The Loving Refinement of Reflective Arts
Balancing Process with Craft when Creating Peace Within & All Around
While, as a practice of peace, the heart of reflective arts is primarily process-centered, refinement of our creations can be a highly valuable part of the process. In fact, it’s often where the greatest growth, healing and transformation occurs. My first draft often contains blindspots that are only revealed as I allow for the critical view that comes with editing and refining my creation.
That being said, the process of refinement can be very delicate. So, let’s take a look at a couple of those tender spots:
The Equity of Refinement
It’s important to note that refinement takes resources:
It takes time, both to learn the craft (in general) and to refine each creation
It often takes money: for education, materials, tools, and/or collaboration
With that in mind, levels of refinement are often correlated with the extent to which a creator has access to the time and resources that are required for that level refinement. This is to say, degrees of refinement often come with questions of equity.
That being said, the heart of reflective arts (as a practice of peace) is available to everyone:
All Levels of Creative Experience and Talent Can Make Reflective Art. The creative prompt (to see life as a mirror) creates an inherently artful perspective. Anyone can do it.
Those with Busy Lives Can Make Reflective Art: the process of reflective arts only takes as much time as you have to give it. Scribbles in your journal are enough.
Those with Limited Resources Can Make Reflective Art: notes on napkins are just as valuable as notes in fancy notebooks.
That being said, on the foundational level, in reflective arts, refinement is an added bonus that is self-set (not a rigid set of external standards). That being said, here’s some
Helpful considerations when refining reflective arts:
Substantial Refinement: How effectively does my creation meet my aim?
In Reflective Arts for Peace Within (read more here), refinement is guided by the question: To what extent is my creation benefiting my life?
In Reflective Arts for Communication (read more here): refinement is guided by the question: To what extent does my creation benefit my relationships and/or the wellbeing of others?
Technical Refinement: How effectively am I executing the craft?
For the Technical Standards of the Craft, refinement is guided by the question: How can I create a polished look/experience with my medium?
For the Technical Standards for Sharing on Media, refinement is guided by the question: How can I make the sharing of my creation on media as clear as possible? (as glitches, smudges, rough edges, and other inconsistencies can distract from what’s really being offered. I look more at this in the next article here).
The Limits of Perfectionism
We live in a culture that runs rampant with perfectionism and unrealistic standards of what it is to be human. In this context, many are often afraid to be shamed and/or punished for anything that falls short of these perfectionistic standards. Similarly, we live in a culture that exalts the idea of “talent”, which proposes that some people don’t have to work as hard to make a perfect creation, and that those people are more special than those who have to work harder at it. Both the fears around perfectionism and the judgements around talent can be hindering in the creative process.
As such, it can difficult to know where to draw the line between valuable refinement and exaggerated perfectionism. I know from personal experience that once I let my inner-perfectionist loose, it can always find something more to criticize and refine. Without boundaries here, I can get lost in thinking that my creation is never good enough, which can both inhibit me from sharing with others, and limit the benefits of the creative process in my life; if I’m stuck in the critical view (that’s required for refinement), I can lose touch with the heart of my creation, which is to positively support my life, as well as those in my community. Read more about my personal dance with perfectionism and refinement here: Evolution’s Loving Peace with Perfectionism.
All that being said, here’s some:
Helpful strategies when balancing the heart of reflective arts with the refinement of them:
Sometimes I start with a timer because it:
Squashes the creative blocks that come from trying too hard to make something perfect or profound
Allows for a more automatic and authentic expression
Reassures that there’s time to create within a busy life
I give myself deadlines: If I want something to be more refined, I give myself more time. But I don’t give myself unlimited time. I am tough with myself: Whatever I’ve created at the end of the deadline is what it is. Period. At that point, I accept anything that might still seem “flawed”.
(Paradoxically) I make Living-Art: I communicate, as part of my brand, that my art is process-centered. As I grow, so do my creations. Nothing is ever truly finished. I unabashedly admit that there is always room for improvement.
I aim to be as resourceful as possible. I value creative work-arounds and used-materials as part of the art itself.
In conclusion, the process of refinement is a very personal thing that’s influenced both by our personal priorities and our access to resources.