Why do paintings fail?

Looking at Art:

To explain why paintings fail, the Taiwanese artist, Chien Chung-Wei said: ”Lack of Skill or familiarity with the medium is maybe only 10 percent. The other 90 percent results from not knowing what you want to present.” This accomplished watercolor artist may be onto something which all artists and students of art should discover with their own work in order to succeed. Do you think that the masters always knew what they wanted to present to viewers while they created their best work?

 Work in the Studio:

The painting shown here is one that I put aside. The idea was to capture the spirit of the inauguration with the celebration that included the arts. The piece includes four portraits and getting them integrated in the same painting seemed so overwhelming at the time, that I decided to leave it unfinished. I took the watercolor block out recently and when I saw the painting, I decided to give it another try. The completed piece was still a challenge, but I took it on as a learning experience even though the topic may seem a bit dated now.

The Inauguration, Watercolor, 19” x10”