On Judgement
¨... Throughout the whole history of art, committees and juries, whoever composed them, have failed to pick winners...Oh yes, there are a few instances, but they are so few that they only serve as exceptions to prove the rule. To cite one great instance. Take the history of art in France. Practically every artist who today stands a glory to French art was rejected and repudiated by the committees and juries. To award prizes is to attempt to control the course of another man´s work. It is a bid to have him do what you will approve. It affects not only the one who wins the award, but all those who in any measure strive for it. It is an effort to stop evolution, to hold things back to the plane of your judgement. It is a check on a great adventure of human life. It is negative to the idea that youth should go forward. It is for the coming generation to judge you, not for you to judge it. So it must happen, whether you will it or not...¨
¨...To struggle for an open forum for exhibition without the control of juries, and for greater opportunity to all for self-education, means an exercise not only of benevolence but of mind. To do this is not to be an old fellow reposing in the past and interfering with the future. It is part of the building of greater opportunity, and whoever participates in it is still alive and young, and will profit by it, for in the field he has helped to open there will grow new and wonderful things, and among them he may choose and judge in the way which is his right, that is, for himself, not for others. He may award with his personal appreciation, or pass money by purchasing, but this will be a personal affair....
...Prizes generally go amiss. The award of prizes has the effect of setting up a false discrimination....
...We must realize that artists are not in competition with each other...
...Help the young artists, find for them means to make their financial ways easier, that they may develop and fruit their fullest- but let us not ask them to please us in doing it.
If we find, individually, that any of their works please us, let us buy as far as we can, and rouse others to buy from them according to their personal choice. In doing this there will be quite enough judgement exercised. In fact if we become in this way participators in the new adventures, it is likely that our powers of judgment will broaden. I cannot conceive of myself as a buyer only of old pictures - turning my back on the adventures of today...
...Finally, I say - don´t force the prize game on the ¨deserving young artist ¨ - leave it for the old children of our own generation to play with and let it die with them.¨
- Robert Henri, The Art Spirit (pg 139 to 140)
As an artist, I struggle to follow Robert´s wise advise. I cannot help but want to enter competitions, and try to find some level of recognition as I did this past week. As emerging artists, prizes, competitions, benefit auctions and gallery shows, all help in networking, getting your name out there and depending on how you manage it all, learning from the experience. I am even grateful to those who organize the benefit auctions, competitions, collective shows and other events for all the opportunities they are helping to provide.
Yet, it is important to always keep in mind that what you learn from the experience is what is truly important. If you are not selected, you should not allow yourself to wallow in your grief. You should ways trust your instincts and not derail from your own individual path. If your work is recognized, it´s good as well. We are all human after all and enjoy the recognition. Yet, as Robert smartly stated, winning a prize should not define who you are as an artist.
When I won my first grand prize last year, I could not help but think that there were artists far more deserving than I. I wanted to find the jurors and ask them why exactly I had been picked. After getting past my initial surprise, I finally rejoiced and enjoyed the victory. I proudly walked with a huge smile for weeks afterwards. I shyly blushed and smiled when ever someone happened to mention my accomplishment.
I participated, was selected and rejected from additional events though out the year, managing to keep myself grounded. I enjoyed the wins and got past the rest without there being much reflection.
Yet, on the same competition where I had won the year before, I found myself pressuring myself and struggling to keep my head in check. When I was notified that my work had not been selected as a finalist, it got to me. In truth, I found that this year´s piece was equal or in some aspects better than the work which had won first prize the year before. I celebrated my friends that had been selected, and consoled the ones that had not - along with myself. Initially I even came up with several arguments in my head as to why my painting had not made the cut. Later I came up with an idea for next year´s painting. Finally, I grew from the experience, realized I still felt the same way about my work: I loved and was proud of it, despite the judges verdict.
I listened as mentors reminded us we were lucky not to have been selected, as we would not allow ourselves to get attached to an idea, a frame of thought imposed. It was then that I remembered another mentor - now farther from this world, but ever present in his words- who had made such an impact to me before. I decided I want to continue down this creative path, to own my ideas and opinions, and finally admitted one cannot please all tastes. I do not want to compete against other artists as much as I want to compete against myself. Yet, this is and should not be as important as the daily joy that comes from creating something positive and beautiful. The joy of finally seeing on canvas or paper a vision of my creative world.
Ironically after I reached this conclusion, I was notified I had been misinformed and that my painting was in fact selected among the finalists after all. Curiously though, I have not been able to celebrate this ¨victory¨. My mentors´ words might finally be growing and spreading within me. A seed might be sowed. I still plan to continue competing though, I just want to master my thoughts and feelings towards judgements and competitions.
Posted 25th October 2012 by Lilly