To talk about the importance of being fearless as an artist, I’d like to first go back to a time when I apparently had no fear as a human being. I was barely two years old.
My family had taken a day trip from Glasgow to Crail Harbour in The East Neuk of Fife, my first ever visit to the coast.
We settled for a picnic at a tiny sandy cove next to the harbour. The sand was warm underfoot and the sunshine spangled on a gentle sea. With my bucket and spade to hand, not only was the world mine to conquer but clearly revolved around me. I’m told that the toddling beeline I made for the sea was swift and determined and didn’t stop where the water began. With utter joy I just kept going - I was up to my waist in the waves before my father, realising I wasn’t going to stop, came and rescued me. I had broken all the rules, before I knew there were any…
I had no concept of the sea and that it could be dangerous. Obviously, as we go through life we need to learn about dangers - and I guess the important thing is getting the balance right. We have to be careful enough to keep living, to survive the dangers, but never so fearful that we don’t ever step outside a protective bubble that keeps us small in mind and spirit.
Hail over The Minch. Acrylic on board 2007
This exact same concept has become very important to me in relation to my artistic practice. Courage showed itself sporadically, that’s for certain, but courage wasn’t always met with encouragement in my family environment at the time - it took a long time for me to call myself a painter, let alone an artist.
In my early exhibiting days I was often apprehensive when I introduced new subject matter - I was afraid of a potential negative reaction to anything new I might show. But the importance of exploring myself authentically, artistically always won over from any commercial considerations at a time when I actually had a lot to lose.
I’ve let go of that fear now, as I’m lucky enough to have learned that life is too short to not do your damnedest to achieve your full potential. I embrace wherever my artistic mind leads me next, I accept the challenge that change will be inevitable (and might not be easy or embraced by everyone who currently enjoys my work). I don’t label myself with one thing, or restrict myself to one media or subject matter. The sky truly is the limit!
Sixteen months old and heading for the ocean. Crail, Fife.
So, what are some of the things involved in being fearless as an artist? Well, I’m still learning, that’s for sure, but there’s some key factors that come into the mix - and this would be my advice for artists who are just starting out.
Don’t think being fearless simply entails throwing caution to the wind and going wild crazy - it’s more important to have the courage to hold onto your artistic vision, if that vision has integrity beyond what may be fashionable or attention-grabbing.
Most of us artists living in the real world don’t have a team of minions to do our bidding for us, and so you will need to learn your skills well, because you can’t run before you can walk. These skills are your visual vocabulary.
You have to be prepared for the possibility of happily letting go of things you may have worked really hard on, but which are simply not coming together as desired. Be fearless of failure - in fact accept that it’s inevitable. Failure is your friend - without it, you can’t improve. You’ll learn to no longer interpret it as failure - just as I did not originally understand the sea as being dangerous!