Productivity when working under pressure

photo by Mark Velasques, contestant on Work of Art

I got into a conversation with a very close friend last night about the upcoming Bravo reality show, Work of Art:  The Next Great Artist.  This friend of mine may be the most creatively-talented person I’ve ever met.  Everything this woman puts her hands on comes out beautiful.

We were talking about how difficult it would be to be a contestant on that show… to be forced to create something amazing with a ticking clock.  Designing jewelry, writing a script, or any other creative activity that requires you to come up with something new and intriguing is not something you can just pull out of thin air at any moment.

And yet I was thinking later that maybe it’s better for some artists to work that way.  Last month for the Cyberspace open, I had twenty-four hours to put together Chester.  I was able to focus, keep my ass in the chair, and get up early the next morning to finish, all because I knew I had to submit something and I didn’t want it to suck.

It’s very easy to get up from my desk and do the laundry or ferminate my cat when there’s no ticking clock.

So, I’m excited to see how the contestants do on Work of Art (which premiers at 11pm EST tonight on Bravo, by the way).  I have a feeling they’re going to come up with some amazing ideas.