STAGE SIX - MASTERY

In this stage there is a massive increase in self confidence. Intuition is relied upon more than ever before in the making of your art. You have a better ability to control or not control the art process. You have become nimble in the ability to be spontaneous and decidedly controlling. You have trust in the outcome. Your art takes another big shift forward. There is the deep realization that the more un self conscious you become, the more you are able to let go the better and easier your art becomes. it is now more joyful but also remarkably stronger. Making art becomes more natural. There is increased interest from galleries, institutions and collectors. Your fan base increases. Your Art now has been completely integrated with your life. Discernment increases about what you spend your time doing as well realizing the tremendous value you give others. Your practice in life and Art sets an example for many. There returns to your life a joyfulness and a buoyancy carried by the realization of your own accomplishment. This stage is marked by a sea of possibilities for you. You might be invited to teach, speak and of course show your art. If selling your art is of interest to you this stage is filled with this reality. The joy and spaciousness your art practice creates overflows into other areas of your life.

The single biggest learning achieved in the Mastery stage, however, is the realization that the Creative Path is not actually linear, but instead a loop. A circle. The Mastery stage returns you to the realization that the most engaging stage worth revisiting is right back at the beginning where you first began. The awakening stage. This is where desire is created, this is where the fire resides to forge all you have achieved and will achieve in the remainder for your creative life. It is all about that initial excitement, that passion and the curiosity to learn and eventually one day master something new. This is the beginner mindset and it’s inherent value is deeply understood and acknowledged in the stage of mastery. As your mastery solidifies in this stage all that remains to do is to begin again. Fresh, vulnerable and willing to discover once again who you, what kind of art you can make and who you will become. It is this fact, this awareness that ensures your future growth and provides sustainability to your life and career as an artist.

Suggested additional viewing:

INSPIRATION #93 DAVID MANKIN

INSPIRATION #92 ANN ARTZ

INSPIRATION #91 STACY PHILLIPS

INSPIRATION #90 CAROLINE MILLAR

INSPIRATION #89 SUSAN ALMQUIST

INSPIRATION #88 CHESTER ARNOLD

INSPIRATION #85 MAX HERTZ

INSPIRATION #84 PETER VAN DYCK

INSPIRATION #83 DAN MCCLEARY

INSPIRATION #82 SOPHIE TREPPENDAHL

INSPIRATION #81 MIRIAM HITCHCOCK