I attended a meeting of a group of artists today, exploring what we might do together. It was an interesting and pleasant exchange, but at the end of it I am slightly puzzled as to why we do these things.
It emerged quite soon in our discussion that we didn’t envisage exhibiting together. It was instructive to look at the variety of techniques and media represented in the group, although I can’t see myself moving into yet another period of experimentation. As I drove home it occurred to me that the foremost reason for this kind of exchange is simply reinforcement. Being an artist is actually a pretty solitary business, and it is supportive to be assured that, appearances to the contrary, to want to paint is not an indication of insanity. It comes down, in the end, to a matter of “I’m OK: you’re OK”, to borrow the celebrated phrase from transactional analysis.
I did emerge with one additional tip. It could be beneficial to pay greater care to the use and development of a sketch-book. My use of this resource is intermittent, I have to admit, and usually related to very specific projects. I was impressed by the way in which some of my colleagues are assiduous and regular sketchers. I’ll have to give some thought to that one.