Cross-training As Part Of An Artistic Foundation. . .

To Begin With:

It's pretty widely understood that athletes can increase their performance by training in multiple disciplines.  Performance in football, baseball, tennis, and other sports which require quick, agile, responses are greatly improved by jogging, long-distance running, and exercises to designed to increase flexibility.  We don't think twice about the benefits that cross-training brings to sports, but it is equally valuable to the arts.

If you got here from the blog post, this is where you will begin. . .

Common Opinion:

We live in an age in which one's success is in large degree determined by how highly specialized one has become.  The tragedy here, is that while it is perceived that the degree of specialization one has narrowed to is related to the degree of expertise one has acquired in a given field, in truth and in fact, these things are not at all related in reality and in practice.  Common perception views specialists as people who have narrowed their focus in order to study their given subject more closely and in-depth.  But this is not always the case.  Many specialists have become specialized, simply through exclusion.  It is very easy to specialize in one thing, simply by not attending to any other things.  Furthermore, it is ridiculous to assume that it is even possible to become a specialist in anything at all without first having at least a cursory knowledge of certain things in general.  It would be very difficult to become a specialist in any area without knowing how to read, or to add and subtract.  This is taken for granted.  But in reality, there are many people in many professions who have jumped into specializations without sufficient, if any, foundational knowledge, or a mastery of the basics of their own, given fields (take a look at the current trends in healthcare, for example).

Foundations--The Base Of Things:

Nothing broader than its base can sit upon it without toppling.  You may quote me on this.  Even buildings that are designed and executed as inverted pyramids have bases that are broader, if not in area, then in density, than the weight they support.  In the reality in which we exist and operate, this is true across the board, although it is not always readily apparent.  You can take my word for this.

Tieing It Together: 

So how does this relate to cross-training, and how does this apply to art?  You may have already figured it out, but I'll say it anyway:  The more you learn in all areas, the better you'll become in any one of them.  Does this seem simple?  Do you want to sit there and say, "Well, duh!"?  OK, it is simple, and it is true.  But the business of art, and the academics in art (as opposed to the academics of art), would like to narrow you down into thin and crisp little categories and flatten you like crackers.  Ouch!  That was harsh!  But, unfortunately, true!  And I'm happy to say that artists, for the most part, have had enough of this pinching and trimming--what I like to call the "anorexic and bulimic factor"--applied to their freedom to choose medium(s), subject matter(s), and technique(s)!  So how do we--how are we--combating this outrageous requirement to lay chunks of our artistic hearts and souls on the cutting room floor?  We are refusing to narrow our bases (foundations), and are cross-training in as many artistic mediums, subjects and techniques as is humanly possible.  And the result?  Both as individuals and as a group, we are excelling!  Here's a short-list of how:

Some Practical Suggestions:

1. Sell your work, but keep your soul!  When anyone, no matter how influential, or how much anyone, including your muse, says that you NEED a specific person or venue for success, or says and/or implies that to be a successful artist, you must have a distinct "style" and stick to it so that the public is not confused as to just what it is that you do, then BEWARE!  This is marketing, not art, that is being discussed, and it is commodities that are marketed, not artistic souls.  Retain your diversity, retain your flexibility, continue to broaden yourself, and your style will be unique, no matter what you create or what you do!  But do not narrow yourself to suit a marketing profile!  Let me make this clear:  It's OK if your piece of art fits a profile!  Bravo!  It has a place to sell!  But YOU should not narrow your artistic self to fit anybody's profile.  Understood?  Get another job to support your art, or manufacture cute and crafty commodities in the meantime until you have a naturally developed artistic style. But don't sell your artistic soul! 

In my opinion, artists who narrow themselves specifically to appeal to a buying public without letting this occur naturally as an adjunct of talent, have given themselves artistic boob jobs!  They are just hunks and masses of silicone, no matter how pretty, and not the real thing!  Don't be that!  There's way too much of that out there already.  It's not that you shouldn't specialize, but this should happen naturally, not by marketing plan.  Go ahead and make stuff to sell.  Go ahead and develop a product.  But do not narrow who you are!!  Do not define yourself by your product!  Resist people who label you with anything other than the broad title of "artist".  Just because today you stamp pretty little owls and sew tons and tons of vintage postcards, this does not make you an owl and postcard artist!  REMEMBER THAT, ALWAYS!  Throughout history, artists have been narrowed and mis-defined by what critics have determined to be the high points, or most prolific points, in their artistic careers.  Ask the artists!  They usually disagree that they are one thing, or another.  They think of themselves as ALL of these!!   

2.  Be patient!  There's a lot to learn, and learning takes time to be absorbed.  Hopefully, it takes forever.  Because if you can learn it all in a lifetime, then what's the point?  Art is in truth, and must be in practice, something that you are better at when you're 40 than when you were 15,  better at at 80 than when you were 39 and if you should live so long, just getting really good at, when you're 100! 

The component to this type of macro-patience is that there is also a micro-patience to be benefited from, and this is simply that you take your time and learn slowly, every little detail of each piece of knowledge.  The unexpected benefit of this is that soon you'll see that the time it takes you to learn anything is exponentially decreasing!  Did you get that?  The slower and more thoroughly you learn any one thing, the faster and faster you will begin to absorb it all!  Too true....try it and see!

3.  Cross-train!  I can't emphasize this enough!  Draw!  Draw everything!  Draw slowly!  Draw daily!  Draw with your eyes, even more than with a pencil!  Learn what this means, if you don't already know!  Cut!  Cut things out!  Cut out shapes!  Cut out meticulous little details!  Cut with scissors (sharp ones).  Cut with craft knives (sharp blades)!  Drawing contours will help you cut.  Cutting contours will help you draw.  Keep your eyes one micro-step ahead of your pencil/scissors.  Eyes follow contour, pencil/scissors follows eyes!  Fill-in shapes.  Use paint, pencil, chalk, markers, whatever---ketchup, even!  Stay inside the lines!  Go outside the lines.  Determine which looks better for which projects.  Learn to make artistic decisions well, so that you can become artistically random, not the other way around!  Don't just be ecstatic over your "happy accidents", LEARN from them!  Consistency in quality is the mark of a great artist!  Not necessarily YOUR perception of high quality...listen to me again:  Consistency in quality!  If you control what you do--even to the extent of controlling which things will be random and which will be exacted, and if the quality of your output is consistent--you are on your way!!  Learn everything you can!  Study the subjects you will use in your art!  Learn every technique at your disposal!  You don't have to like it!  Did you like everything you learned while you were learning it in elementary school?  But now that you've learned it, are you glad you did because you, or someone you know uses it from time to time in life regardless of whether or not it was enjoyable at the time?  The truth is, most things, once mastered, become enjoyable.  Until then, they are a pain.  Remember this, and don't lie to yourself.  It's probably not that you "don't like something (like spinach)", it's probably that you either haven't tried it, or haven't mastered it!!

To Thine Own Self Be True:

If you find that what I've said annoys you just a little, or maybe just  irritates you here and there, then think seriously.  Maybe you just want to do one simple craft!  That's FINE!!  Go ahead!  All I'm saying is:  To thine own self be true!  And if you find you need a little more along the way, grab all the knowledge you desire with all the gusto you can muster!!  Like most things in life, a satisfying artistic experience can be attributed in large part to having learned what to keep and what to throw away.  I'm not just referring to scraps and recycling.  I'm talking about what you choose to do.  Even a mixed-media artist--or at least one who is not so frustrated that he/she can begin to work--doesn't put every supply, every tool, every idea, on the table at once!  Learn to discriminate (NOT the bad kind...the GOOD CHOICE kind!) as an artist.  Pick your tools for a project from among an array.  Pick your ideas, and your subjects from the pool of lots of choices.  Keep what's good and what works, and decide to save for later, or discard completely, whatever makes it worse instead of better.  This means that you can choose JUST to draw.  Or choose JUST to make cards.  It's fine.  As long as YOU make the choice instead of letting someone or something else make it for you!  But if you choose to "just paint" or "just play football", remember that to excel in the first, some drawing must be done, if only with a brush.  And to excel in the second, well, if you can't run, if you can't throw straight, if your large motor skills aren't sufficiently developed to help you control your position within the white lines, then you'd better be patiently practicing some other things along the way!

   

 

Comments

[Laura]

Applause!!!
I hear you, loud and clear! I appreciate your enthusiastic encouragement, especially since I've been told from a young age that I'm a crafter of many trades and master of none! My natural creative curiosity has always been excited by so many mediums and and artistic directions. Yet, years go by and I've seen the truth of what you say, you're so right, each one has somehow positively helped the next. The greatest benefit is the overall confidence that has built a strong foundation so there is little fear of new or huge projects! Bravo Barbara! I hope many more artists read this and find it as much as a moral boost as I have!
Thank you!
Hugs, Laura

[Rosie]

Woohoo! I have learned so much in the past year, I can't begin to tell you! I identify completely with what you say/write. I love being a 'jack of all trades' - always have done. It's so enjoyable to be diverse!
I actually had the nerve to tell someone on Creative Souls that I think 'success' is overrated, unless you like working under pressure! Can you believe that? Me? Untrained, undisciplined... but very arty-farty!
You have artiphied my heart today - thank you! xoxoxo

[june]

Another brilliant article. I loved the last one and this one too. Thanks again for your generosity and time in all of this
Hugs June xxxx