9 Mar 2007

Art

Posted by joncooper

“I want you to turn that into Art,” my instructor said after I sat down.

I looked at the lump of clay that was sitting on the table in front of me. It was a drab, shapeless red blob that did not remotely resemble a work of art.

“You’ve got to be kidding,” I replied. “It’s a shapeless, ugly lump of clay. How am I supposed to get art out of that?”

“Easy!” he said, gesturing excitedly. “You just take your hands, so, and shape it, like so, and work with it, and pour your heart and soul into it, and voila! You have Art.”

“Uh-huh. Look, professor, I’m no artist; I don’t know the first thing about carving clay. You’ve picked the wrong person.”

“No, no, no! You misunderstand. You do not carve clay; wood, yes, but not clay. Clay must be shaped; it must be molded; it must be designed. I know you can do this!”

I sighed. “No, really, I’m no good at this; I’ve never done this before. There’s no way I can turn this lump of clay into something that is even recognizable.”

“Well, my friend, if you have never tried then how do you know this? Perhaps, with practice, you can do more than you think. Your skill is small now, yes, but you can make it grow; you can water it, and feed it, and nurture it until it blossoms into beauty. But you cannot get anywhere if you do not try.”

I looked at the lump of clay again and got the distinct impression that it was mocking me. A shapeless mass of clay is just not an inspiring sight.

My professor saw my hesitation. “Look. You must start if you want to finish! Yes, perhaps at first your creations will not match your hopes. Yes, perhaps people will see them and laugh at what a terrible sculptor you are. Perhaps you will try, and fail, and try, and fail over and over and over. But through all that you will be learning; you will be practicing; you will be growing. Over time, through trial and instruction and effort, you will learn, and one day – I know this – you will be doing things you thought impossible.”

“But it’s laughing at me!” I said. “The clay is sitting there, laughing.”

“Then laugh back at it!” he replied. “Are you going to let a lump of clay decide what you will do and what you will not do? Is your entire self-esteem dependent upon what a lump of clay thinks of you?”

“Come, now,” he said. “Turn it into Art!”

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