From the first responses, I am starting to get the feeling that this is a very subjective topic. It seems that a piece of artwork is "finished" when the artist is happy with the results, out of ideas to "improve" it, and/or feels that the viewing public will get her point or at least have some sort of reaction to it. Speaking only for myself and from my own experience I can say that I am almost never happy with the results of my labors. So I can strike that one. Maybe I have perfectionist tendencies. Or, maybe I am too hard on myself and just don't trust my abilities. Whatever the root cause, I have a very difficult time presenting my work to others in any type of setting because all I can see are the faults and to me that indicates an "Unfinished" piece. If I take the approach that all work is unfinished, then I guess that I could squeak by, but I wouldn't be being honest with myself. I will take the faulty approach here and say that, "I should finish the work that I start and be more confident." Coulda, shoulda, woulda. Some things are easy to say. Idea number two again suggests that the artist's temperament and creative inclination will suggest a clear path to the conclusion of a piece. Improving a piece (or meddling as I called it before) has always had more negative results than positive additions in my experience. I must admit here that I don't often work with a clear path in mind. I don't sketch or entirely plan a piece. I allow intuition and subconscious thought to direct me a lot of the time. It will of course be more difficult, working that way I believe, to tell when any particular piece is done. For an artist who does plan and have a distinct direction in mind, I think that once the concept properly prepared is realized, a piece is "done". This seems like a logical and correct assumption. However, I know artists who erase part of their original plan to fit a change made while a piece is in progress. Allowing for change is certainly the artist's prerogative but then, once again, how is the finality of the work discerned? Idea number three? Some people get more meaning and find more inspiration from the work of the Minimalists than from the paintings in the Sistine Chapel. Does a sense of understanding, peace, or realization found by a viewer give the artist the validation that he has been successful and has, in fact, finished a particular piece? I don't know. I don't know that I can know. I love the simplicity, but still respect the complex. Is a two inch line drawn on a museum wall a finished piece? (I believe so!) If one creates something and causes a viewer to have a reaction to it, good, bad, or ugly, I think that a work might be considered "finished". If the viewer thinks that it might be improved by a knife slash, or the quick scribble of an ink pen, so be it. I might, in some cases, agree. I have been frustrated when looking at a piece before thinking that a painting or sculpture "needs" something. Just that feeling, though, may be what the artist was going for. So can it be true that a work is finished when the artist says so. I am starting to think yes. And damn the torpedoes. --- rbs
2 Comments
You have valid points Robert, and a very entertaining way of presenting them. I usually fall into the #2 catagory; I like to have a plan, but allow myself the freedom to change or alter things as I go. Without permission to make changes I's setting myself up for disappointment. I think I read somewhere that one of the hardest things is having a vision of how you want a piece to be, and not being able to get it to that point. I know I have had many ideas I thought would be perfect, only to try and create them and not even get close to that image in my mind. You have to give yourself the ability to let go of perfect and look at things from another angle. Just because it's not what you wanted origionally dosen't mean it can't be better. I'm not sure if I made any since, but I tried to tell it like I feel.
Reply
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorThese posts could be from any of the Collage Collective. We try to post things important to us and our work. We haven't really promoted this page, but if you would like to join the discussion please do so. thanks for coming by. RLP. Archives
September 2017
Categories |