There are lots of rules in art and then there are few. Don’t kid yourself, art and artistic expression is a political game. Like it or not you play or you lose. Find out the decorator colors for the season, move in the right circles, learn color theory, be an expert in design and composition, buy this new book or this brush, go on a cruise with this artist, travel to France with this artist……the “must dos” go on and on.
Have you hear all this before? I remember when I started painting I worked hard to learn. I felt overwhelmed with all the” must do” talk. I read the books, took workshops, bought the right brushes, listened to my friends, who all knew much more than I, talk about design, and how to visually enter a painting. So much to learn.
After a while I started entering shows only to find my rejection slips in the mail. After a year and half of rejection slips I was not only discouraged but wondered what the judges were looking for. How could the paintings I was producing be so wrong?
During this period of rejection, I was taking a workshop in Denver with an artist who had just judged a show I had entered. She started talking about some of the paintings she had judged and mentioned a particular painting she didn’t like. She went into great detail about what she thought was wrong with this painting. She had no idea who the artist was who had painted the painting but that painting was MINE.
In actuality the painting was good but not great.
Why am I telling you about this? Because this happens everyday in the art world. Enter the world of art shows….being judged. The art world is like any other niche….there are likes and dislikes. You will find a judge who likes only transparent colors or doesn’t like flower paintings because they think they are boring. It is like flavors of ice cream….to some, chocolate caramel swirl is better than pistachio .
Remember the song “Shoes are made for walking”.….I think it should be “Rules are made for walking”. Being creative and taking chances means we goof at times……actually a lot of the time. To me being different gives me wings, allows space for my breath to flow, provides movement for energy…. it also makes me feel like I am on stage without clothes.
Continue to forget the rules. Mix muddy colors, exaggerate the design concept, twist the subject matter, dig down and create from a new pool of thought.
Enjoy!