It’s no secret many artists look at other artists’ work. Mainly to obtain new ideas, get inspired, learn new techniques, and last but no least, to compare their work to others. And this last one is a minefield that should be navigated very carefully. Being an emerging artist that I am, I’m guilty of looking at a lot of art. I get lost on Pinterest, Saatchi, and Instagram at least once every day if not more. And at times, when I’m not careful, I can spirale down into thinking pattern that undermines my confidence as an artist. There is a lot of great art out there, and I want to get to where I feel my work is strong and stands out. I work hard at my art. I paint everyday and dedicate most of my free time to learning about art, reading, and lately journaling. I constantly keep reminding myself that I can only make my own art and develop at my own speed. I should truly compare my art to my past works and not to works of other artist, who might be way ahead of me on their artistic journey. I know I have it in me to create, we all do, it’s part of human nature. It all comes down to training the creative muscle, growing it, enriching my life’s experiences to fill my inspiration well.
So I made a promise to myself, every time I see art that attracts me, instead of thinking, I can never do this or how do I paint like this, I will take the time to really dig deep and ask myself what I love about the art I’m looking at. Because once I’m clear about what I truly love, what inspires me I can then bring it into my art, in my own way.
This idea is not mine. Early this year I participated in a 12-week Creative Visionary Program (CVP) created and lead by an amazing artist and teacher Nicholas Wilton. Many times in this program he talked about getting clear about what we want to say with our work, and about discernment. And I thought I got it, but I didn’t follow it. I relisten to a lot of talks Nick gave as part of CVP and I finally understand how crucial and valuable this advice is.