Skip to content

Why Real Artists Ship

David Sherry
1 min read

Getting through a large volume of work – the artist continually exposes one's self to the market.

With each additional composition, new terrain has been uncovered and translated to the audience.

And the conversation between the artist and audience can improve.

Does the audience have the context to understand it?

And, did the artist translate it in a way that it resonates within them, as well as the artist?

At the root of beautiful art is miscommunication.

A misunderstanding is what the artist sees – or feels – and uses the work of art to resolve it, like a totem brought into a dialogue to provoke a lens change.

And so art is both about miscommunication, but also about the resolution of miscommunication.

This is subtle, because if you take it too far and you shut down the audience's willingness to accept or see what's been made.

But if you don't go far enough, and you fail to find a soft spot worth exposing.

Real artists ship because they are willing to be misunderstood, while they find their way to having a good conversation with their audience.

And why shouldn't they be misunderstood?

They are attempting to bring new truths to culture.

The only way through is to keep going. To expose oneself and keep learning. To keep seeing, keep translating, keep adjusting. This exposure is difficult for those who don't see that it's part of the process.

Real artists ship because Art is a conversation.

As Adam Robinson says…"Everything… EVERYHING is a question and an answer."

Real artists ship because to find the answers, you have to pose the question.

xx David

Creative LessonsArtist