One exercise lately was to list five childhood accomplishments. It was embarrassing for me to come up with only four. Four! How pathetic is that? How pathetic was I? That was on March 5th.
On March 9th, after thinking a lot about that exercise, I finally decided everything I learned as a child was an accomplishment. The first time I tied my own shoes? Ta da! Buttoning my own blouse? Graduating from training wheels to a real two-wheeler? Flying a kite for the first time? Diving head-first from the diving board? Hooray for me!
Looking back, they don’t seem all that list-worthy, but when marking a child’s life, they were big deals.
But how does that apply to art? (See, it always comes around to that.)
What’s an “accomplishment?” Well, it’s “something done admirably or creditably.” It’s “a deed or achievement.” It’s “any acquired ability or knowledge.”
So as we’re making, sewing, collaging, photographing, painting, building, etc., where do we spot our accomplishments?
Sometimes we notice them right away, those little “aha” moments when we finally learn that stitch that makes an embellished garment come alive. Or when we set up the lighting just right so the oil can looks like it’s sitting on an old workbench. Or when we finally learn how to delicately shade something using watercolors.
Sometimes it takes a bit of distance for us to realize that yes, when you first began creating photomontages and you were using the eraser tool, you'd get much better results if you'd use layer masks. And now you’re creating images unlike what others are making.
So what’s my point?
What’s considered an “accomplishment” varies from moment to moment. And “accomplishments” don’t have to be “I invented basketball” or “I discovered the cure for polio,” or “I invented the ice cream cone.”
Our lives are marked with accomplishments of all sorts. The trick is to be aware of them. To recognize them as you go along. And to celebrate yourself for accomplishing them.
The first time you had to drive on the “wrong” side of the road in another country — that’s big. (Especially if you’re driving a stick shift.) The first time you stood up in a karaoke bar and belted out “Tie a Yellow Ribbon ‘Round the Old Oak Tree.” Or created a wonderful meal for 19 people that seemed so effortless on your part. Or stuck some forsythia twigs in the ground last fall to see glorious sprays of yellow appear this spring. These are tiny, seemingly inconsequential accomplishments. But once you learn to recognize them, you will see your self-esteem and confidence building.
In art, you will see your leaded glass designs become more sophisticated. Your purse designs will become freer and more interesting. Your photographs will begin changing, showing more thought, more purpose, rather than looking like everybody else’s.
Accomplishment, no matter how small, builds confidence.
Confidence encourages experimentation.
Experimentation begets something new and different, no matter what your art.
Watch what you do today. And when you see yourself doing something cool, celebrate it! You never know where that will lead you.
©Carol Leigh
And the above photo? It all began with my simply making black marks on paper. (Thank you, Laura.) I then bent, folded, spindled and mutilated them until I came up with this. Not sure where I'm going yet, but it's fun, it's a small accomplishment, it's an experiment. And we never know where our experiments might take us, do we?
