Last Wednesday night in our foundations class we were shown a screening of Art city in which they covered the life and works of three different artists. We were asked to comment on their process, my immediate reaction to that night is what follows . . .
The best part about the process is that it can completely justify a piece. Often times today in art the process can be the piece; the final product has been slowly dissolved into the ether, substituting vomit on the canvas for a honed oil painting.
The videos we just watched clearly showed the way in which artists think of their process as the end all be all. For them the process can be almost more important than the final product. The process is what they have to deal with while they’re wasting away their hours in front of a canvas. Some have a perfectionist attitude – careful, collected, and precise, others are freer, taking risks and not worrying about getting messy. Process is not always about what goes on physically though, often process involves the thought development before the work is started - the story or memory behind it. Usually that’s more fascinating than the actually piece itself.
My arm is getting tired from writing this semi-rant so ill close with this: process is for the artists; it is about the enjoyment of it. Artists are selfish and most of that selfishness is reflected in the process, sacrifice process and you sacrifice your ability to make intriguing art.
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