Fear in art

one of the many unfinished paintings hanging around my studio

The fabulous Mary Zeran recently blogged about a topic very near and dear to my heart.  Fear...rearing it's ugly head during the art-making process.  I was reading her post and nodding vigorously, muttering "Ugh this is so very true."  Especially for me right now - I have been stuck in a bad pattern in the studio (for a few months now) which goes something like this:

1.        Make a painting.

2.        Fall desperately in love with it.

3.       Minutes later, realize it is actually mediocre at best and that it needs to be pushed, and probably MUCH farther.

4.       Become consumed by fear that I will “ruin” it and end up never completing it, letting the piece sit in the studio until the end of the world.

I currently have 3 large pieces sitting in this limbo of incompletion.  It's time to remind myself that a painting is not "precious" and the whole point is to grow in my work and I won't get there using my current 4-step process.  Berating myself for being back in this place of fear will do me no good.  I think it's time to let go and throw caution to the wind!