Is it normal to hate your art? - Creationism Corner

I do animation and the occasional song outside of work and my feelings about it are strange. While I'm passionate about what I do when I'm writing it, animating it, music making, etc. whenever I see the finished product I hate it and I feel embarrassed sometimes. But I don't know what I hate about it, it just seems more of some broad generic hatred for it. Even though I warm up to what I make months after I finish it, I can't stand to look at it at times until then. I remember bringing this up a few months ago with someone else and he said it was normal kinda, but I wanna know if every creator has this feeling and its natural or if this is some effect of depression or anything similar I might have. Also I apologize if this isn't the right place to put it. Like even though it isn't showing off artwork, it's something that might appeal to creators and help them, I wouldn't know.

It's fairly normal for people who are instant gratification personality types. I'm sort of like that. It's hard to look at your art when it's not where you want it to be and it can get very frustrating. But honestly? I think it's okay to hate your art as long as you're using it constructively. Next time you finish a piece, write down certain things you don't like. Force yourself to look for areas of improvement or areas you can do better. Then start on a new piece with those areas in mind. Don't let your distaste for your current progression level be a reason you stop creating.

it's normal. i am very rarely satisfied with the things i create. but eventually i had to learn to stop picking at that feeling in the back of my brain and move on, take a look at things in retrospective. instead of "i hate this" i can now safely say "i've completed it. here it is. it exists. now i can do better than this in the future."

Adding on to what Pascall said, it can be quite beneficial to be critical of your own work. You never want to be complacent because then you would stop learning and improving Perfection is not attainable, but if we chase perfection we can catch excellence

It's the curse of doing anything creative; you never see what you've accomplished, only what you could've done better. I think the best way to deal with it is to see it as another step to doing even better next time.

[QUOTE=thejjokerr;52058452]Not sure if it's just creativity. Reminds me of me taking a tour around the construction site my dad was the project manager at. It looked pretty good to me but he kept pointing out just the flaws. Might just be a healthy working attitude as long as you don't become overly perfectionist or let it get you down.[/QUOTE] I'd still call that something creative, but I have a pretty lenient definition of art And yeah, it's not a bad thing to have, just don't get caught up in worrying about impossible things.

If course it's normal to hate (or not really be proud of) anything creative you make because no matter how hard you try, it will never be as good as how you originally envisioned it.

feeling like you aren't doing your best is great fuel for doing newer, better things next time, every time. There's a graphic people bring up often in this, the gist of it is that you're always improving, just sometimes your knowledge gets a bit ahead of performance and it causes frustration [t]http://orig01.deviantart.net/4410/f/2015/097/c/c/art_cycle_by_shattered_earth-d5g8bt8.png[/t] some people get stuck in the art low phase because they're frustrated and give up for long periods of time, and/or they're just that far advanced in evaluating their art that they remain hypercritical for a long time

Reminds me of a time I did an oil painting for class. I decided to be ambitious and attempt to paint a colorful and chaotic favela in Rio. Everyday I would spend hours laboring over it and just pouring over reference images, but I could never seem to get the layout right, and I could never seem to get the right colors. It was pretty much the last week of school so I had to finish it without getting in all the details I wanted. My teacher suggested I submit it to the end of the year district-wide art show. I didn't want to because I hated it, but she insisted. By the end of the show the judges put a 1st place ribbon on the painting I considered a failure. Man I remember being really confused but that was probably the first time I came to realize what the creators curse was.

As someone going through studio education with dozens of other skilled creatives I can tell you that everyone is jealous of everyone else's work. You need to learn to be proud of your work while also acknowledging what you could have done better. Every painting is an accomplishment whether it is good or not. As open mike eagle said on Harmontown, "the only enemy is stopping."

Miyazaki has said that he can't bear to watch his own films because he just sees everything wrong with them, and that he only starts a new one to make up for the last one

I begin to hate my work because I have Read/Listened/Watched it for hours at a time, no matter how much effort I have put into it, I see it as bland and worthless. Imagine starring at the same thing over and over again for hours, with small changes made to it constantly. Looking back on work from 2-3 years ago, I began to appreciate them a bit more.

i certainly hate all of my work most of the time so i think its relatively normal to dislike your work compared to other people considering you worked on it and you experienced how to make all of it most of the magic is gone

i love my art. i don't think it's good but i love it all the same sure it can be frustrating, or difficult, or things aren't working the way i want them to, or nobody cares about it. but at the end of the day i can be proud that i'm creating and that i'm creating for me [editline]5th April 2017[/editline] if you find yourself hating your art, it's probably because you're comparing it to other people, or worrying about what other people think. just make some stuff that appeals to [I]you [/I]instead

If frustrated with it at some point in the process you're learning. It's like working a muscle.

[QUOTE=Bynine;52064779]i love my art. i don't think it's good but i love it all the same sure it can be frustrating, or difficult, or things aren't working the way i want them to, or nobody cares about it. but at the end of the day i can be proud that i'm creating and that i'm creating for me [editline]5th April 2017[/editline] [B]if you find yourself hating your art, it's probably because you're comparing it to other people, or worrying about what other people think. just make some stuff that appeals to [I]you [/I]instead[/B][/QUOTE] That's the truth right there Once you stop thinking "oh my depeche mode inspired track doesnt even compare to their worst song" you'll find your works a lot more appealing some you will still consider trash but it'd be a better judgment as it's you who arent satisfied with the work as you, and not someone else, made it and you still have to try and be as analytical as possible with arrangement and stuff

All of the stuff people compliment me on i think is barely passable. Don't get stuck in your own head for too long.

[QUOTE=dai;52058603]feeling like you aren't doing your best is great fuel for doing newer, better things next time, every time. There's a graphic people bring up often in this, the gist of it is that you're always improving, just sometimes your knowledge gets a bit ahead of performance and it causes frustration [t]http://orig01.deviantart.net/4410/f/2015/097/c/c/art_cycle_by_shattered_earth-d5g8bt8.png[/t] some people get stuck in the art low phase because they're frustrated and give up for long periods of time, and/or they're just that far advanced in evaluating their art that they remain hypercritical for a long time[/QUOTE] Unfortunately I get myself stuck in the Art Low forever, at the very bottom of the graph. I dislike how badly I draw so I lose motivation to do it at all. I know I'm not supposed to be good starting out but it feels like I'm not improving because I don't feel like I'm learning when I draw. It just feels like I'm drawing wobbly crap lines and not getting any less wobbly or crap. :disappoint: In general I judge myself too harshly though...I guess I just have to work on that. But I don't really know how either...

[QUOTE=kariko;52083126]Unfortunately I get myself stuck in the Art Low forever, at the very bottom of the graph. I dislike how badly I draw so I lose motivation to do it at all. I know I'm not supposed to be good starting out but it feels like I'm not improving because I don't feel like I'm learning when I draw. It just feels like I'm drawing wobbly crap lines and not getting any less wobbly or crap. :disappoint: In general I judge myself too harshly though...I guess I just have to work on that. But I don't really know how either...[/QUOTE] When I find myself in an art low spot, I switch focus from making art to optimizing workflow and having fun making shitty art with experimental workflows which helps me redirect my criticisms at something that I can fix. This gives me confidence and tool knowledge to boot so I can work my way out of there. It helps immensely.

[QUOTE=snookypookums;52083138]When I find myself in an art low spot, I switch focus from making art to optimizing workflow and having fun making shitty art with experimental workflows which helps me redirect my criticisms at something that I can fix. This gives me confidence and tool knowledge to boot so I can work my way out of there. It helps immensely.[/QUOTE] What is experimental workflows? Or workflow in general? I know it means like, the process of doing something but I guess I'm not sure in this context. I kinda just draw. Then I get mad at what I make and dislike drawing. :pudge:

[QUOTE=kariko;52083224]What is experimental workflows? Or workflow in general? I know it means like, the process of doing something but I guess I'm not sure in this context. I kinda just draw. Then I get mad at what I make and dislike drawing. :pudge:[/QUOTE] For 3D art, I like trying out a different tool to get the same result, compare it to the old technique, figure out the benefits if any.Then I try to time myself, get efficient at it to the point where old technique time comes close to new technique time. [I]Then[/I] I mash them both together to produce something I'm happy with. Set it aside, try something tangentially related to it, while looking at old piece. Observe all flaws now visible with fresh eyes, work on the new one with a goal to fix the problems spotted. For drawing and stuff, it's mostly about using a different medium if I can. I picked up a nice bunch of grey markets the other day, so now I'm trying to use those to do automobile design for my portfolio. :smile:. I'm doing it as a break from life drawing for animation.

If you guys get stuck on things, I'd also encourage trying out new mediums. I was kind of at a stand-still with my art until this semester when I started working with wire, clay, cardboard, wood, and various methods of printmaking. Now I'm entering a ton of shows as they come up and I'm actually looking forward to improving.

[QUOTE=snookypookums;52083232]For 3D art, I like trying out a different tool to get the same result, compare it to the old technique, figure out the benefits if any.Then I try to time myself, get efficient at it to the point where old technique time comes close to new technique time. [I]Then[/I] I mash them both together to produce something I'm happy with. Set it aside, try something tangentially related to it, while looking at old piece. Observe all flaws now visible with fresh eyes, work on the new one with a goal to fix the problems spotted. For drawing and stuff, it's mostly about using a different medium if I can. I picked up a nice bunch of grey markets the other day, so now I'm trying to use those to do automobile design for my portfolio. :smile:. I'm doing it as a break from life drawing for animation.[/QUOTE] Thanks for explaining. I see now! That's an interesting idea.

I think it's good for an artist to have a balanced view of their own work. On one hand being critical and harsh is how you grow and learn from your pieces, on the other hand disliking everything you create can cause a drop and moral and might send you towards giving up. But yeah despite pushing through I hate myself EVERYTIME I create something.it'a something I'I really trying to curb.

[QUOTE=Daniel Smith;52058509]If course it's normal to hate (or not really be proud of) anything creative you make because no matter how hard you try, [B]it will never be as good as how you originally envisioned it.[/B][/QUOTE] i disagree with that, i've been satisfied with my work plenty of times. it just depends on how much effort and time you put into it compared to your expectations. I paint daily watercolor journals and since it's a quick daily thing I'm often pleasantly surprised at how well they turn out. Not always, obviously, but sometimes. A lot of the time I like those better when I look at them a few days later, I've noticed. With longer animation projects I'm usually happy with those too since I expect my best and I always put maximum effort into them. I usually start disliking my work a few months to a year later when I've had time to improve my skills and the old stuff feels embarrassing to look at. But even past that I start to be able to enjoy it again as I gain distance from it to a point where me from a year or two ago feels like a separate artist and i can look at it more objectively without criticising it as my own work.