There is a saying amongst artists, “Trust the Process".
A process forms when making any kind of artwork. During the production of artwork, mistakes are made, adjustments happen, new techniques reveal themselves, revelations occur, and everything experienced becomes the process for future artworks. Every medium has a different process. The artist is always finding what works, and what doesn’t. Wayne Thiebaud once said, “painting is solving problems.”
In my work, and in my teachings I focus on process over finished results. My students learn that trusting the process brings satisfying end results. Focusing on each step of a process takes the pressure off. Taking step-by-step of any process leads to productivity, and before the artist knows it, the artwork is done.
Recently, I’ve been thinking about process in a wider sense. For example, there is a process for applying paint to a palette. There is a process an artist goes through before they even begin the process of making art. There is a process for teaching, a process for prepping for classes. There is a process for readying artwork to be exhibited. In other words, there are processes within processes, but it’s all a part of the whole process. Phew!
Process would not be able to be experienced, and learned if the artist is not producing work, so if you are finding your process… Congrats! It means you are doing the work an artist needs to do to become a more experienced, and skilled artist!
Thank you for reading, Happy Painting,
and remember to trust the process!
M