Art & Fear: Observations on the Perils (and Rewards) of Artmaking

Product Information

This event is part of the three-part series: What Makes Us Human: Conversations on Art and Philosophy. Apparently, a good portion of the Artists Network community craves vulnerable conversations, too. (Are you surprised?) How do you deal with fear as an artist? For an artist, the book is captivating in parts, especially in the beginning as it concerns execution and vision, and a discussion of common fears in the art making process -- excellent insights. But that's maybe a 1/5 of the book, the title is a bit misleading...

I do my best to stay away from things that trigger my imposter syndrome and natural competitiveness. Stepping away from Facebook last year made a huge difference. — Kelly E Founded in 2013, Artsper is an online marketplace for contemporary art. Partnering with 1,800 professional art galleries around the world, it makes discovering and acquiring art accessible to all. To the artist, all problems of art appear uniquely personal. Well, that's understandable enough, given that not many other activities routinely call one's basic self-worth into question.” When I’ve done this in a group setting, there is the additional benefit of experiencing one’s emotions accepted and witnessed by the whole group. Group members are often able to relate to each other and enjoy discussing the common connections that they see. 6 image art sequence to help with expressing emotionsWhat artist has not experienced the feverish euphoria of composing the perfect thumbnail sketch, first draft, negative or melody — only to run headlong into a stone wall trying to convert that tantalizing hint into the finished mural, novel, photograph, sonata. The artist’s life is frustrating not because the passage is slow, but because he imagines it to be fast.” Well, came grading time and a curious fact emerged: the works of highest quality were all produced by the group being graded for quantity. It seems that while the “quantity” group was busily churning out piles of work – and learning from their mistakes – the “quality” group had sat theorizing about perfection, and in the end had little more to show for their efforts than grandiose theories and a pile of dead clay. pg. 29 The ceramics class divided into two groups; half would be graded on quantity and the other half on quality. The half graded on quantity ended up making better work Most of the time I try not to think about it because I know I am as good as anyone else. Sometimes, though, the fear is paralyzing and stops me either from creating or communicating to an application because I anticipate a rejection of my skills. When that happens, I have to set aside the day and look through all my media presentation and just send out the info, regardless of the outcome — basically muscling through. — Iris G The ceramics teacher announced on opening day that he was dividing the class into two groups. All those on the left side of the studio, he said, would be graded solely on the quantity of work they produced, all those on the right solely on its quality.

The word "creativity" is not mentioned anywhere in the book, except in the tiny segment that points this out to the reader. "Why should it?" the authors ask smugly. "Do only some people have ideas, confront problems, dream, live in the real world, and breathe air?" Yeah, okay, everyone is creative - I get it. But not discussing creativity in a book about making art? What? That's like writing a recipe book and saying "this book doesn't mention ingredients. Why should it? Do only some desserts have flour, sugar, eggs, butter?" By the end of the book, you'll likely be entirely confused and realize "there's no definition of art", and it's the artists (and art community's) own fault. Tirelessly extolling "what is" and "what is not" art seems to have ruined the word in our vocabulary... if it's going to become so subjective as to not have a communicable meaning, then... well it doesn't really mean anything. Share your thoughts in the comments! What’s your favorite directive to creatively explore feelings? Did you try the 6-image sequence and how did it go?I am not an expert on art books, but from my own limited reading, I would say that if you want to read a book about making art in the real world, you should read Handiwork by Sara Baume. Our collection Artists Artworks Art by theme Explore Videos Podcasts Short articles In depth Art Terms Tate Research Student resources Make art Create like an artist Kids art activities Tate Draw game Visual art has more to do – not simply in documenting the range and extent of our anxieties, but in constructing the means for their relief. Foster Wallace once named ‘fiction, poetry, music’ as the arts through which the loneliness of mental illness may be ‘stared down, transfigured, treated’. Such big claims are more commonly made for both literature and music, perhaps because those forms can be experienced in private worlds. Books and music are a functional distraction from insomnia and pain, a means to quell rumination. More commonly an institutional experience, visual art does not seek to compete as cultural benzodiazepine. to require perfection is to invite paralysis. The pattern is predictable: as you see error in what you have done, you steer your work toward what you imagine you can do perfectly. You cling ever more tightly to what you already know you can do — away from risk and exploration, and possibly further from the work of your heart. You find reasons to procrastinate, since to not work is to not make mistakes. Believing that artwork should be perfect, you gradually become convinced that you cannot make such work. (You are correct.) Sooner or later, since you cannot do what you are trying to do, you quit. And in one of those perverse little ironies of life, only the pattern itself achieves perfection — a perfect death spiral: you misdirect your work; you stall; you quit.” Yet viewed objectively, these fears obviously have less to do with art than they do with the artist. And even less to do with the individual artworks. After all, in making art you bring your highest skills to bear upon the materials and ideas you most care about. Art is a high calling -- fears are coincidental.