I Can’t

One of the foremost goals for me in my art teaching is to eliminate the concept of “I can’t”. Now I am not a Pollyanna type and do enjoy whining as much as the next person, but in an effort to stay afloat as an artist I have lost count of how many times I have had to pivot and turn to do so. It’s just how it is. Life. You try things and when they become unsustainable, you move to where you can thrive. As I get older, that measure will change, but the pivot and turn is my life dance.

 It is the same in creating art or writing. “Can’t” means it is not as important as what I would like to focus on, I haven’t tried it enough to get better at it, I don’t understand it, it doesn’t interest me, I need help doing it, it doesn’t make my heart sing or, I have a different plan now.

  I have found that in taking the absolute negative of “I can’t” out I automatically remove the judgment too (as though somehow I am supposed to know how to do everything I turn my hand to, or that I am going to be the best at any of it!).

  Long ago in my art life, I decided that I was not going to be the best at any of it. No one can sustainably be the best. It's exhausting and soul sucking to try. My challenges are mine. My growth is mine. My joy is mine to share. That sentiment is reflected in the rest of my life too. It is not so much a resolve to be meh, but an acceptance and delight in the who I am, the where I am and the what I am doing…and that includes the muddy bits and the new directions. 

  When I teach I will inform on composition, color, light source, contrast and all the techniques I have learned in my 50 years with the brush - but my main goal is to help you put the doubt and “I can’t” in its place and embrace the core need of all humans … to create.