Define “Artist”

“I’m not an artist.”

I’ve been saying that most of my life, and in many ways it is a true statement. It rather depends on how you define “an artist”, I suppose. I do not now nor will I likely ever make my living off of creating art in any form, and that’s not a bad definition of “not an artist” to me. I appreciate good art in many forms: music, painting, photography, acting. But do it as a professional? Hardly. But does that mean that an artist has to be someone who makes a profession out of their craft?

I very much hope not. After all, I call myself a golfer, and I was never close to being good enough to play professionally, even when I played every day and was a scratch handicap. I am certainly not now that my handicap has gone to double digits and I play only a few times a year. Yet I take immense pleasure from the game and play whenever I can. So why can’t I call myself an artist if I make art and enjoy it?

I have learned that I can, and I should. Art isn’t about being a professional any more than playing golf is. I don’t play golf to please others, so why should I make art to please others? I play for myself, and I have learned to make art for myself. If others like my art, great! That makes me feel very good when it happens. But mostly, I do it for me. And I call myself a photographer, and an actor, and a writer because those are my art forms.

I wish I could say I was smart enough, or self-aware enough, or perhaps just self-confident enough to have come to this conclusion on my own. But I didn’t. I spent most of my adult life thinking I wasn’t an artist. I didn’t draw or paint because I didn't like what I drew. I never did more than dabble with photography because I never managed to end up with a print that was worthy of what I saw in my head when I snapped the shutter. I enjoyed writing, but did very little of it because it is often hard work and my inner voices told me it wasn’t worth the bother. I even gave up amateur dramatics, something I loved as a child but walked away from as an adult despite having opportunities to pursue it.

Eventually, I had someone in my life that showed me what I was missing. How? She helped me admit to myself that I was, in fact, genuinely missing something. I missed not being part of a publicly performed play. I did in fact enjoy writing enough to spend the time doing it not for the prospect of writing a great book but because it brought me joy. I wanted to learn what I needed to do to make my printed photographs match what was in my mind’s eye when I saw the scene in front of me. She helped me realise that all of those feelings were genuine, and worthy of attention. She helped me give myself permission to “just go make some art and see what happens.”

I realised that art isn’t always about the end product, and I don’t have to be “as good” as the professionals. I only have to be good enough for me. It is about the joy of creating, not necessarily the subjective quality of the end product. And along the way, I learned to appreciate the creativity of others even more than I had before.

I joined a regional theater, eventually performing in a number of shows and directing others. I wrote a few works of fiction. I have done voice acting professionally, although one could hardly call the few payments I have received “a career.” And over the last two years, I have taken photography lessons and now produce the occasional image that actually represents the vision in my head when I lift my camera to my face. All of those things have brought me great joy. Isn’t that what art is supposed to do?

I am an artist after all.

So why am I telling you all of this? Because finding that inner artist, the one that maybe makes art or maybe just wants to appreciate the beauty of things created by others, is the mission of Art & Grind. We will present you with art, not just to see and to purchase, but to appreciate. We will show you things that perhaps you never thought of as art until you look at them in new ways. We will provide outlets for you to experiment with creating your own art. We will give you access to skilled artists who will share their knowledge with you to give you the tools to explore the artist within yourself.

And we will bring you Surrey’s finest independent coffee to enjoy while you are at it. Or, just drink the coffee for now. The art will be there when you come back, we promise.

Oh… that person who helped me see all that in myself, who guided me to the point where I was ready to give myself the chance to be an artist? She’s Trish, the founder of Art & Grind. You can read about her journey to this business here on the blog in the post “The 30 Year Brew”. She’s passionate about the artist in everyone, and it shows. Come be a part of that passion and that journey. Find your own art with us.

Be an artist after all.

Paul

COO/CIO

Art & Grind LTD