I sometimes get people saying something along the lines of, “Ah, you’re modest, that means you’re a true artist!”. This is of course bullshit. Why do people think this? A true artist, if such a definition is even required, is shown through their artwork. They must think it makes them sound smart, but they are trying to be nice at the same time so i wouldn’t hold a grudge against them for it or anything.

Modesty is a bit of a strange thing. When someone is being modest, you could get the feeling they are so because it results in the viewers perception of the artwork to seemingly improve. With low expectations, the ultimate result has more of an impact.

For example, you may have someone tell an artist that their piece is really good. But what if the artist had previously stated that it wasn’t very good? The viewer could as a result say, “No, it’s GREAT. Better than i could ever do,” and as a result the modesty is used in a negative way. It’s used to psychologically alter a viewers perceptions or reply. It’s used as an ego boost.

Being modest is fine, but i can’t help to have this idea in the back of my head - even when i am being modest myself. Actually agreeing with someone that your work is good i find is much more difficult, with fear of sounding arrogant. Saying, “i’m quite proud of myself,” seems to be the easy way round this. However it gives the impression that you weren’t proud of yourself for previous things, it actually makes the viewer sympathize on a very subtle level.

~Larwick.