In Ted Orland and David Bayles’ Art & Fear, they discuss the causes and effects of fear on the art we produce. They break it down into two major categories: fears about yourself, and fears about others. This is an interesting concept, because while one can be applied always (fears about yourself always come into play whenever you make art), fears about others isn’t necessarily always applicable because sometimes work isn’t shown to the public.
Many interesting points are made by Orland and Bayles when concerning fear about yourself. Specifically, emphasis is placed on a commonality of a fear of only pretending in your art, not having enough talent, a constant worry on perfection, an annihilation of work when not produced consistently, and having unrealistic expectations of our work. When you get in your own head when creating artwork, it’s easy to assume your work isn’t good enough or shouldn’t even be shown in public. However, this is just one of the things you must overcome on the path to improvement in your work. You have to trust the unconscious elements of your creative mind taking presence in what you create. Everyone creates something for a reason, and the same original idea can’t be fabricated by the same two minds. Everyone’s creative energy is unique, therefore everyone deserves a confidence in themselves when creating.
The other side of the argument is the aspects of fear about others judging our work. Some of the points made regard others maybe not understanding our work the way we intended, others not necessarily accepting it as “art,” and others not approving it or “liking” the work. The authors emphasize that yes, it can be scary to be vulnerable and put your work into the public for others to criticize and evaluate, but no one ever got better by not listening to the opinions of others. One of the most interesting points made earlier in this piece was the author who forced himself to write seven pages a day no matter what, which would really improve his work and (if he was listening) therefore the way in which the public viewed it as well. Making art consistently and confidently is something I struggle with, and it takes a lot of determination and creative steadiness to do this. Reading this definitely changes my opinion on what it means to be a (artist) graphic designer because I didn’t always consider it “art,” but it definitely is when the whole picture is considered. Like any artist, I have to stay consistent to be able to improve, increase my confidence in myself, and let go from allowing the critique of others get to me personally.
Peder Harvey Design 