The Heart of the Artist: Constructive Criticism

What was most striking to me from the first half of “The Heart of the Artist” was Rory Noland’s treatment of constructive criticism. He points out that artists are often very sensitive about their work and that there is a level of vulnerability about artists when they create or perform. Often, when artists receive constructive criticism, they are hurt or resent the input. This is very applicable to me because in displaying my visual art, I expect purely positive feedback. It’s a little different than Noland’s description of musicians; while they can make mistakes as they perform, I can rework a piece until it reaches my standards before anyone ever sees it. When people critique my work, I often dismiss it thinking, “They know very little about art and have no visual interpretation skills. Why should I listen to them?” However, this is such a prideful, self-protective approach that likely hinders my growth as an artist. Perhaps feedback from people who do not participate in visual art could have better insight in some areas than those who do because they are able to point out communication flaws and misunderstandings. I need to honestly listen to constructive criticism and use it to grow as an artist.

Symbols of Advent and Liturgical Services

One thing I’ve never taken notice of is the different ‘Christmas’ seasons of Advent, Christmas, and Epiphany. Use of the symbols discussed in the text could enrich believers’ experience when celebrating Christ’s birth. Although we use an advent wreath every year at church, the meaning of the colours of the candles has never been explained. Out of all the candles, I only remembered that there was a Christ candle. It seems that the meanings of some traditions at Christmas are not always explained well. I like that there are many untapped symbols that could add visually to some aspects of community celebration of Christmas. For example, the Advent rose and the Jesse tree could be very interesting and beautiful icons used in multimedia presentations or liturgical art.
Another topic discussed in the text was the order of liturgical services. I visited a Greek Orthodox church last year with no foreknowledge of that type of structure, or knowledge of the Greek language, for that matter. Although Klein does not discuss Orthodox services specifically, seeing an order of similar services helps to make sense of that experience.