DAY 26 - Chapter 6 - Art and Fear

In Chapter 6, the authors focus on the everyday, ordinary problems what they call "the outside world."  They distinguish the outside world as where the completed artwork begins its journey.  And these have their own set of problems which are common with all completed artwork.  When an artist begins their work, what sits in the background is the audience for tomorrow.  Their intention with this chapter is to bring the reader awareness to support the development and growth of the artist, as some artist prepare for the audience, as it is safer and more reliable to make art that will be accepted, rather than make artwork that may be rejected or censored.   They also caution the reader that in finding a healthy artwork community is rare as competition may be difficult waters to navigate through.  Healthy artists, they remind, are one that "fulfills their own potential,"  and uses competition to make their artwork better.  They are not in competition with other artists.  One common obstacle within competition is the measurement of where an artist stands within their community.  They suggest to use competition to gauge one's own artwork, not for better or worse, but for "ways in which it is similar or different," to previous works of one's own artwork to see how the artist is developing.

I encourage you to buy a copy of Art and Fear for a better understanding of your own creative process.  Whether you're a master artist or beginning artist, this is an excellent book.

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