What are the stages of the art-making process?

Understanding the creative process in visual arts from concept to completion

How would you describe your creative process in art?

Becoming aware of the steps you walk from concept to completion, and consciously examining each of these steps individually will help you better understand your creative process and its outcomes. It will also boost your artistic creativity and help you find more inspiration for your art.

In this blog post, I’ll break down the art-making process into stages, address the concept of “failure”, and reveal to you the secret to successfully dealing with so-called “bad art”.

There are 3 main stages in the making of art:

1. Find

2. Transform

3. Gift

In this specific order.

You should never start with the end in mind when you make art. So, let’s start with finding (not searching).

1. Find

This is where a new creative process begins. It’s the inception phase, which often starts with a gaze. Look closely and slowly around you and inside yourself. Observe, dive in, and wonder. Don’t forget to listen at the same time. Like the Persian poet Rumi said:

“You look past your thoughts, so you may drink the pure nectar of this moment”.

Collect input from nature, from other visual artists, or from within yourself. Gather things that interest you, speak to you, and awaken your spirit. Then research the things you love, and notice patterns. Make unusual associations between familiar objects, materials, textures, forms, structures, and colours.

Gather plenty of rough ideas – so many potential ways to explore, combine, and transform reality into something else, unique, and meaningful!