Introduction
In Part 1 of The Reluctant Artist, Steve introduced us to the challenges he faces along his photographic Journey. Now, in Part 2 of this essay, Steve continues his narration by outlining new challenges. As with Part 1, these are challenges that many artist's face and that many of us can relate to.

Alain Briot


The Reluctant Artist--Part 2-- by Steve Pope
As Alain has so graciously posted my first essay on being a Reluctant Artist, I thought it fitting that I should continue on the theme of persevering through difficulties, something we all face in our growth as artists.

Rejection.  One word that has haunted artists throughout the millennia.  It hurts, even if we use it as we should, to spur us on to better efforts. The more we put of ourselves into an image, a work of our heart, so to speak, the worse the pain at rejection of that piece.  We have all experienced it, and as visual artists, the feedback we get is nearly instantaneous.  I suppose if I was a poet and someone rejected my work, I could say that they needed to read it again and again until they "understood."  However, most painters and photographers create works that are straightforward, with any subtleties in the details, or composition, or tonalities.

Rejection can be discouraging, too.  Interesting word, "discouraging" in that it combines "dis" which is always a negative with "courage" which is exactly what we must utilize to put our efforts in the public arena in the first place.  It takes guts to display our work.  (dis-courage: to take away courage)

As much as we say to ourselves, and perhaps others, "It doesn't matter if they like it or not, I like it", this is just a shibboleth, a small falsehood.  It DOES matter, why else would we want to exhibit our images?