(A page from my sketchbook, celebrating a successful art show in Barachois, NB last September… I learned that faces are really hard to do with an ink pen!)
There’s a “thing” we artists and writers call “impostor syndrome”… Many of us feel like we can’t really be true artists, our work can’t be worth actual money or must be worth very little. Never mind how many hours we’ve spent learning our craft and creating the art! We’re impostors, trying to pass as real artists!! Hence the “starving artist” persona that is all too common.
But when I compare my paintings to works selling for far more than I’d dare ask, I find it compares well! Must be a result of the years of practice and online study I did to learn the craft, just enjoying it as a hobby. When I first started selling my art at local art shows, I thought I was being brave and asked a price that actually made me feel a little uncomfortable (with an alternative list with lower prices, in case nothing sold…), only to have buyers tell me what a great price I had on my art. I guess I too suffer from “impostor syndrome”!
Am I done yet?
I also often have difficulty deciding that a painting is finished. One client, for whom I was doing a commission, thought that it was very odd that I wouldn’t know when I was done. But we perfectionists are rarely satisfied with every part of a painting. At some point we have to just decide to put down the paint brush or the pen and tell ourselves it’s finished! Too many “fixes” and “additions” can actually result in spoiling the painting, making it look overdone or overworked. Too much editing means you’ll never be finished the book.
So, one of the things I like about painting outdoors “en plein air” in a little sketchbook, is that there’s no pressure to be perfect. The painting is just for you, it can’t be taken out of the sketchbook especially if it’s painted across both pages, as I usually do. It’s a great place to experiment and learn, and to just paint for the fun of it. And being outside is an extra bonus! It’s like an active meditation that’s great for mental health…
I guess I gush about this quite often — several of my friends in Spain decided they wanted to try watercolour too, and we had a few sessions at our dining room table this winter to help get them started! I also put together a half dozen Plein Air Paint Kits (with lessons included) with the same goal — sharing the fun of being able to paint outdoors and when travelling! They all sold and I made 8 more to sell at art fairs this summer (Of course, you can always contact me if you too have always had an “envie” to paint…). And I always bring my own little kit and paint at shows – it makes the day even more fun!
Human creation vs AI production
I was just reading another article about AI in art and writing, especially in digital media and online posts (a popular topic these days). They noted that people show a preference for artistic work that they know has been done by humans, appreciating the work, knowledge and hours of practice needed to learn the craft and create the piece of art or writing. While people in general have been willing to pay more for an item that was handcrafted, the work of human artisans is being increasingly valued in this age of invasion of machine generated art into the marketplace.
And, strangely, while human artists worry about small imperfections remaining in their work, current AI generated art is noted for containing blatant errors, like people with 3 hands, extra fingers or some body part attached backwards! You’d think a computer would make the image too perfect. Too funny, really…
I’ll put a link to the article I was reading below, along with a link to a study of how being more exposed to nature can lower stress hormones. The article ended with this quote:
“Ultimately, what we value about art is not whether it’s perfect, but its ability to connect us with another human being.” Art is more than just a pretty picture — it’s an image with story, an ability to generate emotions, feelings and memories, and a connection to the artist too! I think that explains why people generally prefer handmade art and human generated writing — to share emotions and feelings with another person, often over time and distance, rather than with a machine that has no feelings at all and can only borrow the words and images of others.
I’ll be sharing the stories behind my art with those on my Art Priority List. Join me there if you love art, or if you find nature relaxes you and drains away stress, like it does for me! Click HERE to join my Art List!
References:
1)The Conversation: “In the age of AI, human creative output is becoming a luxury” ( https://theconversation.com/in-the-age-of-ai-human-creative-output-is-becoming-a-luxury-276514 )
2)Natural environments and chronic stress measured by hair cortisol ( https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0169204615002510#preview-section-abstract )
Jeannie Beaudin, Artist and Author 