David Limrite-Artists, Coach, Mentor, Teacher

Me, doing my best to be patient.

“For the moment it is looking rather good, but I am afraid I’ll spoil it. But one must not be afraid of that either, otherwise one never succeeds.”

~Vincent Van Gogh

One of the most important traits an artist must possess is patience. Making art is not easy. Creating good or even great art requires time, practice and patience.

Experimenting with a new medium requires patience.

Learning a new technique requires patience.

Expanding your drawing or painting skills requires patience.

Exploring a new subject matter, idea or concept requires patience.

Most importantly, we must be patient with ourselves.

Being angry, frustrated, discouraged, disappointed and impatient are easy. Being patient requires work. We are going to make mistakes. We are going to have a bad day at the easel. Our eyes are going to deceive us from time to time. We are going to forget how to mix a particular color. We are going to lack motivation and be less than inspired every so often. We are going to hate what we just painted. We are going to feel discouraged by our lack of progress. It is going to take longer to draw a portrait than we know it should.

In moments like these, I remind my students that, whatever is happening, it does not mean that they are terrible artists. All it means is that they have not gotten to their destination yet and that there is more work to be done.

And, if you love the process of creating, you will keep going. You will remind yourself to be patient and you will continue to head in the direction of where you want your art to go.

And with patience, you will get there.

Best,

David

BTW, just want all of you to know that this my 100th blog post. Thank you all so much for being loyal readers. I appreciate each and every one of you. If you know someone who might love reading my stuff, please forward this to them and encourage them to subscribe. Thanks.