Knowing when to say . . .
24 March 2008 2 Comments
I was able to spend some time in my clay studio tonight before my hands become too cold. While modeling the clay in my hands I was reminded of a certain aspect of the artistic process that I’ve yet to write about on this blog.
To borrow a cheesy tagline, “know when to say when.” This is a straight forward principle but one that’s not always taught. It’s easy to overwork a painting or a sculpture, turning a successful artwork into more work or ruining it altogether depending on the material. It was the material, clay, that reminded me of this tonight. It’s said again and again among artists, but you have to respond to the medium.
So true. I’m often telling my students, “you’re clay is tired.”
By the way I think it is possible to overwork a piece so much it comes out the other side and is beautiful again- it’s really being somewhere in the middle that seems lifeless.
My favorite works have been the ones where I’ve “done” the least, and let my tools and materials speak for themselves.