Art: You Either Love it or Hate it2 min read

The craft and profession of creating art and being an artist has always been a subjective endeavor – people either respect you or they resent you.

It doesn’t matter your credentials, experience or level of talent, consumers of art (of any kind) will always forge their own opinions, based solely on personal taste.

This can be frustrating for any professional who dares tread the path of the artist or auteur, not least of all because you – who holds the creative license – could essentially be seen as a victim of the consumer’s mind.

Whether you hold the pen or the paint brush, your critics will always find a way to strike you down or raise you like a mountain.
It’s an inescapable fact that can either be a blessing or a curse.

A blessing in the sense that your simple, very straightforward concept or idea can be elevated to perfection, just because a select few critics deem it worthy of such renown.

Likewise, it can also be a curse in the sense that – well, obviously – your basic concept or idea can be tarnished, and it will more than likely just be because a few predictable critics say it should be.

I’m sure they will have their reasons of course, but there’s also a reason not to listen to them…

What I’m basically saying, without sounding too hypercritical – or arrogant – is that I think it’s simply best to say to these hypothetical critics…

“Screw you!”

Yep, that’s right, “Screw you.”
That’s all you have to say.

And why? Because you’re right and they’re wrong!

And because the consumer’s mind and your mind are not one and the same.
Because you’re the artist and they are, in actual fact, the victim.
– You hold the power and they don’t.

What every artist needs to understand is that these critics are missing something very very important that defines your art and, more importantly, defines who you are as an individual…

And that is that the art is yours and yours alone, and that it bears your signature.
You understand it more than anyone else. It means more to you than anyone else.
And it defines who you are as an individual more than anything else.

It’s why you have the right to be critical in the face of these rather third-rate naysayers.

In fact, I’d go so far as to say that they don’t know what they’re on about.

Judges – Don’t know what they’re on about.

Critics – Don’t know what they’re on about.

Creative Consumers – Don’t know what they’re on about.

And as for art – You either love it or you hate it.

By you, i’m referring to you all – all of you, who fight for domination over the creative license.

You being the artists, who will love it.
And you being the critics, who will hate it.

Photo by Gustavo Centurion on Unsplash.