Punched in the gut

Chapter 8 - Learn to take a punch

(from Show Your Work! - by Austin Kleon)

Way back 

when I was beginning to follow blogs -

 trying to be social and make a comment or two,

I commented to a really fantastic artist who had posted a painting of a cow in a field that the cow looked more like a horse. 

(!) 

Normally, this artist posted amazingly fantastic still life or street scenes (that was why I followed them), with this one they were out of their comfort level, I think.

Of course they did not respond to my comment, I didn't really expect them to, except maybe curse me or something.

I did think about how it would feel to have someone make a comment like that ... prob'ly not so good.

So I have NEVER said anything that wasn't a compliment from then on. But maybe that artist went back and learned how to paint cow heads?

This chapter about learning to form a thick skin

 was short and the takeaways were:

1. Relax and breathe
2. Put out a lot of work and let them say what they will
3. Realize that criticism cannot hurt you
4. If some of your work is too personal, keep it to yourself
5. Your work is not who you are, it is just what you do

Oh, and yes - most of the time you are your harshest critic ... 

and speaking of this - 

this is one of the landscapes from my recent workshop.

If you remember, it began like this:

Eagle River to the Beach    Oil on Birch Panel    12 x 9 inches (plein-air/studio)

I have been having a heck of a time with the mountain values, so I think I will turn it to the wall for awhile and wait a couple weeks to go look at it again. I did sign it, so it must be close!

Just remember, from A.K. - "delete those nasty comments because

comments outnumber ideas"!

Next post, progress on the triptych -

thanks so much for checking in!