I really connected with what Wiley says about feeling like an imposter. I feel like that all the time! When I think about it rationally I know that I have a lot of experience in what I do and shouldn't feel that way about myself. But it's interesting what you say about class, race and gender as systemic elements that make people feel like imposters. You can never take those things out of people. Add to that the language that is used around art as not being a proper occupation, and the difficulties of surviving financially, I think it must impact on identity and confidence for many many artists. It would be interesting to do some proper research on it.
Firstly, what wonderful paintings Wiley makes! Secondly, just thinking about it from a different perspective as a consumer of art rather than a maker, I've always felt a bit intimidated by it, by whether I am understanding it in the right way, and whether what I say is right etc. What is it about the Art World that makes it feel so alienating both for artist and consumer?? I know they are different subjects but also what we're dealing with here is about a feeling of discomfort about not quite belonging. If that makes sense.
Even the Detroit art microcosm is highly competitive with a distinct hierarchy of galleries and artists. You can’t show in the commercially successful spaces unless you’re selling and it’s difficult to sell outside of those spaces, particularly without the desired pedigree of the ‘right’ degree from the ‘right’ institution. There are definite prejudices and can’t emphasize ‘it’s who you know’ enough.
The ones who make it—and by ‘make it’ I mean enjoy a stable existence on an art and art related career—are the ones who are willing to do what’s necessary to keep it all going. There’s a woman in my realm who recently declared she isn’t going to make art anymore because she can’t support herself on it. She’s a victim of the fantasy which we have Van Gogh, Hemingway, etc. to thank for the image of what a ‘real’ artist’s life looks like. Most who are moderately to wildly successful have jobs. A lot teach, which, gratefully is considered ‘acceptable’ work for a ‘real’ artists. Many have some kind of help like a spouse who has a good job and can make a mortgage payment. Somewhere in there we never give up on the chance we might, someday, make to The Show. While we wait for that breakthrough moment, we’ve still got it pretty good.
Kudos on going mostly paid. We have the same bills everyone else has. If anyone should get paid more it’s those of us who contribute to the quality of life. What’s life without art and poetry? Pretty dull.
Hi. I wonder whether ‘imposter syndrome’ is an occupational hazard for serious artists who, as Wyley infers,come to tackle the problems in art that the really big names in the traditional or contemporary canons have done. Going up against the big names and their achievements must at some level feel like a preposterous attempt to join that club. Wyley demonstrates perhaps that it is possible to put himself in contention with the ‘greats’ of portrait painting and be comfortable with himself.
Such an interesting view ! IP is a homogenous construct informed predominantly by samples of white women, and the scales used to measure look at different dimensions, and critically ignore systemic bias. On top of this most of the published research has been focused on the individual rather than the context, what we measure and therefore think of as IP isn’t robust enough to cover the reality of IP in 2023.
Nonetheless, from the literature we can group imposter into feelings of fraudulence, the fear of exposure (which is so interesting when you consider artists and exhibition) and thinking in ‘Im just lucky’ terms rather than talent or skill (again super interesting when you consider the art world goes in cycles and fashions)
The extra things that specifically show up for entrepreneurs (my sample actually included creatives and artists) and I think translates well for the art world, there’s varying control over the visibility of representation of their work. I called this the visibility trap in my research because entrepreneurs need to innovate and be visible to get their innovations out in the world.
Especially for Black participants in my research , narratives echo themes around low or marginal social positionally, visibility in this sense often comes in hand in hand with expectation they will be representatives for black voices and experience
There’s something really interesting about artists though, people with imposter spend a lot of time thinking about imagined audiences, and I wonder how for the professional identities of artists actors and writers that imagination is swinging back and forth at a greater velocity than someone who has a smaller audience, who works in an office for example. My participants describe this as an exhausting place to be, it absolutely impacts productivity.
The biggest theme I found in my research was risk, people with IP have an amazing capacity to assess and manage their social situations according to a perceived (and somewhat inflated) level of risk. They find risk averse ways to put out their work and take part, Hiding in plain sight, behind a brand, perhaps a piece of art.
People with IP actively shrink or contain their world to manage risk when IP feelings are rife! It’s a helpful strategy in small doses. It’s career limiting in large doses.
There’s also two opposites with imposter for entrepreneurs that can again be relatable to the artist community, first up, comparison behaviours (in this context other artists and the competition for scarce resources and the right exposure) that are attributed to avoidance and risk management, and secondly appraisal of collective identity, this appears to be a helpful comparison
technique when used to navigate community, and this makes me think of artist collectives, and spaces where artists are literally housed altogether in studio spaces or presented side by side in galleries. This idea of side by side with others who can extend our network in helpful ways, he clients or competitors is known as context collusion. Mostly we see examples of this online as it gives rise to more collusion without the barriers of geography, class, race etc.. but it exists in real life too, online is just an extension of our real world.
I love Wiley’s idea of “turning his insecurities into his content” and how that made him an “interesting person.” I think imposter syndrome in the arts has less to do with artists’ belief in their talent and more wondering if they really have something valuable to say to the world. Once we recognise we all have ideas and stories to tell, we can release from that. I’ve seen Wiley’s work at art fairs and then went to the Boston MFA showing of the Obama portrait: his work is so remarkable in person! I know that’s been a topic recently in regards to other artists you’ve looked at in this newsletter. I mean his reproductions are beautiful, but the in person statement: this portrait is raw and real and matters...it’s so tangible in his work. There is a kind of aura that I think comes purely from his recognition of his own vulnerability.
I really connected with what Wiley says about feeling like an imposter. I feel like that all the time! When I think about it rationally I know that I have a lot of experience in what I do and shouldn't feel that way about myself. But it's interesting what you say about class, race and gender as systemic elements that make people feel like imposters. You can never take those things out of people. Add to that the language that is used around art as not being a proper occupation, and the difficulties of surviving financially, I think it must impact on identity and confidence for many many artists. It would be interesting to do some proper research on it.
Firstly, what wonderful paintings Wiley makes! Secondly, just thinking about it from a different perspective as a consumer of art rather than a maker, I've always felt a bit intimidated by it, by whether I am understanding it in the right way, and whether what I say is right etc. What is it about the Art World that makes it feel so alienating both for artist and consumer?? I know they are different subjects but also what we're dealing with here is about a feeling of discomfort about not quite belonging. If that makes sense.
Even the Detroit art microcosm is highly competitive with a distinct hierarchy of galleries and artists. You can’t show in the commercially successful spaces unless you’re selling and it’s difficult to sell outside of those spaces, particularly without the desired pedigree of the ‘right’ degree from the ‘right’ institution. There are definite prejudices and can’t emphasize ‘it’s who you know’ enough.
The ones who make it—and by ‘make it’ I mean enjoy a stable existence on an art and art related career—are the ones who are willing to do what’s necessary to keep it all going. There’s a woman in my realm who recently declared she isn’t going to make art anymore because she can’t support herself on it. She’s a victim of the fantasy which we have Van Gogh, Hemingway, etc. to thank for the image of what a ‘real’ artist’s life looks like. Most who are moderately to wildly successful have jobs. A lot teach, which, gratefully is considered ‘acceptable’ work for a ‘real’ artists. Many have some kind of help like a spouse who has a good job and can make a mortgage payment. Somewhere in there we never give up on the chance we might, someday, make to The Show. While we wait for that breakthrough moment, we’ve still got it pretty good.
Kudos on going mostly paid. We have the same bills everyone else has. If anyone should get paid more it’s those of us who contribute to the quality of life. What’s life without art and poetry? Pretty dull.
Hi. I wonder whether ‘imposter syndrome’ is an occupational hazard for serious artists who, as Wyley infers,come to tackle the problems in art that the really big names in the traditional or contemporary canons have done. Going up against the big names and their achievements must at some level feel like a preposterous attempt to join that club. Wyley demonstrates perhaps that it is possible to put himself in contention with the ‘greats’ of portrait painting and be comfortable with himself.
Such an interesting view ! IP is a homogenous construct informed predominantly by samples of white women, and the scales used to measure look at different dimensions, and critically ignore systemic bias. On top of this most of the published research has been focused on the individual rather than the context, what we measure and therefore think of as IP isn’t robust enough to cover the reality of IP in 2023.
Nonetheless, from the literature we can group imposter into feelings of fraudulence, the fear of exposure (which is so interesting when you consider artists and exhibition) and thinking in ‘Im just lucky’ terms rather than talent or skill (again super interesting when you consider the art world goes in cycles and fashions)
The extra things that specifically show up for entrepreneurs (my sample actually included creatives and artists) and I think translates well for the art world, there’s varying control over the visibility of representation of their work. I called this the visibility trap in my research because entrepreneurs need to innovate and be visible to get their innovations out in the world.
Especially for Black participants in my research , narratives echo themes around low or marginal social positionally, visibility in this sense often comes in hand in hand with expectation they will be representatives for black voices and experience
There’s something really interesting about artists though, people with imposter spend a lot of time thinking about imagined audiences, and I wonder how for the professional identities of artists actors and writers that imagination is swinging back and forth at a greater velocity than someone who has a smaller audience, who works in an office for example. My participants describe this as an exhausting place to be, it absolutely impacts productivity.
The biggest theme I found in my research was risk, people with IP have an amazing capacity to assess and manage their social situations according to a perceived (and somewhat inflated) level of risk. They find risk averse ways to put out their work and take part, Hiding in plain sight, behind a brand, perhaps a piece of art.
People with IP actively shrink or contain their world to manage risk when IP feelings are rife! It’s a helpful strategy in small doses. It’s career limiting in large doses.
There’s also two opposites with imposter for entrepreneurs that can again be relatable to the artist community, first up, comparison behaviours (in this context other artists and the competition for scarce resources and the right exposure) that are attributed to avoidance and risk management, and secondly appraisal of collective identity, this appears to be a helpful comparison
technique when used to navigate community, and this makes me think of artist collectives, and spaces where artists are literally housed altogether in studio spaces or presented side by side in galleries. This idea of side by side with others who can extend our network in helpful ways, he clients or competitors is known as context collusion. Mostly we see examples of this online as it gives rise to more collusion without the barriers of geography, class, race etc.. but it exists in real life too, online is just an extension of our real world.
I love Wiley’s idea of “turning his insecurities into his content” and how that made him an “interesting person.” I think imposter syndrome in the arts has less to do with artists’ belief in their talent and more wondering if they really have something valuable to say to the world. Once we recognise we all have ideas and stories to tell, we can release from that. I’ve seen Wiley’s work at art fairs and then went to the Boston MFA showing of the Obama portrait: his work is so remarkable in person! I know that’s been a topic recently in regards to other artists you’ve looked at in this newsletter. I mean his reproductions are beautiful, but the in person statement: this portrait is raw and real and matters...it’s so tangible in his work. There is a kind of aura that I think comes purely from his recognition of his own vulnerability.