01-30-2008, 11:10 PM
Yeah, I guess on anatomy and physiology, maybe it is something if I'm trying to do something realistic, but the thing is I don't do realism, I do sort of more abstract things. I work with many different media, and experiment, and find something I really love.
For example, I do sort of eggshell type art and I do little clay figurines. It is not that I can't make realistic clay figures, but that I'm not so very interested in it. I like to do happy, fantasy-like creations, cutesy if you will. Why? Because to me, it's something to escape from the dull drab of reality, and the harsh lines, the angles. I like the more blobby look of clay, like gumbi, etc. So for that when I get criticism, I don't really know what to make of it. I mean some people tell me to make it more 'realistic' and detailed...but 1) On the scale I'm doing the figurines, which is about the size of your pinky, it's very difficult to add a ton of detail. If I do do detail, which ones do I keep detailwise, and what do I not do detailwise? 2) It ruins the carefree childish fairy feeling kind of.
I have done some larger pieces in a ton of detail...but that was for an entirely different audience.
I'm asking this because I'm currently teaching a weekend crafts class for kids ages 6-12, and am getting somewhat weird input from friends and the parents of the students, as well as the students themselves. I mean, the kids seem happy, but the parents seem to expect me to turn them into sculptors..but I myself am not a sculptor-I could try to be, but it isn't something I enjoy? I dunno. It's weird. Even if I do change the lessons somewhat, should I change my own style a bit? Is it somewhat of foreshadowing as to what people want of me??
That and also when I do my own stuff, people give me input, some of which I kept or attempted but then didn't like cause it turned out funky..But sometimes it's okay-ish...
But I really don't wanna lose "originality" by making everything exactly realistic--cause then people give me this, "You're not creative, you're just replicating" thing... x_o'
I just dunno where the middle is on this. And it's driving me nuts trying to figure out when to listen to advice vs. not and sometimes when I don't I regret it, and a lot of times when I do listen, I regret it too. I'm like screwed either way!
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