I recently finished Creative Authenticity, the Ian Roberts book I recommended in this post several weeks ago. Because each essay has a fair amount to digest, I’ve been reading one section at a time, letting the ideas simmer a bit before moving on to the next. In a later section he discusses creativity in relation the to “process of search”. Reading Roberts’ thoughts now couldn’t be more timely or welcome because they relate directly to what’s going on in my studio this summer.
Commenting on the importance of commitment (to your concept), Roberts highlights a differentiation between merely thinking through ideas internally and actually beginning the outward process of manifesting them physically. Tackling problems within our minds allows us to move through a host of possibilities that might conceivably lead us to where we think we want to take the work, but without jumping in and committing through action, we’ll never know for sure whether any of those ideas might truly bear fruit, or if they were mostly illusion.
Roberts says, ” We have to realize that in our art, we need to go through the same process of search, with all the same kinds of dead ends and idiotic attempts that go on privately inside our mind throughout the day. …Avenues need to be explored, ideas tested. And like our thinking processes, most don’t work. Some are clearly ridiculous. But when we’re thinking, no one, not even ourselves, “sees” the results. …When we paint, it’s out there in front of us, graphic, black and white, or perhaps in full color. If it isn’t working, it will be oh so obvious”.
By moving beyond our heads and committing to the physical process, we begin to see whether the ideas that seemed so brilliant in the privacy of our brains have any actual merit. And even more importantly, the unexpected will inevitably crop up to inform and direct the work even further, which leads to branches of exploration and discovery above and beyond what we could have dreamed. Roberts calls this “process thinking vs product thinking”, encouraging readers to concentrate less on the finished product and to relax into the process of arriving at it, focusing on the benefits of the discoveries that occur along the way.
It’s a perspective that takes the sting of frustration out of the necessary time and missteps that lead to success. And who wouldn’t welcome that?
Great post!! And the same ideas apply not only to art but to so much else in life. I think many of us are caught up in fixing the world’s problems in our mind—where it seems so easy and where we can be so “right”—but actually fixing them is different and, perhaps, not as hard as it seems like when we “relax into the process of arriving at it, focusing on the benefits of the discoveries that occur along the way.” Thanks so much for sharing your process…and your peas!
So true and well said, John. Thanks, as usual, for sharing your perspective!
You are a wellspring of inspiration and wisdom and I feel blessed and lucky to be able to visit it weekly for a moment of refreshment. I personally have been trapped in thinking about art ideas almost exclusively and rarely find/allow the time/confidence or room for failure to allow them to evolve and bear fruit. You’ve summarized this in such a simple yet poignant way and shown how it impacts you directly; one who is living and working her art daily and always finding the lesson and joy as it evolves. Your blog is a lovely gift you share with the world and I am ever thankful for it my friend. Wishing you a happy and bountiful summer!
Thank you for this Adrianna! The secret is there is a world of difference in what one can accomplish once the kids have flown the coop. Your day is coming!