[MarioNintendo]

I really relate to what you wrote in this thread Zyxel. I’m happy that in your second post you seem to have found a more positive spin on the situation. I still want to post something here because your writing made me feel something.

If art was a car, our feelings are its fuel and our curiosity is its steering wheel. To me, the best art drenches in emotion and sentimentality, and requires us to be comfortable to stamp a part of our soul on our canvas of choice, sort of getting spiritually naked. I personally found this to be the best way to get a good look at what’s really hiding in my brain and understand myself better. For me, art is therapy. I believe that even if your art were “trash”, it is worth studying because it’s a true look at what’s hiding deep inside you.

But then there’s the curiosity part. That’s something I understood later (i.e. last year). At some point, you can’t keep making art as a coping mechanism to boost your ego. You can’t just create art as an escape. It’s going to show. That’s when you’ll start spinning in circles and start asking yourself hard questions. “Why do I even bother?” “Why isn’t this fun anymore?” “Am I missing something?” Such questions are your emotions begging you to try something different, to push yourself out of your comfort zone, to try something you were always afraid of attempting (why?)

Being curious is scary until you realize it’s the only way to live. Suffering, learning from mistakes, iterating, being patient, listening to criticism, breaking a pattern… all these things are also part of a complete life, and reconnecting with these emotions, accepting them, in my opinion, is part of what will allow you to make art you’ll be proud of.

In summary, if you’re struggling in your art form of choice right now, use this as an opportunity to get curious about yourself. You might find some knot in your soul that your art allowed you to become aware of. That can be the beginning of a new life.