Perhaps it is part of creativity that I have always doubted authority. I have always asked: what if the orthodoxy is mistaken in some way? what if my inexperienced vision could actually see something valuable even though it is new? For all the fear, doubt and hardship, perhaps the redeeming aspect of being an artist has been the joy of going my own way as I explored something I love.
Geometry of Thirst
Graphite on paper, 55 x 75cm 2020
The Abyss Stares Back
Oil on linen, 2022
And this has had its benefits. I’ve trusted my eye in terms of seeking teachers - the only qualification I have required is how well a person can do a thing (judged by my own perception not academic qualifications or status) and how well they can teach it to me. Even when it is hard, I've taken criticism seriously and looked into it. I’ve leaned into the discomfort of learning skills to correct my weaknesses as I became aware of them. I have sought to follow my authentic vision - to struggle towards connecting skills, ideas and imagery in ways that might not make sense to others until the thing is done and then they say: “oh now I get what you were doing!”.
HOWEVER, this same sense of independence has caused me to not ask for help in a broader sense: to not seek a guide or support to help keep me on track while I fumbled in the darkness of my path. It is very challenging to try to balance the training, the visual ideas, and the unrelenting practicalities of living the artist’s life.
I often feel like a spider who has shot threads in multiple directions and is now trying to reel them in and weave them into a workable web (while my hands are full and I end up tucking additional threads under each of my 8 armpits and putting the rest between my teeth!). I have felt overwhelmed, lonely and like giving up more times than I can say. But unlike spiders, humans are not built to work entirely in isolation.
Sand-ripple Reef
Oil on linen, 120x120cm 2023
Falling Upwards
Graphite on paper, 75 x 55cm,
As social animals, human thought can be clarified by discussion, by constructive debate and the attempt to articulate complexity to share it with another. I now wish that I had put more effort into cultivating a group or finding a mentor to help me to do several things:
Set goals and priorities within my overarching aim, and stay on track going foward
Gain insight from perspectives that are different from my own, allowing me to benefit from their differing experience and skillsets
Sustain my confidence when I am overwhelmed and disheartened
Feel less lonely on this difficult road
Models for support groups/mentors
There are different models for this that perhaps suit individuals based on personality. Here are some key options:
A group of peers:
Psyche
Graphite on paper, 75 x 55cm 2020
Early 20th century business coach Napoleon Hill said, “No mind is complete by itself. It needs contact and association with other minds to grow and expand". He advocated carefully selecting a group of peers who can reflect together and help each other to pursue their goals. Make sure that the people you select have goals that are sympathetic to your own even if quite different to your own. For example, a dancer and a figurative painter could benefit from each other’s respective disciplines, particularly if they share a similar spirit. Also make sure that your peers are not toxic in some way - the people you have around you should expand your feeling of clarity, imagination and possibility rather than closing it down, and having you feel defensive, cautious or overwhelmed. Watch out for these feelings as they are alarm bells.
Sketches and process images for The Abyss Stares Back 2022
An experienced mentor:
A master in your field can help you cut through the noise to the essentials that really matter, to the skills you need to drill in order to move forward. They can efficiently help you solve the challenges they have already faced. However, a master can also be biased towards their own conclusions so you need to make sure you are being assisted rather than indoctrinated. Select a master of the craft who can see beyond their own artistic direction to the larger context in which their own work sits, the larger context into which yours can ultimately sit.
Thrown-ness
Graphite on paper, 75 x 55cm, 2020
A wise person external to your field:
Wisdom is perhaps distinguished from intelligence by its focus on clarifying values rather than merely achieving goals. I think that a wise counsellor who cares about you can aid you simply by asking the right questions to drill into what you really want to achieve. Be careful that this person is not biased by their own fears and habits, that they are able to see things from your perspective rather than projecting their own values (eg security or status above artistic integrity). While they should challenge you, this should be with the intention of empowering you not making themselves feel superior.
Whichever way you go, a support group or guide will ideally leave you feeling clarity towards the next step, and feeling at least a little bit more optimistic and energised. At the very least you should feel like this person/group is on your side even if they don't fully understand your vision. If you don't feel this, I suggest you look elsewhere, or change the structure of the process - perhaps setting timing and conversation topics more deliberately.
Options for mentoring with me:
If you resonate with the spirit of what I am saying above, there are a few ways to access mentoring with me that can suit a range of budgets:
In person classes:
Process for Threads
Oil on linen, 60x60cm, 2022
If you are in Brisbane, my next "Fundamentals of Figurative Composition" starts on the 5th of October. This is a great way to explore some of the possibilities for representational art to see what might suit you the best. From an emphasis on storytelling to psychology and surrealism to insightful observation to the creative use of medium. We go into the aspects of line, tone and colour design that give you the biggest bang for your buck, as well as practical techniques for modelling an imaginary scene and developing ideas from imagination, as well as working from the life model.
The aim is to expose you to a broad context, drill into the essentials and help you get a plan for your own artistic development going forward.
The Colour of Falling
Oil on linen, 60x60cm, 2021
A cost effective way to have both the guidance of someone with experience in the field plus the support of a group of peers is with a Mastrius group. This is an online zoom call based platform with lots of benefits.
In my own small group on Mastrius, we look at each person's work from the month, help them set the next set of goals and I give suggestions via paint overs in photoshop or demos. Currently I am working through colour theory supported by the extensive notes and diagrams I made here.
The next session is this week: Thursday 13th at 3pm MT which is equivalent to Friday 14th at 7am AEST (Brisbane time).
Life Drawing (Jaelith)
Pastel on paper, 29 x 21cm, 2022
Introducing individual mentoring
You can book a zoom mentor call with me individually, which costs $50USD per hour or $200USD for a pack of 5 hours.
I can mentor you in a way similar to the group mentoring above - clarifying your direction, doing paint overs and assisting you to solve your creative challenges.
Alternatively, I am able to guide you through my online figure drawing course, or my fundamentals of figurative composition course
Really we can just look at your aims, your availability and budget and I can work around that. To get started, contact me here, give me an idea of what you are looking for and I’ll see if this process is a good fit to assist you.
