Art & Fear: Observations on the Perils (and Rewards) of Artmaking by David Bayles and Ted Orland

By Andreea Mincu

Santa Cruz: Image Continuum Press, 2001

122 pp. $12.95 (paperback)

I’m not an artist—I’m a phony

I have nothing worth saying

I’m not sure what I’m doing

Other people are better than I am

I’m only a [student/physicist/mother/whatever]

No one understands my work

No one likes my work

I’m no good (13)

These are just a handful of the doubts and fears that plague many …