On Sucking

Today I had a bad day in the studio.  Well, OK, it wasn’t horrible or anything, and really any day in the studio is a good day.  But I had a frustrating day. I’m working on a new series of small full-color paintings on panel for some upcoming holiday small works shows (more on this later), and I need to make a bunch of these guys.  I’ve been planning and sketching for these pieces for awhile now, and I’ve been so excited to get to work on them.  And now, I’m just not sure about them.  Some of them are OK, and some of them are just…not OK.  Did I overthink it? Not plan enough? Plan too much? Do they just suck? Maybe I should just go back to square one and do what I know I can do…and then, I have to remind myself of the advice I was given a million years ago in art school, and that I still give to my students now: you have to make some bad art.  I have to remind myself that if I’m struggling in the studio, that’s a good thing, because it probably means I’m stretching myself and stepping into unfamiliar territory and taking some risks.  And that is what I’m doing with this new series, I’m trying something new with full-color paintings on panel, something I haven’t done in years.  And it just might suck.  And that’s OK.