There is a very distinct difference between the education system that I came out of and the experience of the art studio. It lies fundamentally in the fact that by and large our education system does not deal in problem formulation but only in problem solving – the answer of course is always at the back of the book. We are solving problems which have already been thought through…there is already an answer. Our job as students is to discover through study that one answer.
The experience in an art studio – at least mine, is the very first thing is to formulate the problem to solve, which is vastly more complex that solving a prescribed problem. What does that mean to formulate the problem to solve? In my view it goes very deeply into the existential question of discovering one’s own self and because each of us is unique and individual we must do the hard work of creating our own particular formula – our own blueprint to follow, our own map to chart. This is after all at the core of the creative process. In the purest sense the art studio is where we discover our own personal inner selves, our own essence and our own unique experience. Even if the studio is only a corner of a closet with a small desk lamp, this must be the place where form is expressed from an inner awareness, an inner discovery. Art is manifestation but only after the artist first lays out a course of formulation.
The so called artistic formula however is in my experience constantly in flux. Every small increment of growth, every artistic expression that becomes manifested opens an even new portal and so our old formula is outdated right away. We find ourselves searching yet again, like peeling off the petals of a rose we discover the need for yet another formula relying, by the way, on intuition and a certain sensitivity to inner impressions. The much heralded artist Francis Bacon created a decent enough formula for his own personal discovery but then froze it in time. He shut himself off from any future portals. He just keeps re-examining and re-hashing an old formula for personal growth and very quickly got himself caught in an eddy. This is my view.
An art studio to have any real purpose and any real vitality must strive to be authentic. I believe fervently that authenticity must be immensely sensitive to each and every small inspiration and then, once discovered must begin again from that new vantage point. This is artistic advancement, this is artistic growth – but it is also and no less important, personal inner growth. I expect the word formulate must be related to the term fermentation which we all know is that chemical response that causes vapors to create spirits. This is so vitally important to an artist – this process of allowing ourselves to discover our own personal images. There is meditation involved. There is effort here to get a ‘fix’ on something and this is what I mean by formulation and then, with that fix (even if initially vague) begin the creative process. We are not artists if we are not expressing – we cross over from being formulaters and become artists. The formulation of the problem which is our own personal interpretation of our ‘condition’ should be conscientiously sought after before the work commences. This is what gives life to a painting and its relative force.
Fortunately for the artist, again in my experience, we can definitely begin with just a kernel of conception. Our own personal formulation might be disturbingly illusive and so, we need courage to begin the process of manifestation. Very small beginnings will often open up incredible new vistas of expression – one movement of the brush seems to trigger another slightly different movement, one hue seems to inspire an adjacent and contrasting hue. A certain vibration that was just hinted at in early formulations begins to take on a truly resonate tone, a vibrant tone. This is when a painting truly begins to develop its own energy and force. This is why abstract art can be such an invigorating way to discover oneself as an artist. This is the kind of thing that should be occurring in the art studio.