2024 07 23
Art and hands and colors and ideas. Emmy Star Brown at Vertical Gallery. Chicago, Illinois. May, 2024. © Clayton Hauck
Today, a note to self:
I’ve been a bit hard on myself lately and I feel the need to remind myself of the original aim of this here photo blog. While walking to the studio this morning, I spent the walk thinking in my head about how to word what I wanted to say. While I was doing this, The Artist’s Way audiobook was playing into my ear drums but delegated to the background of my inner monologue. Fortunately, my brain picked up on it because the words being said to me were almost exactly what I wanted to say myself.
Remarkable timing combined with listening to what the Universe is telling me: It’s impossible to get better and look good at the same time. In order to recover as an artist, you must be willing to be a bad artist. Give yourself permission to be a beginner.
This blog was started on whim as a place for me to post words and text without the pressure of needing to be great. I’m a firm believer in limitations leading to improvement, so I gave myself some loose rules I would need to follow.
No posting images from the archives (a few exceptions, sure).
No posting images from personal projects unrelated to my daily artistic photo making (I’ve made thousands of images this year for a separate project, none of which have been posted here even though it would increase the quality of images being shown).
Minimal posting of images made for paid assignments. Basically, if they are artful and fit the vibe or match up with something I’d like to write about, sure, but my aim is not to make this space my commercial photography portfolio.
One post every day, regardless of whether or not I have anything I’m excited to share or have the proper amount of free time to write something thoughtful.
With these loose rules, the aim is not to become a rich and famous fine art photographer overnight, but to slowly rewire my brain to think more artistically each and every day. I realize most people will not care to look at my images of trees or flowers or cats or hands, but again, I’m doing this for myself. Some days I will have posts that I am proud of and share more widely. Many days I will not.
This concludes today’s note to self.
-Clayton
