As artists and creators, we create from a vulnerable place of passion, a personal need to express ourselves, and a deep desire to communicate our feelings, thoughts, and perspectives with others. When we create a piece of art, an article, or a social media post, we put it out there for the world with a big share of our emotions and a set of expectations! Often, people think that artists fear rejection, hate, or failure, but you know what most creators stress about? What if no one cares about my art and what I create?
No one cares about my art!
And they don’t have to! do you care about all the things you come across?
There is an infinite amount of content online and offline. Humans have been creating for centuries, some creations have stood the test of time and some were amazing and went underappreciated for a reason or two. I know that nowadays, it’s very hard to create solely for the purpose of creating, we create to prove our points, support the existence of our personal brands, close clients, make money, and make a living out of what we enjoy but what if the work we create isn’t doing what it’s supposed to be doing?
Your art and creations are part of a journey
Someone told me, I have been making art for 10 years and I still don’t get the recognition I feel like I deserve. If anything, you need to realize that that’s also the feedback you’re getting! How can you be more flexible, try something new or adapt your art and marketing strategies to lead to what you’re trying to reach?
In my opinion, it’s a great period of time in the life of any creator when no one cares about your art or not that many people care about your creations. You can be so experimental with your journey of finding your niche and audience because you are not yet linked to a framework in the mind of your readers, fans, or followers. It’s also a great time for you to slowly master the courage of showing your true authentic self to the world.
If my art keeps going unnoticed, should I just stop making art?
I know you stress about numbers just like everyone else and I can’t tell you to stop doing that because, in a digital world, numbers do matter! However, create and keep going. Do not look back! No need to check and count your views because the feedback you’re looking for will not come to you overnight. Posting online means dependence on algorithms and algorithms value consistency, shock, and controversy.
The more you create, the more you learn. When I typed my first blog post, I thought it was amazing and worth a million views, and looking back at it after two years of blogging, I realize that it’s not as awesome as I thought at the time and have come to write blog posts, schedule them and only check on my progress and page views monthly for work deals.
Understand that the voice inside of you that keeps telling you: “I should stop creating because no one cares about my art” is the voice of perfectionism. What you think is awesome, may not appeal to everyone else. Taste is different and art is a product of taste and aesthetics. Instead of linking your art to your ego and self-value, see your creations as a fact of nature. You are a human and you need to create.
No one cares about your art because you’re comparing your journey to someone else’s!
Online, when you see a popular artist, you assume that their work is getting them popularity but what I learned from working with public figures is that often these people have hopped on a trend, it worked for them and they kept doing the same thing over and over to maintain their social status. And that’s not necessarily a bad thing! But as an artist and a creator, is that what you want? or is there a different motive behind your work other than money and popularity?
I personally love seeing authenticity over trends and repeated patterns. As a creative, I know we get different ideas and different interests on different matters that I personally can not bring myself to stick to one thing religiously and keep doing it over and over. I feel a magnetic pull to people who don’t stick to a thing and let themselves evolve and experiment with the things they love!
Conclusion
The lines between giving up and keeping going are blurred when you are not getting the feedback you are looking for. But you can figure out the changes your creation process strategy needs for more reach.
You may find this article interesting: Building a Creative Career: The Importance of a bold online presence for Artists
1 Comment