One reason, and a rather compelling one, that people who create have no confidence is that they feel that creating art is a heroic endeavour.
Its not.
The THREE main heroic portraits of Artists are firstly the TRAGIC HERO , the vision of the artist in the loft, an outsider, creating amazing artworks that no one understands, well... its a VERY modern ego centric picture. Its also such an very easy mantle to wear. The reclusive genius.
The next is THE MAD ARTIST. The flamboyant avant-garde zanny artist whos works we really dont like, that shocks us, that we will nod in agreement with because 'THEY" say its genius. I love this type, I've done it too! In fact its pretty much Art School 101.
You know "WHAT WILL PEOPLE SAY IF I PAINT A PENIS ON EVERYTHING!!!!!!!... then I'll dye my hair mango orange and only speak in vowels for a year."
These people often become stuck and they need to constantly find new audiences for their work. I mean you can only shock a person so many times until its all "*yawn* oh yeah a Dick in Rose, seen it."
Its a very tiring thing to keep up too (sorry NO pun intended!)... lol... but its very hard to keep trying to be more zany and shocking with each passing creative endevour and with each day of life if its just not you!
The third is "THE REAL HERO". The game changer, the one with the REAL message, the Authority.
They are HUGE, larger than life! Their work is almost Saintly and if anyone questions it they are deemed to be not intellectual enough to understand or connected or enlightened.
We need these people, they do change the field, they are amazing but unfortunately they believe their own publicity WAY too much and though they do gain followings... these are followings of followers. Peers step aside from the barraging ento~rage as there is only room for one in this world! Aspiring inspired Creatives are disempowered after a while.
The REAL HEROS' Creativity becomes confusing not only eventually for the audience but for themselves as they spend more time, money, subterfuge (hiring staff, finding more causes, getting rid of competition) while propping up their Tower of Heroism and Authority than just creating. The messages get lost in the building of power and the leak plugging.
There are other Heroic Portraits of Artists but for the most part these are these are the most popular of our time for all of us to 'be'. You dont need to be any to be an Artist or Creative Person.
All heroic portraits are interesting! BUT it's not YOU!!!
Its perhaps GENUINLY a few people on this Earth, but its certainly not everyone.
Its exploration and you know what, if it REALLY fits with you as an everyday expression of that facet of YOU, AT THE PRESENT MOMENT, of your creativity... then keep going. People have and do make a carrer out of it. Just be real about it or eventually your work and YOU will suffer and you really will be a tragedy.
In this age of Social Media, for Creatives, the problems arise with many in that they believe these portraits other, apparently successful, people paint of themselves.
WHY? Because to see it in your lounge room EVERYDAY is to be familiar with it.
So, many feel that they can't be that elusive magical, tortured, zanny, amazing strong person afterall.
They know that they themselves are in actual fact pretty ordinary people.
AND if they do "put their stuff out there" people will see them as a phoney, as not a real artist or writer, their cover will be blown because they are not Angel Bubblebum without a cent to her name who lives in a reclusive nest where she paints all day and goes to the supermarket in a green coak and scowls at everyone... they are not a flag weilding super beautiful Goddess with a perfect life driving a sports car to write books in cafes either......they are just Jane Smith who likes to paint on the kitchen table intermittantly while the kids are screaming for more tv and actually loves shopping for bargains in her Ugg Boots.
"I am not brave enough to be like that and if I did, someone will see through me."
I am not CONFIDENT IN ME therefore I am NOT Confident in my Art because my ART IS ME.
Even the greatest artists of our not so distant past where not in their time celebrated as geniuses or heroes. They just did their job. People didn't even sign their works. Its only been in the past few hundred years that Artists have done so. Art was never ego centric. When something is created by the "BIG I" and its not perfect or celebrated by others, it means we are rejected and we are not perfect.
Those who then DID begin to sign their works? Well science has now proven that really ridiculous mistakes have been found using xray imagery. We have only seen the finished MUCH worked over (MAYBE not even by the celebrated genius) 'Masterpiece".
We have Romantised snippets of historical information too about these Artists to then somehow feel we too need to sit in a loft with one ear to paint like a genius or be a single Mother of a pension and no table to write on.
Most creatives, just live like YOU and one day perhaps other hopefuls will think they too need to live in a house next to the busiest station in the world, been married twice and been heatbroken, love troll dolls, saved the lamas and have crazy hair in order to write a masterpiece.
Until only recently in time Artists did a job. They went to work and they created.
They put their work out there every day.
These Artists who where employed by the Churches, Patrons, Architects and so on, I am sure they felt very happy for the most part, doing what they loved, but so did the stone masons, the roof tilers, the builders. There are amazing examples STILL of masters in all fields, including Artists. But we all cant be Monet, or Clarice Cliff or Dali.
Many early artworks where composites of many artists.... Artists would employ other artists who specialized in feet, hands, fruit or dogs and so on! See some geniuses weren't even great at everything themselves!
Lets take this to modern times, if you are builder and your curved wall is perhaps not the best multi curved wall EVER. In fact its a bit of disappointment. Do you think YOU are worthless, no good, untalented, worthless? You probably think... geeeeee I need to go and learn a bit a more, practice, talk with people about curved walls... I LOVE curved walls, I LOVE creating them... so I am going to master this thing!! Look you may realise that curved walls and you... nahhhh BUT along the way you find you are the best arch creator EVER and YOu LOVE LOVE LOVE arches!!! How has this happened? The wall is not YOU. Your Art is your passion and it is A HUGE PART of you, it tells a story of you, it is a facet of you and sometimes its a brilliant, sometimes it has chips in it, sometimes it needs a polish
If we are a HERO, if we ROMANTICISE the role of the Creative then we have something to aspire to. Oh yes and also an excuse, a fall back plan and a weapon.
I'm a Tortured Recluse, a Zanny Shock Artist, an Avenging Superhero.
Creating is human EXPRESSION.
It is a spiritual connecting practice.
If you wish to 'put your work out there' you need to understand why you want to.
WITHOUT the Heroic Portrait.....Do you want to make money? Seek approval?Do you seek celebrity? Do you Create because you LOVE the process? Because you want to share what you do with others?
I often give this little talk to those I teach and the first thing most say to me is... "oh no you got me wrong, I don't want to be famous, just do my best work and I am scared of putting it out there, I REALLY am just doing it for me, I dont care what others think but I'm scared" INSERT I'm angry they tell me its crap or it shocks them or they wont understand my brilliance and message. Well you obviously have seen this Creative Work of yours now more than anyone else
so really what is the truth! Why are you putting it out there? AGAIN: MONEY, APPLAUSE, CELEBRITY, POWER? If its any or a combination of these, then the Heroic Protrait works really well in this time of Social Media, after all people need to "LIKE" you in order to give you any of these.
BUT....If its because you want to share with others because you have a message, because you think your art or creative piece will bring joy, help, insight, understanding to people then JUST DO IT...but remember this....
You will never please everyone. Not everyone will celebrate you.
No one does, no not even Picasso, Emily Bronte, Brett Whitely, Monet, Deepak,
and so on and so on.You need to be a confident person FIRST to be confident with your Creativity. Take the heroism OUT of the meaning Artist and your confidence will soar!
Dont be despondant when others tell you that they dont think you are good enough.
By who's measure? Their's?
Why shouldnt you tell your story in the medium you feel connected with?
I'm not saying others have to listen and you need to be prepared in this world for silence.
BUT...Why should other Artists, usually successful ones, sit on their lofty towers proclaming some form of tortured trials or great heroic deed like theirs or amazing magical eyeopener like theirs be YOUR key to open the door to putting your work out there?
YOU are Human.Humans ARE Creative.
We have been creative since we stencilled our hands on cave walls.
Then the word I didnt even exist.Some MAY of done it better naturally than others, some practiced and got better and then someone picked up a stick and scratched a Bison on the wall because they liked them... perhaps the others celebrated this guy, perhaps they just threw bones at him.
"Starry Night" Van Gough