The Artist's Ugly Stage
"I can paint and draw. I believe this myself and a few other people say that they believe this too. But I'm not certain of whether it's true ” - Gustav Klimt
Okay. It is the new year. New me, right?
While I can almost guarantee you will have changed in some form or fashion by the end of the year (maybe not in the way you hoped), I can definitely guarantee there is no magical transition overnight from 11:59 PM on December 31st to 12:00 AM on January 1st.
In fact, you will likely have the same problems (sorry, they don't vanish overnight), the same pitfalls, the same Rufus whispering in your ear.
Why do I say these three things that sound awful similar? Problems are external (e.g. bad habits in technique that need to be broken). Pitfalls are mental (e.g. self defeating tendencies like being prone to procrastination). Rufus is emotional (e.g. the beliefs we have about ourselves and our artwork that aren't linked to the logic and reason we use to build others up).
Whether you are wanting to improve in one or all of these areas, you need to know that you will be fighting some of the same battles over and over and over again. It will be hard. Some days, it will be exhausting. So, how do you keep your resolve?
It's not about the new year. It's about the fire within you that has kept you doing art from the beginning. If it's always the same battle and you always feel like you're losing or just barely hanging on, rather than saying your going to improve a technique, have better time management, or stop listening to Rufus (which by the way does not follow the S.M.A.R.T. goals technique), let's instead change the tactics we are fighting with to have clear wins in the battles.
Here is an example:
Specific
Measurable
Attainable
Relevant
Time-Bound
Why am I harping on this?
Because just like how every painting has an ugly stage, every artist does too. That in no way means your art is bad. In fact, it has nothing to do with your art at all.
The artist's ugly stage is a time of self-denial, self-destruction, and self-doubt. It is ugly because of how we view ourselves, how we treat ourselves, and how we feel about ourselves.
If you are struggling in the new year, remember. There wasn't any magic. Yes, there is a fight ahead, but just like with the ugly stage of a painting, the result on the other side is priceless.
Hand-painted in Adobe Photoshop CC using the Wacom Intuos Pro and the Wacom Art Pen.
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