Are You Willing to Do Bad Art?

Placating challenges isn't as liberating as accepting the reality.

I was leading The Muse in Winter Creativity Retreat in Taos a few weeks ago, and we were talking about what stops people from engaging in their creative passion. One woman shared a fear that comes up for a lot of people and immediately everyone responded by placating the problem with feel-better stories.

Here’s the fear:

I’m not going to my studio because I’m afraid
I’m going to waste a lot of time and
materials on something that I don’t like.

This applies to writers and other creative seekers as well: I’m afraid I’m not going to write anything good so I’m not going to even try to write anything at all.

It’s among the many bricks in The Great Creative Block that keeps thousands of people from stepping into their creative space.

When she shared her fear, the group in Taos chirped in with stories about those cultures that leave imperfections in rugs on purpose and quoted Leonard Cohen about the crack in the vase that lets the light in. You’ve heard them. In other words, make something imperfect and be happy with it because there are beautiful stories that make it okay.

I love those stories; they may help the perfectionist ease up a bit when she is immobilized by the unrealistic desire to always make something perfect but they don’t always help the person who fears wasting expensive materials. There are three things that work better for me.

1. It's Normal
2. Understanding and Acceptance
3. Perseverance

1. Normal

When we feel like we are the only one dealing with a creative block there is a tendency to be harder on ourselves which strengthens the resistance toward showing-up for our creative work. We calm down a little when we feel we are in good company and our fear is normal.

2. Acceptance

The truth:

You WILL use time and materials that go nowhere. Once you accept that it’s not a waste but a normal part of the process maybe you will be willing to allow that, move beyond it, and be stronger than the thousands that quit.

Julia Cameron said it best: “You say that you only want to make 'good' art. Who can blame you? The only problem with making good art is that sometimes, in order to make good art, we have to be willing to make bad art. ”

It makes sense but we don’t always think rationally in our approach to the creative process. Without being conscious of it, people expect masterpieces every time they do something creative and have a hard time tolerating imperfection.

To help disarm this fear, I assume I’ll use a QUARTER of my materials and maybe more of my time for mistakes and, if it’s less than that, I’m pleasantly surprised.

THAT’S the creative process; you have to accept that reality if you want to enter the Kingdom of Creative Output and Joyous Hula Hooping Around the Living Room Because You Finally Like something You’ve Done. (This kingdom has no commemorative mugs because the name is just too long.)

Back in the day when we didn’t have digital cameras, the rule was that there MIGHT be one good photo for each roll of film we used. It was liberating to have that margin of error. What if you applied that to your art and writing? Art requires experimentation to see what works and crucial to success is allowing for big blunders.

What I gain from being willing not to be perfect or need a guarantee of success not only applies to my art, but also creates courage to try things in other areas of my life.

3. Perseverance

The painting you see at the top had five and a half false starts. The first four didn’t feel like ME, they looked too realistic and straight. I prefer a crooked reality with an endearing touch of oddness. If I had given up after the first three, I would have denied myself not only some hula hooping around the living room, but also strengthening my muscle of perseverance – which, again, serves me in many other areas of my life than art.  I have been known to start paintings, blog posts, and introductions to books over as many as 25 times to get it right. I feel like I'm being true to myself when I do that.

Are you willing to do bad art or writing to get to the good stuff?

 

(c)Jill Badonsky 2016 
This is Kaizen-Muse Creativity Coaching

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Comments

[Angela Orobko]

Fabulous question and article Jill...and YES! I am all about the process of creating...the bad and the ugly to get to the good. Perseverance is the common trait of those who produce, achieve and succeed.

[Jill Badonsky]

Yes... exactly. Angela. Some people don't realize they are giving up too soon.

[Lovejoy444]

I'm a recent reader of "The Muse Is In" and subscriber to your blog, and want you to know how very appreciative I am of the perspective you help me to gain.

"The Muse Is In" prompted me to begin taking tiny steps toward unfreezing my creativity (which is writing-oriented). I completely identify with the woman's fear (from the Taos retreat) that you discussed in this post, and it's applicability to my writing life: "I’m afraid I’m not going to write anything good so I’m not going to even try to write anything at all." Wow, that is so me!

"The Muse Is In" inspired me to do tiny creative exercises most days. In that vein, I've tried to write a haiku every day or every other day. I'm pleased with some; some are crap. But ALL of them have engaged my sneaky, lurky, hidey sense of creativity. I just write them about whatever mundane thing is on my mind at the time

It's hokey, but I wrote a double haiku about you as my creativity muse. (I'm not sure that there IS such a thing as a double haiku, but three lines just didn't seem enough, so I wrote three more!)

"Muse Jill Badonsky,
She helps unearth elusive
Creativity.

She shows me it's there,
Inside me, only waiting
For recognition!"

Thanks for all you do, and congratulations on living your passion.

=)
Laurie

P.S. I also wanted to share my very first (non-school-related!) haiku, written the other day in response to your February 13 creativity prompt from "The Muse Is In," which said to write a poem about one of my shortcomings:

"I procrastinate
To give myself time to plan
More stuff to put off!"

I was quite pleased with that one. LOL

[Jill Badonsky]

Thanks so much for sharing this, Laurie. I love hearing stories like this and I smiled at your haiku. Made my day.