#111 MASTER CLASS — NAVIGATING THE MESSY MIDDLE
The messy middle isn’t just a hurdle to get past, it’s something every artist faces, including us. In this Master Class, Nicholas Wilton and the Art2Life Caoching team share how they personally work with this in-between stage, where clarity feels out of reach but breakthroughs are waiting. Through stories, practices, and honest conversation, you’ll see the real ways artists move through the fog with more trust and less fear, and how you can too.
WATCH THE MASTER CLASS RECORDING
Jump to a section:
Click the chapter icon (the bulleted list inside the video player) to see and select any part of the video.
Chapters and timestamps are also listed below for quick reference.
- Art Creation Insights: 00:00
- Artistic Experimentation: 02:00
- Letting Go in Art: 10:32
- Artistic Reflection: 36:23
- Navigating Challenges: 39:07
- Creative Energy: 48:15
- Emotional Investment: 56:36
*Please note that guest presenters are not necessarily Academy members available for commenting.
I really appreciate all input in this masterclass. I love the honesty, transparency and ideas you shared. I noted these questions, and I trust I will delve deeper (with this in mind) as a way to move the paintings forward from now on. A special big thanks to Nick on this one for his openness, honesty, transparency and vulnerability. Humility and transparency from the heArt of the masters have great benefits:) That I found really helpful. Owning where we are and understanding why we do not always deliver on an A + level. Thank you. I love these Masterclasses where we have opportunity to learn from those who are a little further down the road. Thank you all:)
I never respected the messy middle the way I do now. Thank you for shedding light on the MM that caused me to see that it is a VITAL point in our art. A time to change directions so that we can see the way to go. Like in life.
We PLAY our way up through the preteen stage. Then the teenage to young adult phase of our lives begins. It can get real messy! But eventually, we feel something pull us to change course, (boredom, maturity). One can ignore it, fight it and get frustrated and or tired, (rebellion and angst), or get curious, ask questions, and begin trying different things, (take chances, learn). Things will suddenly become clearer and we are soon on our way to the finish line. (wisdom, clearer outlook/life plan).
It’s natural and there’s no avoiding it. Embracing it will take some maturity on my part because I feel most alive in the PLAY stage. Maybe deep down I just don’t want to grow up.
Thank you Amy, Marji, Nadine and Nick! I love listening to you all share your experiences . It gave me an opportunity to see things anew … I was reminded of when I experience messy moments in life … in creating … I am learning that this is when I am the most creative. So interesting and, yes, so worth it.
thank you everyone, really made sense and i am in the “messy middle” and have been for a while with my boards from cvp and other paintings, i now see thats its okay and I’m remembering when I’m in that stage that its just paint and after all the feeling i want isn’t “serious” so using BLOOM to come back to play and the joyful feeling i want the paintings to reflect is the process I’m cultivating.
Thank you. Thank you thank you. That was definitely one of the best! So many helpful suggestions.
So much gratitude for you Nick, Nadine, Amy and Marji – thank you for this wonderful Masterclass and discussion. I’ve been struggling to create anything I like (let alone love) lately… this conversation helped me realise, and be kind to myself, that my energy has been donkey deep in other life stuff, really hard, unavoidable life stuff. We need to give ourselves grace and belief in “this too shall pass”.
Thank you; I feel lighter and more energised already ❤️
Thank you! Really appreciated the discussion around Creative Energy. And all of the examples.
Thank you so much, such a great session! I have to let it to sink in…thinking about all my paintings I feel stuck. And you are right! you can FEEL, or I can FEEL, when something is not working and when something just feels right. I am working on to figure out, and your questions 1 to4 will help me, how to navigate and push my work further. Many thanks:))
Such a great session with you all interacting and describing that messy middle stage and yes it resonates loud and clear but is nt it golden when you force yourself to battle over the fear and make the changes you afraid of thankyou everyone for explaining your own battles with messy middles it really puts good perspective on how we should look at this stage as a positive
Like you Nicholas if I am overtired then I have to walk away and look at it another day and sometimes that is the best solution too because you come back re energised and your mind is more open
No painting has to be ever finished as the struggle within can reveal more
Loved this vidio thankyou
Sooooo….about two-thirds through this most excellent class featuring my fave coaches (and, of course, Nick), I removed a 2019 painting from the wall because I realized, SIX years later, that it wasn’t done! I let go and allowed my post-CVP artist’s wildness to run free with marabu crayons and scripto markers and–whole, new, more engaging, dynamic old painting. And yes, I felt that freedom exhale when I allowed myself the freedom to play. As always, so grateful to be learning from and with you.
Thank you for this!! So great to see everyone’s “messy middle”, and how each one of you problem-solves their paintings. WOW!!