During Monday night's class we had another fabulous discussion. One of the topics we tackled was this: How do we learn to accept a compliment gracefully? As artists, why is this important for us to do so? Here’s how it happened: Imagine a group of women as different in background and experience as they come, brought together by a single goal: to immerse themselves in Fearless Abstract Painting for 6 weeks.
At the front of the class, everyone either sat or stood in a semi-circle around my desk as I posed this question: Why is it so important for us (as artists) to accept a compliment gracefully? First we identified all of the many reasons why one would feel like they must offer resistance when a compliment is made towards their work:
The gist of the advice I gave my students is this: As artists, our job is to: Be open to inspiration, approach the canvas with as little (or zero) inhibitions as possible, translate our feelings and emotions into colours, lines and shapes, work to the best of your ability and then… Walk away. Your have created the work therefore your job as the artist is done. Now it is your job to get out of the way and allow others to experience your painting as they choose. Abstraction is subjective. Allow others to experience your work as they want to not as you want them to. Comments are closed.
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This blog was created to share my belief that the art-making process is a catalyst for transformation and personal empowerment. I am living proof.
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