We want to create beauty but we can’t create beauty without creating a lot of mediocre stuff first.
We must express.
The constant output without care of perfectionism is an act of faith. It’s acting in faith.
It’s also humbling. When we’re obsessed with how good our creation is we are typically focused on how it will make us look to others. Then the creation is something you’re doing for ego.. to increase your status.
If you’re creating as an act of love for God or to connect with God you just do it without care of how it’s perceived. Then it’s authentic expression allowed to flow. Then it’s play. Then it’s action without fixation on outcome. It’s presence. It’s arising from connection to God which is connection to presence. God is contained in our creations when they are done in a state of flow or presence.
I get this when freestyling. When I’m just playing around and enjoying myself it sounds good and is all coherent and harmonious. When I’m stressed at all and I have hidden motives and agendas and I’m craving power or respect then the art I’m making sounds bad. If it’s just coming from a joyful playful free and light place then it’s filled with spirit ….
You want your creations to be beautiful… Sure. They will be, with time, but be brave and humble and allow yourself to make art that’s not so beautiful for a while. It’s like a barrier built to stop those with impure intentions from getting the benefits without being ready. If you love God and art you will create even if the creations don’t sound great, because you love art more than you love your ego, so you don’t care if the art makes you look silly or clumsy or imperfect. It’s not about your self image. And then with time of this humbling act you eventually make art that people perceive as beautiful.
Quotes
“It is impossible to get better and look good at the same time.” — Julia Cameron
“Remember that even if you have a truly rotten piece of art, it may be a necessary stepping stone to your next work. Art matures spasmodically and requires ugly-duckling growth stages.” — Julia Cameron
“Practicing an art, no matter how well or badly, is a way to make your soul grow, for heaven’s sake. Sing in the shower. Dance to the radio. Tell stories. Write a poem… even a lousy poem.” — Kurt Vonnegut
“You have a right to your actions, but never to the fruits of your actions. Steer clear of the desire for the fruits and do not be attached to inaction.” — The Bhagavad Gita (2.47)
Nobody tells this to people who are beginners, I wish someone told me. All of us who do creative work, we get into it because we have good taste. But there is this gap. For the first couple years you make stuff, it’s just not that good. It’s trying to be good, it has potential, but it’s not. But your taste, the thing that got you into the game, is still killer. And your taste is why your work disappoints you. A lot of people never get past this phase, they quit. Most people I know who do interesting, creative work went through years of this. We know our work doesn’t have this special thing that we want it to have. We all go through this. And if you are just starting out or you are still in this phase, you gotta know its normal and the most important thing you can do is do a lot of work. Put yourself on a deadline so that every week you will finish one story. It is only by going through a volume of work that you will close that gap, and your work will be as good as your ambitions. And I took longer to figure out how to do this than anyone I’ve ever met. It’s gonna take awhile. It’s normal to take awhile. You’ve just gotta fight your way through.
– Ira Glass