On Becoming an Artist

There is no such thing as a naturally gifted artist. I believe that anyone who can make a mark on a surface has potential to become an artist. Rembrandt was not painting masterpieces as a child. There’s a learning process that requires motivation, curiosity, effort, and perseverance. We see beautiful art in the world but we don’t see the broken sculptures, scraped off canvases, and torn sheet music, that end up in the trash. These mistakes or so-called failures, as frustrating as they may be, are opportunities for learning. An art instructor once told me, you need to throw away 100 paintings before you feel a sense of accomplishment.

There is an “ugly phase” that occurs in the creative process. In this stage there is lack of detail ; a misshapen block of clay, a rudimentary painting, or melody that doesn’t seem to work. We refine and correct to create a work of art. I call this getting lost in the forest and finding our way back. It requires being adventurous and confident. It requires keeping an open mind and being happy with the process as much as the end result.

In our careers, we climb a path that has no summit. There is no halfway point. There are only places where we have been and places we have yet to experience. We encourage those who follow in our footsteps and we are humbly accept the knowledge of those ahead. What matters is that we move in the direction that we want to go and enjoy the sights along the way.

This metaphor, as trite as it may be, is true for all of us. We all employ creative methods to solve our day-to-day concerns. The art of medicine, for example, refers to observing nuances in the context of our knowledge base and experience . We work through difficult differential diagnosis and develop a treatment plan. It is that which cannot be achieved by robot or artificial intelligence. Whether it’s managing stock portfolio, raising children, negotiating a business deal etc. we are all artist who use creativity to solve our problems. We must expect the “ ugly phase” in our lives and have confidence that we will find our way back from the forest.