When a new student joins my school, they usually introduce themselves like this:
"I make things, but I'm not a real artist."
I cannot tell you how often this happens. All the effing time. It doesn't matter if the student has never drawn before or if they are a tremendously accomplished maker of many years, the struggle to use the word artist is the same.
So let's talk about it for a second.
What is a "real" artist?
When I ask my students this question, we start to identify the limiting beliefs we've inherited around what it means to take your creative work seriously. Here are some of the most common core negative beliefs that come up:
"real" artists live in big cities. "real" artists are born geniuses. "real" artists have MFAs. "real" artists show in museums and galleries. "real" artists never doubt themselves. "real" artists never run out of ideas. "real" artists never copy. "real" artists are always perfectly articulate about their work. "real" artists spend all their time working on their art. "real" artists are financially unstable. "real" artists have trust funds or a partner that pays their bills. "real" artists are a little bit crazy. "real" artists are unreliable.
Or the biggest, hottest, smelliest limiting belief of them all:
"real" artists make 100% of their living from selling their art.
Which translates to:
If I don't make 100% of my living from selling my art, I am not a real, serious artist.
(Aside: I have a lot to say around why this capitalist way of thinking can be toxic for artists today, which I talk more about in this podcast episode: Being a "Real" Artist. Listen if ya like.)
This list of limiting beliefs could go on and on. This is just the highlights reel. But there are some majorly problematic ideas here - ideas that hold many artists back from doing things that would dramatically improve their quality of life. This could include moving to a city that suits their needs. Or not shaming themselves for taking a day-job to support their family. Or asking for what they need to get paid, instead of accepting low-paying work because it "looks good on a CV."
If you talked to me 3 years ago, I was one of these people. I believed I had to live in a big city and win certain awards to be taken seriously. I strived like a motherfucckkkker (full disclosure: I'm still recovering in this department). It was exhausting. And even when I had some big wins, I didn't feel any different.
Then I did the The Artist's Wayand something broke inside my brain. It was like everything softened and the ideas I had previously given so much power didn't matter as much anymore. I realized I wanted to have a different conversation around being an artist and the only way I could do that was by carving out a totally scary, totally not-yet-seen space.
And I gotta tell you, 3 years later ... I'm so glad I did.
There are so many ways to live an impactful, fulfilling, financially stable creative life.
It can involve selling your paintings for millions of dollars (which if you do, and that feels right for you - gorgeous!). It can also mean something totally different, something that comes straight from your imagination. This is exactly what we artists are supposed to be doing anyway: crafting new possibilities from the not-yet-seen.
You don't have to have the answer right now. I didn't when I started. But you DO have to look at your limiting beliefs and give yourself permission to imagine something better.
