Art and the Beauty of Not Knowing

I've been thinking a lot about uncertainty and ambiguity in recent weeks.Perhaps my central challenge as a teacher is to help artists embrace uncertainty; to help them see that ambiguity is where they should spend their entire creative life. And to teach them to welcome it with open arms because that is actually where the magic happens.During my recent Find Your Joy course, I began a new body of work by experimenting with work on paper. I filmed the process and shared it as part of the course. Frequently, students asked 'how will you turn those pieces into finished work?' or 'when will you move from paper to wood panels?'The fact is that when I started the series, I had no idea. Art-making just doesn't work that way. Authentic work develops and evolves naturally - we can't force it or plan it and when we try to do that, we kill it.But artists who are just starting out often want answers - what is my voice? How can I develop a unique style? What should my work be about? How do I create abstract landscapes?In my view, the mission of the artist is to explore these very questions for him or herself. The answers evolve out of the work we make. If we wait until we identify our style, we will never make art. If we wait to find out how to make an abstract landscape, we will never paint one.Instead we must just start making work and making discoveries and following our intuition (which already knows what we should be doing). And we MUST become comfortable with not knowing, because our best art comes unexpectedly.I am currently working on a series of paintings inspired by the poetry of Ted Hughes and the work has been evolving and changing constantly. At each stage, I have followed my intuition, listening to that little voice that whispers 'what if you ...?' or 'why don't you ...?' As a result, some of the paintings have been a genuine surprise.This 4ft x 3ft canvas for example, which seemed to pour out of me almost fully formed.It is not actually finished - I still have more things I would like to add - but I am thrilled and excited by it, and I could never have planned it.I suspect this is what separates working artists from those who give up - some of us are just willing to embrace uncertainty. We welcome it. In fact, we actively seek it out because we know we can't make meaningful work without it.So, if you find yourself frustrated with the results you're getting, ask yourself if you need to shift the way you think about your work. Are you pressuring yourself to produce results? Do you want to know the end point before you even begin?I'd be excited to see what would happen if you let go of that need and simply embraced the unknown.Being an artist can be a lonely business, but we can help each other out by sharing our struggles and our successes. I do that each week in my artist newsletter - it's my goal to ensure everyone feels supported and connected. If you'd like to join me, just sign up for my artist newsletter and get a weekly dose of inspiration direct to your inbox.