Anyone who has practiced Vipassana meditation is probably familiar with the situation: you sit and observe the sensations you have in your body. Develops awareness to them. Some of the sensations are pleasant and some are not. The significant task is to remain indifferent to them. Not to become miserable with, or afraid of the sensation of discomfort, and not to crave or wish for pleasant sensations. Slowly you realize that it does not matter what you sense but how you are present: the more (aware and) indifferent you are - the better.
The same goes for painting (three paragraphs and you will get the connection ...)
Who does not want a good result? Who does not want to look at a painting, one's own creation, and feel pride? There are those who come to my studio with a fixed fantasy of where they are going to hang this amazing painting they are about to paint right away, here, in the studio. They have the colors in mind, and maybe even the right composition that will fit the sofa. All that is left is simply to make it. Piece of cake.
The problem is it does not work that way. I know because I've tried. Sometimes I dream of a painting. When I wake up, I know exactly what to do. I come to the studio target oriented. All I have to do is to create what I have in mind. But somehow it just does not work. Even if I manage to do something similar to what I dreamed, it comes out ... how to say? A little forced. Does not flow. It is just not it!
Here it comes:
The trick is to let go. Have no expectations. Not to wish for any result. Walk into the unknown. Just paint. Probably we will enjoy most of the time, but there will also be moments of frustration. Never mind. What matters is to keep on going. Dedicate yourself to the process. Understand that this is the significant thing.
When you begin painting while having a fixed plan, you do it from your mind. When, on the other hand, you flow with the process, you do it from the heart. Even Marc Chagall said: "If I create from the heart, nearly everything works; if from the head, almost nothing."
Obviously, from time to time, we do need to have some good result, one that will give us an incentive to keep on with it, but to begin a painting with such an intention? This is not recommended.
Tricky.