Your value as an artist

(via u/buttpizz on r/printmaking)

To add to this, your value as an artist is that you are taking your ideas and bringing them to life. That’s a blessing very few people have. You’re showing us, as your consumers, what you find to be compelling, interesting, or beautiful and then expressing that through your medium. It is so cool for us to witness that.

When I would get frustrated with the quality of my work, it was because the image I had in my mind wasn’t accurately represented through my hands. Then I would push myself to be better, nothing would change, and then I would burn out. I think you can go beyond inadequacy and find an even deeper conflict.

For me, I felt like people (friends, family) wouldn’t value my work if it wasn’t exceptionally crafted. But why would you want to convince loved ones that your mind is worth appreciating? When I joined art clubs and was exposed to people who were absolutely fascinated with my mind, I stopped caring completely about quality, and what unsupportive people thought, and started caring about the unique perspectives and stories that my mind could tell.