Artist, writer, designer, and photographer Bear Kirkpatrick writes about your work being judged:
…one could, for example, realize that all of our judges are going to be subjective, and that even the best work is going to get ridiculed and lambasted, and take that understanding as a way of saying: that fact cannot be helped, it is beyond my control…
…to get a beating once in a while (not too often!) is a good thing because it can be used to remind us of this subjectivity, and remind us to realize the best course of thought and action is always that which keeps us making work, exploring, and having a little fun or even a lot fun. To control what we can, and let go of what we cannot. When a creator begins to try and control that which he cannot–when he starts to bend his work to fit this or that aesthetic–he has violated the essential joy of being a creator, he has turned his back on the gods.
Wallportrait Lena
2013
© Bear Kirkpatrick
[h/t to Aline Smithson and Lenscratch for the lead-in to the artist...]
5 comments
Comments feed for this article
March 16, 2013 at 2:31 am
Relative Imperfection
Totally! Accept constructive criticism, but without forgetting to be true to yourself! 😉
March 16, 2013 at 7:17 am
lazarusdodge
If you change it for the critics, it’s no longer yours…
Keep calm and keep on…
March 16, 2013 at 8:24 pm
Relative Imperfection
Hmmm. I believe one can accept constructive criticism without necessarily changing.You can simply listen to what others have to say if it is constructive (And let’s face it, not al criticism is constructive! 😏): one can evolve (over time) and still stay true oneself, and sometimes even improve. 😉
But it should NOT be about customizing your art (writing, painting, designing… ) to someone else’s preference…
😄
March 17, 2013 at 11:03 am
lazarusdodge
I’d say then choose your critics carefully…
– J.
March 17, 2013 at 3:59 pm
Relative Imperfection
Absolutely!