Open letter to amateur artists out there, because I’ve noticed a bit of this lately:Â
Take pride in what you’re capable of, and don’t put up a front. Don’t post other people’s art and claim ownership of it. Obviously, this is wrong in the first place given that it’s taking credit for someone else’s work, but there’s more to it than that. It’s not doing you any favors on a technical or confidence-building level.
The beauty of art is in being able to take that picture, that image, that character or story in your head and make it manifest - to bring it into the real world as something other people can look at, exactly the way you envisioned it. This is worth fighting to achieve.
When you copy or take someone else’s work, you’re denying yourself that magic. Tracing does not build the muscle memory necessary to pull your dreams from the ether and make them a reality. Posting someone else’s work may earn you accolades from others, but IMO this is the wrong approach to art in the first place.
An important friend and mentor spelled this out for me once: a creative career where your work is worth nothing unless other people have something nice to say about it or are willing to pay for it is a path to misery; it immediately associates pride in your work with this anxiety over whether or not other people will approve. Art should not be a vehicle for bad shit to enter your life. It’s an exercise in creativity, a return to the joys of being a small child and doodling the things that come from your imagination. Centering your focus on the activity and the process as something that is good for you will help you avoid this temptation.
It’s incredibly frustrating to spend countless hours on something only for your own two critical eyes to feel no love for what you’ve made, but don’t be tempted by the siren song of exterior validation. It ain’t worth it, and it sets a bad precedent for your future endeavors. “My work is worthless if other people don’t praise it" is bad juju.Â
Be you, and take ownership of what you make.