When you notice pieces that stand out, that capture your interest, what makes them stand out? Subject matter, a sense of humor, paint application, sculptural quality, materials, or...?
When I became a corporate art curator in New England (northeast USA), I really noticed a sense of "sameness" in representational art. Painfully few representational artists whose work I viewed created work that was truly unique, special, or different. My goal was to find works where the "creative soul" of the artist peeked out from behind the layers of paint. Unfortunately I kept seeing the same subject matter in similar styles from different artists. I wondered if they all studied together, or painted together, or read the same books? Why the apparent similarity? And how could we as artists break through this and allow our true selves to shine forth in our work?
This also made me start thinking about my own work, realizing I was falling into the "sameness" trap. That concerned me. I wanted my art to say something more, to reflect more of what I was as a person, to display more of myself. I wanted to be interested in my own paintings, not bored by them.
Yes, you could say that I had an epiphany :-)
I think as representational artists, once we learn the craft of our art, most of us truly do want to create unique work that is instantly recognizable as "ours." Unfortunately we're often not taught how to do that within the representational framework. I know this was not part of my training at my very traditional art school, in workshops, or when I studied one-on-one with artists. I was most often proclaimed "successful" when I painted like the instructor.
Excuse me? Isn't that somehow anti-creative?
I don't think this is anything new. In fact, this is how artists have learned their craft for thousands of years, by studying with and copying the work of people more knowledgeable. That's all fine and dandy (and even necessary) when learning the basics of paint application or sculpting marble or drawing the figure. We need to learn the basics of our chosen "craft" - how to apply paint so that it doesn't peel off, how to effectively mix color, how to choose a chunk of marble that doesn't have a fracture....but what comes after that stage? Once we learn our "craft," what then?
It seems to me we're missing something in the representational art world.
We're missing that next level - the individual learning or development that comes after the "student" stage. We're not consistently teaching representational artists how to let their creative spirit shine through in their work.
It's my belief that each one of us has a unique creative spirit and a unique form of creative expression that, if we truly let it out, would make our work truly OURS. If you're an artist, isn't that what you want for your work?
Abstract artists are taught this in their art schooling, but it may come at the expense of learning the "craft" of art. Representational artists are taught the craft aspect of art quite well, but the creative spirit is often ignored. I think it's time we knock down some walls and learn from eachother, perhaps even merge the two forms of teaching and come out as stronger, more creative artists on the other side.
But let's be practical about it - art schools aren't going to change overnight. And if art school doesn't teach unique creative expression to representational artists, how then do you as an artist learn to go to that next level on your own?
How do you make your chosen form of expression truly your own?
For me it started by a year of playing and experimenting with paint, supports, grounds, and ideas. A year of unlearning, exploring, then reconfiguring what I wanted to say in paint...mostly on my own. Sometimes solitude is just what we need to make a creative breakthrough. I was encouraged by and learned from others: Valencia Begay, a wonderful friend of Navajo ancestry who helped me to gently let go of the artist I was before; another friend, a brilliant and creative photographer who encouraged me to step outside the norm; Mary Brooking, whose work and form of expression I greatly admire; and Nicole Hyde, an artist here in Colorado who has really learned how to imbue her paintings with her own unique form of creative expression.
The style that came from these experiments is still a work in progress, as it should be. I fully expect it to change and grow and morph as I learn more about myself, my Spirit, and the Universe around me.
During the time I actively experimented, I realized other folks might also want to learn how to let their Spirit shine through in their art so I developed a 6 week class ("Unleashing Your Creative Spirit") that walks artists through the main part of the creative discovery process.*
To whet your appetite, though, I'll share a few tips here in this blog. Here's the first:
Learn to question and let go of the "shoulds," the assumptions, and the habits you've been carrying with you for no real reason.
For example, "oil paintings should not be touched" is one I carried with me for a long time. When I thought about it and questioned the assumption, I realized that was not what I wanted for my art. I also realized that I actually could create oil paintings in such a way to allow and encourage casual touches. I remembered how much I loved texture and wanted to merge a little sculpture into my oil paintings, so I had to let go of my preconceived notion that oil paintings should not be touched. Once I did that, I was able to work on ways to create touchable paintings.
To be continued...
*A separate, independent-study book is in the works. If you are interested in trying the class out for free, please contact me for details at nancyr_artist (at) live.com.
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