Process, Product, and The Artist

And what it means for your relationship with Your work.

@TeffTheory how does one fall in love with their art ? Is it natural instinct/1 grows to love it ? How do you keep a balance if ur critical? — @tobybiase

Great questions! Since the term, ‘instinct’ and ‘critical’ were used, I have to explore from a foundational standpoint.

I believe there’s a distinction that is often overlooked when it comes to being an Artist. There’s what I like to call process Artists. And there are product Artists. Both disciplines can exist within one, but typifying an Artist(or yourself) as one or the other is reliant on what they(You) appear/choose to focus on.

You can be a process or a product Artist without having considered it enough to even give a name to it.

I identify as a Process Artist

What does this mean? As the term suggests, a process Artist is far more process-oriented. They are almost explicitly focused on the cultivative aspect of the process than the product. They enjoy the product to the extent that the process was as challenging as it was, satisfying. And, in fact, when it reaches the point of having to sell something, the process Artist may decline or extend impartial commitment. For them, it feels dishonest; a betrayal.

Their philosophy is to hold creating as part of a journey, be it spiritual or an outpour of personal growth. This allows space for slow, but certain mastery — of self and work. They routinely prioritise form over frequency.

In short, you could properly ascertain that with the process Artist, if you haven’t seen their process, then you haven’t necessarily seen their Art.

I also believe that process Artists often fall into the category of those who are not celebrated in their time. But rather, later, when details of their discipline is discovered, explored, and shared.

Think Da Vinci expending some 11+ years into the Mona Lisa. Or Darwin’s 23-year delay in publishing his theory of evolution. (Yes, I consider Darwin an Artist, but we’ll leave that for a later time). Even if it is celebrated, it is faced with opposition (as was the case with Darwin) and later received as instrumental to the progression of human thought and Being.

Being a process Artist may be inhibiting in that you take the concept of taking your time seriously. Perhaps, too seriously. And that risks not responding to the urgency that inherently exists in the creative process. The urgency that sparks and powers the creative process. Which leads to the practise of withholding work and neglect for the idea that the world needs your work. Often, more than you do.

Product Artists

They believe that sharing the work is principal. They value the process as well, but generally from the premise of what and how it contributes to the product.

You’ll find that product Artists also place exceptional value on the importance of good design. Because they’re oriented towards the tangible, they expect the same strain of discipline or greater from others who occupy the same domain.

Your favourite product Artists are usually musicians, designers, composers, and producers.

Product + Process

This is an exceptionally beautiful space to observe and occupy. There is plenty to be said for the artist who embraces and practises both. What is most notable, however, is: When an Artist is both product- and process-oriented, you enjoy the luxury of cultivating mastery and infusing it seamlessly into products that can be experienced by you and your audience.

They also have a knack for sharing insight to their process, which inspires further admiration and appreciation for the product.

A collaboration between a largely product Artist and largely process Artist can yield similar power and rewards.

What does this have to do with with an Artist responding with/cultivating love for their work?

Well, first, you have to decide: am I a process Artist, or a product Artist? An intermingling of both?

Reaching an answer, or at least, an understanding, is very, very significant. Especially since as artists, we are inherently critical of our own work. Our approach to creating has a lot to do with what powers that behaviour.

Falling in love for any artist, product or process, may exist in terms of obsession. You may fall in love as a response to the obsessive desire to simply create. To breathe life into something when yours is abundant, and in some cases, lacking. Or you may fall in love as a response to eliminate the critical spirit by creating so much or so little, you come to develop appreciation.

Further, I think it wise to dispel the notion that all artists have an unspoken dislike or disdain for everything they create. For some new to their identity+reality as an Artist, they perceive it as almost prescriptive to dislike their work. More than anything, I believe being critical of their own work is generally meant to express ‘you think this is great? I can do greater!!!’ and with this mindset, greater — in its time — generally follows.

Conversely, being critical may be just that: being critical. Subscribing to often self-sabotaging, unrealistic ideas of what success means as an Artist, resulting in loathing the work(and Self) for not being great enough to bring them to that point.

The beauty is that both share an underlying concept: the belief, acceptance, and practise of seeking and achieving improvement.

If you’re struggling with loving your work

Find where you fall in.

You may find that the conflict lies in: you are inherently a process Artist with product artist aspirations. Which is almost inevitable in a world where the narrative of the artist we are most familiar with is the product Artist. Process Artists are generally not viewed as Artists immediately. Because they’re calculated and systematic in sharing their work, they’re not readily perceived as Artists.

Be at ease. Understand that despite your approach to creating — product or process — you are necessary to the space of creativity.

Find clarity in knowing the full range of your work is not what you have created nor what you are creating now. You are multifaceted, and therefore, in possession of the essence of both product and process in varying capacities.

Every medium is available to You.

As for balance

Balance is an illusion. Rhythm is real.

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