"If
you could get inside the heads of the people around you, you'd probably be
surprised at how unsure and unconfident they feel. It's likely that they'd feel
the same about you. We're pretty good at hiding our true thoughts; it's why
we're always so shocked—and relieved—when somebody honestly expresses
them."--From Start Your
Week with Steve, a free weekly e-mail newsletter by artist Steve Henderson.
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It's our journey, and while what other people think can provide
insight, we ultimately hold and
control the reins. Time Out, original
and signed limited edition print by Steve Henderson.
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Whether it's accurate or not, there is the impression that
artists are fairly insecure people. My question is, Who, in their shoes, wouldn't be?
Artists more than any other professionals express their deepest emotions on a
tangible surface—oil on canvas, bronze sculpting, paint on blank walls—which they put out for the
entire world to see and comment on.
And because the entire world isn't made up of exactly the same
person, some people vociferously encourage and praise the artist's efforts
while others condemn it, soundly and roundly.
So one of the first oil painting lessons a person who enters the art arena
learns is to thicken that skin a bit and not take every comment personally. A
second oil painting tip is to cultivate the ability to be your own best critic—listening to what you hear around you, sifting it through your mental filters,
discerning valid criticism from random talk, and experimenting according to how you want to create your oil painting art, for example.
And as with any endeavor, the more skills and oil painting techniques that
you know and grasp, the easier it is to deal with the inevitable criticism.
There is a fine line between arrogance and confidence, and while
the one blocks us from effectively learning and moving forward, the other,
balanced with humility, enables us to weigh the words we hear, separate the
valid from the invalid, and move forward in our art.
--Carolyn