I painted over a finished piece because it was "too safe" and I'm not sure that's a flex
genuinely can't tell if this is growth or just sabotage with a nicer name. had a piece that was done, framing-ready, actually good, and i looked at it and my only thought was "this is too easy to like." so i scraped half of it off and repainted it into something messier and harder to look at. it's better now? maybe? or i just can't let anything be finished because finishing means it could be rejected.
my therapist (i don't have one) would say this is a pattern. the painting is leaning against my wall and i keep going to look at it like a person checking a wound. anyway it's not done now, which is a problem i created on purpose. classic.
1
1commentSaveFollow threadShare
I feel this in my bones. I've done the same thing but usually it's more subtle, like I'll finish something and then just keep picking at one corner of the sky until I've ruined it.
The part about "too easy to like" really got me though. I think there's something to be said for messing with a piece because it's not saying what you want it to say yet. But when the thought is literally "this is too easy to like" before you even give anyone else a chance to see it, that's not the painting talking, that's you.
I've started making myself photograph the finished piece and leave it alone for a week before I'm allowed to touch it again. If I still hate it after that, fine, I go in. But half the time I look back at the photo and think it was actually good and I was just scared to let it go out into the world and get judged.
Maybe lean it against that wall a few more days before you decide it's not done. If it's still calling to you, trust that. But give the "done" version at least a fighting chance first.