Art and Life - Lessons Learned

Every artist knows that making art is a learning process. I spend my days reading, observing and writing about anything and everything that will enhance my life experiences and make my art better. This year I'm making it a point to be especially observant, to take time to really see and hear the world as it is. I want to change the way I perceive the world and all things in it. I don't just want to walk through it. I want to absorb it so that it becomes part of who I am. This soaking up of life is bound in make my art richer and perhaps most sensitive. Hopefully I will be able to allow my emotions and experiences to show in my work - even more than they do now.

Though the year is still young, I have already learned some valuable lessons so I thought I would share them with you here.

1. Good art takes a while. It is not perfect and it seldom gets expressed in quite the way we first envisioned it. Great art takes longer. It cannot be fretted over. It must be allowed to speak of its own accord. I have fretted over mine long enough. Now I am listening.
2. Life is messy. So is art. I have a difficult time functioning in chaos. I don't like it when I can't lay my hands on something right away. Yet most of the time the studio gets cluttered as I work. I just have to remember to stop every now and again to clean up my mess.
3. Do what you love. I see so many people going to work each day to jobs that they hate. Sure, we all need to earn a living. I would imagine many of them find the security of a paycheck comforting. I know I do. Yet, life is too short to spend doing something you don't absolutely love. Doing what you love for a living take some adjustments. It means doing what you have to do to make ends meet without sacrificing your goals. In most cases, it also means doing without until you have paid your dues. That's okay. I would rather spend time doing what I love instead of sitting behind a desk somewhere daydreaming about doing what I love and giving my best creative efforts to someone else.
4. Time is finite, at least for humans. We have only a limited amount of it. How we spend it is important because once it passes, it is gone forever.
   
5. Mistakes are good! In fact they are important - especially in art making. Why? Because every time we make a mistake, we learn what not to do. Last night I learned that my favorite ink smears more on shiny paper because it sits on the surface rather than being adsorbed by it. Now I know.
6. Take time to play! Like musicians and writers we must experiment. We must practice our craft. I know I have a hard time giving myself permission to explore because it seems like such a waste of time. Image where we would be if Thomas Edison had decided that experimenting with light was a waste of time. This year I'm taking time to play.
   

There you have it. A few kernels of wisdom. There is nothing new here, nothing that has not already been expressed. Still, it is new to me. It is now part of my artistic journey. Speaking of journeys...it is time to continue mine. :)

A New Year

This year is about starting over but it is also about giving myself permission. That sounds silly I know. What do you mean give yourself permission? You're an adult! You can do anything you like. True. Yet often we don't allow ourselves to enjoy our work or even to indulge in a little play time just to experiment with new materials or art supplies. So this year I'm giving myself permission to play. Nothing we do is a waste of time so long as it contributes to who we are as artists and what our work will become.

As for starting over, well...it is a new year. This year will be different. It will be interesting to see what kind of artist I am 365 days from now. Until then, I intend to enjoy the ride!