Procrastination In Art
How I deal with procrastination, its purpose, and knowing when to quit.
(This entry is 1 of 3 dealing with procrastination in art. The other two are forthcoming and are alluded to in the subtitle.)
I have never finished a single thing that I did not begin (did someone else say that?). I want to finish what I start, but the start of a new work sometimes, many times, has more delays and false starts than a track meet for narcoleptics.
In my own efforts, there are three things that I need absolute clarity on before I can begin a work and see it through.
They are the purpose, the idea, and the mess.
The purpose is the “why”
The idea is the “what”
The mess is the “how”
The work is done when I have formed a mess into shapes, values, and colors that - as simply as possible - convey the idea (moods, phrases, shapes, and proportions) while keeping hold of the purpose (my personal inspiration).
If I begin with a really clear idea and try to be exacting at the start (avoid the mess), I end up frustrated because of the stiffness and lack of honesty.
If I begin with a beautiful mess just to get going but lose touch with the purpose, I make work with no spine, no honesty.
If I have a driving purpose - something that really matters to me - but cannot articulate the idea in simple terms, I am confounded by a lingering feeling that I am not good enough and why should I bother.
A clear purpose, a simple idea, and a mess.
To begin a painting, I obliterate the untouched linen surface by either applying thin, runny paint and then wiping it off to stain the surface, or I begin drawing a loose layout of the shapes and divisions. (Usually a stain then a layout.) This looks like the first step in painting, as it is the first time any paint has touched the surface, but really, I have started the painting long before setting down to paint.
Writers can relate, I’m sure. The heart is always ahead of the hand.
Why write? No one needs what we do. No one is reading. Why paint? No one cares about it. No one is collecting. (Let the reader understand…)
If I really think like that (and I do), then why do it?
Purpose. Somehow the work is linked to prayer. It’s hard to articulate, but it's a strong enough push that drives me to work, that compels me. I have the belief that life has purpose and meaning. That makes all the difference. I’m not sure what the purpose of anything is if we are just cosmic burps.
What about ideas? There is nothing new…
That is true. We live in a sliver of time. People living with us today haven’t been exposed to all the great ideas that have energized humanity throughout the ages. We have but a few years, and that time is taken up by trying to stay out of ditches. We don’t have a lot of exposure to different ideas, so what we do is needed now as much as ever in human history. We don’t use our parents’ calendars. We get new ones. New day, new people, new-to-them ideas.
The mess is the reconnection of our bodies to our ideas and purpose. For painters, the kickstart they need after a slump is just putting out paint and mixing it around. No pressure. It's just paint - brushes gliding over the palette, mingling pigment and oil. Beautiful swirls and surprises. Little impossibilities being worked out. The lean but limber state before applying experience and letting perfection take a back seat.
For writers, the mess would be the same lean and limber state that comes from holding the pencil, hearing the sound made by writing. Keyboard sounds for some, typewriter sounds for others. This physicality is so important. We are body and spirit. Beautiful messes.
So that’s how I deal with procrastination.
I use an imperfect, messy start full of sensory touchstones to ground me in reality.
I work from the mess to remember that perfection is a lie.
I allow the messy imperfection to help clarify the idea (the first idea isn’t always the best)
I constantly check my progress against my purpose. “The why will get you to the how.” - Dawn Whitelaw
The second post dealing with procrastination will deal briefly with good procrastination - when it’s good to step away, and how it can help.
These thoughts on procrastination were inspired by the following post by @sophia - Head of Writer Relations at Substack
