by Mine Batiyel

How do I define art? Art is a language and like any other language it is a vehicle of communication i.e. self-expression of ideas and most inner/deep feelings. Language is an important aspect of any culture and cultures tend by nature to limit one’s freedom in one way or another. Here is where art comes in – it provides freedom of expression without any limitation or boundaries and provides ample opportunity for imagination and creativity. It is hence highly therapeutic.

However, like in business life, in art we also go through the same ups and downs, the good days and the bad days, disappointing end results and great ones. The good old “competencies” of the business life will either ensure you pull through or you give up.

It is my nature to think about these competencies when I hit the bottom. Then I have to wait for the right time to analyze the whole situation. Normally after my analysis I would create a road map to get myself back on the right track. But for the first time this did not happen. This was six months ago and related to my artwork. Simultaneously I had to face one more issue; as far as I could remember this was also the first time where I had problems related to confidence in doing / creating something or we could simply say to self confidence.

Knowledge and receiving constructive feedback from an authority (here defined as a person perceived to be equipped with all the necessary skills and knowledge in a given field) were the two key aspects affecting the way I felt. Naturally the way I felt showed itself in the end results i.e. my artwork.

Here basically I learnt the following:

1. Receiving constructive feedback from everybody else except the authority does not help.
2. Not receiving constructive feedback from the authority also results in one underestimating the knowledge and skills that one has.
3. To get out of this vicious circle one needs to find alternative authorities.
4. Once you realize the amount of knowledge that you have no one can take that away from you anymore.
5. Knock on doors and don’t take the word of a single authority.

I leave you with a photograph from my first art exhibition which took place this June.