Be Nice to Your Art!

This afternoon I was stressing over something I’ve been working on when John came in to see what I was doing. I explained that I was stuck—and really annoyed—so he said: “You know, you really should be nice to that piece of art, and just enjoy it.” I realized he was right. I was taking the whole thing way too seriously (as usual), so I decided to relax about it all. Before I knew it, everything had come together and I was on to something new.
Have you ever noticed, though, that the more you work on something, the more complicated it gets? Emma was looking at some of my recent ATCs tonight, and the ones she liked best were simple and done quickly. Does this mean I should give up when art becomes challenging? I don’t think so. The pieces I agonize over usually end up teaching me the most. Everything else is a gift.