15. What To Do If You Don’t Love Your Own Artwork

Hello and welcome back to the Self Taught Artist Podcast. I’m Lauren Kristine, your host, coming to you today from a very rainy Sunday afternoon. But never fear, our new puppy is cuddling in our laps and keeping us company today. Next week, I am doing my first ever art show. I am super excited. It is going to be virtual due to COVID, of course. But I still think it’s pretty cool to have been selected by a jury to participate. I will keep you updated with how it goes. Of course, I’m working on a ton of new art right now that I’m going to release for the art show. If nothing else, having the show on the calendar has been a great forcing function to get me painting more and spending more time in the studio. I’m feeling really, really productive this weekend. And it is just fabulous!

1:08
So this week, I saw a viral post on Facebook. You may have seen it too, about a mom that had a special rule. She said no matter how she looked, she always said yes when one of her kids asked to take her photo. When they showed her the photo that they’d taken, she would always say, “Wow, I look so pretty in that photograph!”, or “Wow, what a great photo”, or something positive like that. She said no matter what she promised to never talk negatively about her looks around her kids, even with extra weight, or with bedhead or uncombed hair, it did not matter. The takeaway from her post was that after six years of being kind to herself, for the sake of her children, she said she learned the secret: it becomes less of an act and instead it becomes your reality. You eventually believe the words, you speak to yourself. What a powerful story! This one really stuck with me this week. And you imagine how much self esteem and self worth her kids have as a result of her simple actions.

2:33
If we catch ourselves saying, “Oh, I don’t look so great”, or “Oh, that’s not my good angle. Let’s try again.” What are you teaching your kids? I talk about this story because I want you to apply this same concept to your art. What would happen if instead of saying, “Oh, I really don’t like this painting,” you instead said, “This painting has really great colors.” Instead of saying, “Well, this piece of art didn’t turn out exactly how I wanted it to.” You said instead, “what a happy surprise on my canvas today.” Where instead of beating yourself up by saying or thinking things like, “well, the subject is out of proportion, or the colors aren’t that great, but I guess it’s okay,” you instead said, “Wow, I created something new and interesting today!”

3:31
If you did that every single day, what kind of self esteem do you think you would have? What kind of energy would you start approaching every single piece of art with? What kind of newfound confidence might you find within yourself? All from just a simple change. Secret number one is that you eventually believe the words that you speak to yourself. Complementing your artwork becomes less of an act, and instead becomes your reality.

4:07
But what does that have to do with creating art that your fans will love? Well, here’s secret number two: If you don’t care about your work, don’t expect anyone else to care about your artwork! Let me repeat that. Again, if you do not love your own artwork, don’t expect anyone else to love your artwork. You have to love your own art first.

4:37
But here’s secret number three: If you create work that satisfies you and if you create artwork that you love that validates your inner and true self, you will be less interested in seeking the praise and validation of others because you know you have the most important validation of all: your own!

5:00
When you make work that really deeply comes from a place of love, and joy, and abundance, you are going to make better work. And you’re going to make work that speaks more strongly to others.

5:16
When I see artists post work to social media, with some kind of a disclaimer, or a subtle insult to their own work, it makes me sad, truly sad. Because I know that these limiting beliefs are holding back these artists progress in a major way, and they can’t even see it. Yes, there are pieces of art that I create, where I do see room for improvement. Yes, where I do see little things that could be better. But no matter what is on that Canvas, I am proud of what I have created essentially from nothing. Whatever piece of art I made, it did not exist before I made it. I brought that beauty into the world. And I think there is inherent beauty to every creation I’ve ever made. I love my work, even if it is not perfect. Every single time. I’ve worked on that. I’ve talked to myself, I’ve paid attention to the limiting beliefs that I’m telling myself about my art. And it works.

6:26
Focus on how far you’ve come, not how much further you have to go. Focus on the good instead of what needs improvement. Tell yourself and your art that it looks beautiful today. I challenge each and every one of you to be more like that mom on Facebook that went viral. Tell yourself you are a blossoming artist, and you are proud of the artist you see in the mirror, tell your artwork, it looks so pretty today.

8:06
After you listen to this podcast, I want you to think, “Wow, I’m going to create something beautiful today, I am going to bring beauty and joy and love into this piece of art and send it out into the world.” And I want you to believe that you are an artist and you are capable.

8:26
Secret number two: If you do not love your own artwork, don’t expect anyone else to care about your artwork. Don’t insult it on social media. Don’t speak negatively about it. Always bring the positive reframe. Think about what is beautiful about your art. Think about what that piece has taught you. And what a great artist you are becoming.

8:52
Secret number three: when you make work that really comes from a place of love and joy, you are going to make better artwork and you are going to make work that speaks more strongly to others and helps to create more fans of you and your art. There is so much to digest here. I’m not sure who needs to hear this little pep talk today. But if it’s you, keep going, I am rooting for you!

9:20
One of the biggest symptoms of not loving your work is quitting. And what a shame that would be! Keep bringing beauty into the world and be kind to yourself and your artwork.

9:35
I bet you can tell when I do episodes like this that I am a coach for executives and entrepreneurs as my day job. My coaching mindset and coaching training serves me really well as an artist when I make art and when I work with other creatives. I’m really happy this episode is now out there in the world because I truly believe it is critical to have this mindset as an artist and to love your own work, especially if you are a Self Taught Artist. You have to love your work or to keep going and keep leveling up in your art practice.

10:12
That’s it for this week’s episode. Please stop what you’re doing right now and take 10 seconds to leave me a quick review on Apple Podcasts. I do a little happy dance every time I receive a review and sadly there have not been any in the past week. Let’s fix that. You can also write me on Instagram at LaurenKristineArt, or find me on my website www. Lauren Kristine art.com If you have an idea for a future topic for the podcast, let me know. Or just shoot me a note to let me know if you’ve enjoyed this episode. I will catch you next time. Happy Creating, my friends!