I like to imagine creating an art piece as taking a long journey. It first starts as just a concept, then steps into information gathering, production issues and finally evaluation. It is during this evaluation stage that I must decide if the work is finished. This decision usually hinges on a couple of things. First, is did my message come thru?
What purpose would my art have without a message? It is the heart of the piece. That is a well accepted thought. The struggle comes when I must decide how much to say and how much to leave to the audiences imagination. There is a delicate balance there that requires me to retrace my originalintent and then ask myself if I was successful. Often, with the best of effort and intention, I fail at this. Either the message is so loud that it is offensive to the viewer, or it is so ambiguous that the viewer would not have a clue as to what I was communicating. I then have to examine what is redundant and remove it, or what it missing and make it clear. Once I am satisfied that the message in the work is concise and yet readable, I feel my work in that area is complete.
Another area where my work must be examined before it is declared finished is in it’s craftsmanship. I may have stated the intent beautifully and the structure of the work is accurate but the craftsmanship is lacking. Perhaps the painting technique put emphasis in the wrong area of the canvas, or the sculpture needs to be sanded to remove unsightlyridges or diverts. It would be a shame if my concept was not received simply because of lack of craftsmanship. This final review of the work must be done objectively, as if I was seeing the piece for the first time. If I feel I can not view it objectively then I ask someone else to look at the piece and give me their impressions.
When both the message and craftsmanship satisfy me, I can pronounce a piece finished. Of course it also helps to sell or give the piece away afterwards. Otherwise, I may see it ten years later and find a new perspective on it’s completeness.