THACKLEY TRUMPIT FEBRUARY 2014 ART CLUB

The Living Well ART CLUB

Meets Tuesday mornings, 10am - 1pm,

at St. John’s Hall, Thorpe Edge.

By Jeff Thelwell

As it is the beginning of the year I'm going to have an annual moan about the people who say "I'm no good at art so I don't do it". It isn't that we need more members (although you are always welcome) it's just that this outlook is so negative and only applies to what we perceive as creative pastimes. Lets take some examples.

None of us were born with the ability to drive a car. However we didn't say" I'm no good at driving so I don't do it, "we took lessons and a test and now enjoy the experience. Some of us are better at it than most. Some of us became professionals. Some of us even became famous due to our skill, but that doesn't stop the rest of us driving from A to B with only the        occasional bump.

My wife is a first class knitter and informs me she learnt the basics at school and through usage, trial and error, and asking other knitters improved her skills as she clothed us with her efforts. What she  didn't do was give up before she had even begun!

The world is full of butchers, bakers, candlestick  makers. Doctors, nurses, and people who cater. Plumbers, builders and candifloss makers. And you know what? They all started off not being very good at their skill. But rather than say "I can't do it" they took the point of view that they could learn and surprise, surprise, they did .

So why is it that when we see something as "CREATIVE" we expect to be experts from the start, without need of practice or improvement. True, some will be better than others. Yes, some may earn their living by their creative prowess, but that should not stop the rest of us enjoying the experience even if we do have bump or two on the way.  Make 2014 the year you became a creative person by dropping the "I can't do it attitude". Have a go and enjoy the doing.