Creativity, Reclamation, and the Process

“Creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes. Art is knowing which ones to keep.”

—Scott Adams

I’ve always liked this quote. An important part of being an artist, as I tell my students, is knowing when to stop when a piece is finished. Knowing which ones to keep is another skill, and for me, knowing which ones to designate as ‘reclamation projects’ is an integral part of the process. Working on a new series, or even just one new idea can be exhilarating, daunting, and terrifying—-the not knowing how it will come together is both the exciting and the confounding part.

I’m at this stage with a new series of mixed media collages on canvas. Two are complete, and I’m happy with them, but the third is just not there yet; it was full of mistakes in color application and ill-conceived design decisions. I got to a ‘final’ stage, then decided it was awful. Out came the water, scraper, and gesso so that I could begin its ‘reclamation’.

For me, when everything is ‘clicking', design ideas, ways to use techniques I’ve done before, and experiments with new techniques come easily. When the clicking stops, those things are difficult, if not impossible. I know my process and myself well enough to know that I can’t force it. So, I let things roll around in my head, research, and immerse myself in work which inspires me (thank goodness for Pinterest!). After a while, new ideas come, the spark returns, and I can continue working. That’s where I would like to be.

Next post, I’ll show you the two canvases which work…still ruminating about how the third will turn out…

Stay tuned.

Until next time,

Michelle