Becoming an Artist: A Surprising Biographical Project

Abstract

The aim of the following essay is to provide a more precise analytical insight into the development of artistic mastery and artistic identity. The professional biography of a young sculptor, told by herself, serves as the qualitative data basis. The interpretation method applied here is a variant of the so-called ‘reconstructive hermeneutics’ developed in a range of own qualitative studies. Theoretical background is Michael Polanyi’s phenomenological knowledge theory. The interpretation discovers interesting stages of the protagonist’s artistic development: hidden influences from childhood and youth, ambivalent experiences during the various studies, a surprising ‘coming out’ as an artist, a sort of ‘inauguration’ and finally a deep trust in her own artistry. The surprising result is not only a profound insight into the complex process of artistic creativity and the paradoxical becoming process of artistic identity, but also the discovery of clear limits of Polanyi’s knowledge model as it ignores the undeniable influence of biographical experience on the tacit knowing of gaining artistic mastery.