No kidding!

In my last post I told you that I asked the Post Road Art Center to take me off their mailing list and, wouldn't you know it, that very afternoon I received feedback from them for the collage that I reworked using their advice. I don't know whether they wrote because I unsubscribed from their newsletter, because that process was supposed to be anonymous, but it wouldn't have taken a genius to figure out who sent them the comments. And it doesn't really matter what prompted their response because they both took the time to validate my effort and give me some valuable creative direction.

The most constructive comment I received was one that I had never received before, EVER, in all my years of art school and that was:

"Have you tried writing an artist statement, summing up what you are trying to accomplish with your work? One of my professors once gave me a list of several questions that an artist should ask themselves every so often; it’s not something I have handy, and I’m not an art teacher; but if you’re really looking for critiques, there are often classes being offered - not just at colleges but sometimes through continuing ed. or art guilds - on refining your vision, critiquing your work, etc."

It has never occurred to me to write an artist statement, and it makes so much sense especially when I have always had a great deal of trouble understanding the "whys" of fine art, why one artist's method of expression reaches more people than another artist's or what makes a piece of art a masterpiece, and so forth. As a result I have a lot of trouble looking at my own work and wondering if it's commmunicating to my viewers or if it really has all the components needed to be considered "art." So when someone criticizes or rejects my work, it goes to that place inside of me that makes me feel as though I am a fraud because I don't understand what I've done myself.

I think that writing the artist statement will enable me to get in touch with my art, and may also help me to get more in touch with myself in the process, because I already know that I have a strong need to produce art. Right now it is coming out with colorful and decorative patterns. I don't know yet what this means artistically, but I do have a sense that what I am expressing visually is coming from my soul, and I know that I need to keep using that expression as a vehicle to become better acquainted with the authentic me.

So, I will now Google the term "artist statement" and use that as a foundation for my artwork going forward and for when I begin SARK's course next Sunday. I cannot wait for that course to begin.

Afterthoughts:
I would love to get your analysis on a comment made by one of the reviewers at the art center. After suggesting the artist statement because she did not understand what I was expressing with my work, she said:

"ps- there are no absolute answers, only questions...."