Experimentation & Learning

It's ok, I'm not flaky after all.

(Photo: A new cross-stitch piece I'm working on, still in progress. This is my own design.)

Hello everyone,

I was just watching/listening to a YouTube video while I was working, then had a quick look through the comments as I often like to do, and came across this one:

"Experimentation and learning are essential components of practicing art."

It stopped me in my tracks because my life seems to have been all about experimenting and learning over the past couple of years, and I often feel that I spend too much time experimenting and learning and that I really should just "get things done." All of the experimenting means that I currently have fewer finished pieces than I did in the past, but I feel that my work (hopefully) has more depth or meaning than it used to.

I repeatedly feel guilty about experimenting, though, and the number of times I have 'failed' or temporarily gone down the wrong path. Reading the comment above made me realise that, yes, all of this actually is an essential component of practicing art. I'm not flaky, indecisive, or too scattered. I'm practicing art.

I hope that this helps you if you're struggling with this too.

Natasha x