Do we learn most from our failures?

Looking at Art:

The Olympic skater, Nathan Chen said “…you learn most from your failures”, after his failed attempt at a gold medal in the 2018 olympics and his come back to win the gold in 2022. Perhaps failure is part of being human and high expectations and perfectionism do not always serve us well.

I attended an exhibition of Cezanne’s drawings In September at MOMA in NYC. and was stuck by the fact that although many of his drawings on view were magnificent, others were unremarkable. Is it possible that Cezanne used these less striking works to learn and grow? Have you seen work by a favorite artist that you did not like? Do you consider these pieces less successful than the other work? Is it possible for famous artists to fail?

Work in the Studio:

Working in my studio just about full time since I retired from teaching art, I believe that producing a lot of art, even if not all of it is wonderful has made me a better artist. Each time I reject a piece after working on it, I have learned something. The wash drawing shown here is one I made long ago while trying to teach myself how to paint with watercolors. The reference photo I used was of my mother’s family.

The Lodico Family, Watercolor, 10” x 13”