Colorways II (detail) ©2005
My friend Lisa Call is without a doubt the most productive person I’ve ever met. Not only does she make sumptuous art quilts with an outstanding use of understated color, but she does it with a singular focus and drive that are unrivaled by anyone I know.
I’ve been in a couple of critique group situations where the talk has turned to goals. When this has happened, I’ve always kind of shrunk into the background hoping nobody will turn to me and say, “Hey, so just what exactly are your goals?” and thus in that exact moment expose me for the fraud I am. The thing is – I’m just not a goal-oriented person. Having sat through more than one presentation on marketing for artists, I am aware that I should have meaningful, quantifiable, and reasonable goals. But so far, the only thing this idea has gotten me is a large unhealthy dose of guilt because I am obviously not doing everything an artist should do.
My goals are vague: get into the studio and make some work, get the web site updated (ahem), make up a batch of portfolios and get them sent out to some as-yet undetermined destinations that will jumpstart my career, etc. These are things that I keep in the back of my mind. I would never formalize them by writing them down (except that I just did). I know that as goals, these are way too vague to be useful, but I just don’t care.
That’s why I was so excited to read Lisa’s recent posts about intent – Transitioning and Holding Intent – Part I. The idea that you can just go into your studio and simply focus on creating – without having some higher guiding purpose or end result in mind – is liberating. For me, studio time has always been a reward, not something I feel I have to do. Since it’s one of the most enjoyable aspects of life for me, I always kind of feel like I need to have a justification for it. “Oh, I have shows coming up that I need to make work for.” While often true, why do I feel like I’m making excuses for some unseemly addiction?
Perhaps deep down inside, I feel like this lack of goal-setting capability means that I’m not properly dedicated to my art, at least insofar as others might see me. (Plus, with all that needs to be done in the world, do I really deserve to be able to take this time just for me?) But I am doing what makes me happy, and with the support of my family and more than a little luck, I’ve been able to take it much further than I once would have thought possible. Some day, I’ll really buckle down and get to work on accomplishing those goals, honest! For now, though, I have to concentrate on the work itself.
The photo above is a detail of Colorways II, one of a series of four works installed at Kaiser Permanente in Highlands Ranch, Colorado. This is a reminder of another unmet goal: get over there and get a good installation shot for my web site.
