from Inside the Painter’s Studio, Joe Fig (p. 127):

Lastly, what advice would you give a young artist just starting out?

Ryan McGinness: “I think there is something to be said for ‘stick-to-it-ness.’ You have got to be in it to win it. And I think it is important to recognize if you are an artist or not. Build a life and a career that accommodates your being an artist instead of trying to be an artist. It’s either something that’s in you or it’s not, and you can not fake it. I would say to not worry about being an artist or trying to make art, just kind of make whatever you have to make, and then build a life around that.

“I think that was one of the biggest breakthroughs for me, just realizing . . . because I went through a period where I was just trying to make art, and consequently I made things that were really imitative. There was no real model or precedent for what I liked to do, but when you realize that you just have to do what you do and not worry about whether or not it fits the mold or a model of what art is, then you’re truly making innovative or breakthrough — and at the very least honest — work.”

Go to Ryan McGinness’s site.