Stop painting for a frame, moving away from perfection.

I remember when I first applied for art school in the early 90s. I had previously applied for graphic design at technical college and I was unsuccessful. The school contacted me and said that I might be interested and suitable for the fine arts course. They had late applications the following Friday and encouraged me to sit the drawing test. Equipped with my pencil ,paper and a bag full of nerves, I sat the drawing test. I was extraordinarily nervous and surprised I had put pencil to paper.

The test was to draw a still life of a skull. The marks were light, hesitant and full of trepidation. It screamed “I am a perfectionist and have no confidence”, however the school must have seen something in those scared lines as I was successful and started that Monday morning. The rest is history.

What I learned in those two years at technical college set me up for the following three decades of satisfying, adventurous and a daring drawing practice. It was a magical experience. Drawing taught me about my perfectionism and how to conquer it. How to not be a scaredy-cat and draw with confidence, strength and fearlessness. Drawing also taught me many things about myself and still does to this day. There is something powerful about being one with the charcoal; just you, the charcoal, paper and object. Drawing marks are like an autobiography, reflecting your character and personality. All unique and beautiful in their own way.

As adults we tend to stop drawing or art altogether as we either start comparing ourselves to others or decide that our art does not ‘look’ like the thing we are drawing/painting etc. What a pity this is because as a child we are full of confidence and have no care for making something ‘perfect’. We create for the joy of it, the experience of it.

Perfectionism is the thief of courage and freedom. When we stop being brave, experimental and having fun with our tools whether it be pencil, paint, clay, collage etc, we rob ourselves of freedom of expression. Work often tends to be tight and constrained.

At art college I had a wonderful teacher who, without my awareness at the time, taught me to loosen up my tight grip on perfection. I remember the first time I had to draw with a felt-tip pen. Holy smokes, I thought I was going to have a heart attack….what no eraser? What the heck was I going to do if I could not rub out a line which was not my idea of perfect.

Second to this mind-altering request, I was also not allowed to take my pen off the paper. Oh my goodness, I felt like fainting. My heart was beating outside my chest, and I was sucking in the deep ones. To my amazement it was one of the most liberating artistic experiences I have ever encountered. It stopped me from being PERFECT! I just drew and drew and drew. I didn’t care if the work ended up in the garbage bin. It was pure joy and to this day I still love drawing with pen or ink. Every line is a commitment. It's magic and freedom. I didn’t have to make art for a frame. It was experimental, it was fun, it was celebrating the experience. Life changing moment as I broke away from perfectionism.

My advice to anyone struggling with the grips of perfectionism is to grab and pen and just draw. Draw for the satisfaction of making a mark. Draw for the goal of the garbage bin not the frame. Draw for the freedom to let yourself MAKE A MISTAKE! . See what comes of it, you might surprise yourself.

I hope you find freedom.

Yours in art,

Bec x

My work ‘Mother’ ,which is part of the LiddellWORKS Power Station Creative Residency , will be on exhibition at Singleton Arts & Cultural Centre and Muswellbrook Regional Arts Centre Opening June 8th & 14th June

Images above are all charcoal on paper 150 x 110 cm