compelled to control and manipulate what you’re doing and in the process you shut yourself off to other possibilities. Creativity is not just about succeeding. It’s about experimenting and discovering.” I have experienced this so many times! As soon as a painting feels like it’s really turning out well, I start getting too invested in the outcome, and it’s paralyzing.
So what do you do with all the mistakes? It’s relieving to know that all artists make some lousy paintings and make mistakes. It doesn’t mean we are bad artists. In fact, Scott Adams says, “Creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes. Art is knowing which ones to keep.”
Jean Cocteau carries this even further when he says, “Listen carefully to first criticisms made of your work. Note just what it is about your work that critics don’t like—then cultivate it. That’s the only part of your work that’s individual and worth keeping.” I think this is quite the exaggeration and doesn’t allow for learning from actual mistakes, but there is a kernel of truth there.
If you think these quotes don’t apply to you, remember that most of us are engaged in art in one form or another. We all have a need to create, and we do it in many different ways. Visual arts are only one type of art. Art includes music, drama, literature, cooking, crafting, and sewing to name a few. It’s a way we play and express ourselves. I encourage you to keep at it even when you feel like you’re no good. What happens in the process is far more important than the outcome.
Great encouragement!