criticism – Promoting Passion

Running Scared

brookeshaden — Thu, 12 Mar 2015 14:04:39 +0000

Recently I just had one of those days. You know the kind. You wake up to a terrible email. An hour later you receive another. And then an hour after that, a bad phone call. It seemed never-ending. I consider myself very good at dealing with criticism. Tell me one of my pictures is bad, and will either agree, laugh, or ignore the situation. But to find out I’ve disappointed someone – that is my achilles heal.

If I had videotaped myself a year ago, or 6 months ago, or even a couple months ago dealing with this exact situation…it would have been uncomfortable. Disappointment is just not something I can stomach. But this time was different. I was different.

I had my initial gut reaction. I let myself have it. I didn’t break down, but I let myself feel the hurt. Quickly though, I moved past it, and I did so with three steps. Simple, but life-changing for me.

The first thing that I did was to immediately begin reciting positive mantras to myself, out loud. I just started spewing off anything I could think of that would lift my spirits and allow me to remember my worth.

The second thing that I did was to remember the big picture. What was happening hurt in that moment, but it would not define who I am or what my career is. It would simply be, and then it would be forgotten over time.

The third thing that I did, and most importantly for me, is that I reacted quickly. We have the opportunity, during any given situation, to decide how we feel about it. I decided, right there and then, exactly how I was going to handle the situation (by writing out solutions and taking action immediately). This helped tremendously in making me feel like I had control over something that seemed out of my hands.

We are all creatives, and a lot of us pursue creativity either as a passionate hobby or as our professions. As such, we know what it is like to put ourselves out there and receive criticism. Many of us suffer from anxiety given the right situation. How do you overcome it?

Would you be willing to share a tip or two that you practice to overcome fear, anxiety, or criticism?

Promoting Passion Week 59: Let’s Deal With Criticism

brookeshaden — Mon, 16 Feb 2015 14:37:53 +0000

I received an email not long ago and wanted to elaborate on my answer here, because I feel certain that someone else is facing a similar problem. I know I have and will again. Here is what some of the email said:

“I was told the other day that I should start to produce some other art: being aware of not getting to comfortable with my style, that I am always doing dark stuff and should do something else. I would assume that you have faced a similar comment in your career and was wondering if you could share you’re opinion on this question – either in a future blog post or here.”

I included these pictures specifically because they all elicited heavy criticism when I published them. Some people felt they were inappropriate for young people to view, while others felt they showed lack of taste and poor judgment. Whatever the reason, those opinions were valid and heartfelt. At the end of the day it didn’t change my opinion of the images, but instead, over time, has added to the art pieces. I now see them as bringing about a strong emotional response, possibly resulting from a personal unsettling that they created within those who felt the need to write. For me, the art is heightened because of the social response.

That email got me thinking about criticism, but specifically how frequently people seem to tell artists what to do with their work. I really like the relationship between artist and public, if we could call it that, which social media provides. I welcome all feedback – good or bad – and try to learn how to receive it with grace. However, I’ve only gotten to that point by being able to understand a few things about myself and my creative process.

1. Understand what YOU like about your art. Be able to define that for yourself, be it in a string of words or in an artist statement.

2. Understand WHY you are creating art you are creating.

3. Understand that for each opinion, there is an opposite opinion. Listen to your own.

4. Growth is a natural part of the human experience. We grow and change as we feel the need. If you are holding yourself back out of fear, you know it. Change it. If you are truly happy with your work, keep going. Happiness is key.

5. For each friend lost, a potential is gained. The same is true of internet followers. Do not let your art be dictated by the opinions of others.

6. What is the goal of your art for yourself, and what experience do you want to give to others? My goal personally is to create worlds I wish I could live in. If I feel that way when I picture is completed, I have succeeded. My goal is to get others to question something about the world or themselves by seeing something different to everyday life. I do not get to decide if I have succeeded on that front.

7. Art is interactive. If you are sharing your art, you are inviting opinions. Let them come. Others interacting with your art create something even more special.

Have you ever faced a problem with criticism?
How do you deal with criticism?

Thank you Gabriel Isak for the email and for creating such incredibly beautiful art!

Model (top right): Olivia Clemens
Model (bottom left): Kate Berman

Opinions Are Not Facts

brookeshaden — Tue, 11 Feb 2014 16:25:10 +0000

You never have to answer to anyone but yourself about why you create.

We become scared to share our work with others because we fear we will have to answer to someone about why we create, or how we create, or about the decisions that went into creating. It is a wonderful to know these things for ourselves, but we never have to answer to anyone about why we do what we do. That is personal and no one can demand the answers of us.

I personally love sharing the why especially. I don’t like laying out a whole story necessarily about the meanings behind the image, but I do love sharing my inspirations and thoughts behind my pictures. That does not mean, however, that I like to defend myself. I love for people to have their own opinions. I think it’s quite interesting when someone dislikes a picture, just the same as when someone likes it. And the reason I feel that I can separate myself from critique is because I understand that I don’t have to answer to anyone.

Opinions are not fact, yet so often we take them as such. We allow the thoughts of others to penetrate our own and suddenly we believe them as though they are fact. This is something that happens to most people at one time or another. It has happened to me. I’ve never met someone who this hasn’t happened to. And it is no one’s fault in particular. If we only blame those who use negativity as a driving force in their lives, we are no better.

We must understand that how we perceive and react to a situation is under our control. Someone may not like what you do. Someone may criticize what you do. Someone may say something mean about what you do. Yet that does not mean that we must take all of those things at face value.

If we understand that we do not have to answer to anyone else…if we understand that we can choose to react in any way we want to a situation…if we understand that our own opinions should be held at a higher standard…then we might be able to break free of those things that hold us back in creating our art.

It is good to be confident in what you do – to like it and feel the power in it. Because even though we can all grow and learn, we should understand that where we are right now is a great place to be: moving forward and taking control of our circumstance. So tell me, what do you love about what you do? Leave a comment letting me know, and a link to your work if you’d like to share.

Own it! Be confident in your craft. Know your worth and find solace in it. And remember that it is a great thing to understand why you create, but that you never have to share that with anyone but yourself.