As the name suggests, the chapter starts by describing the fear of the artist: not being good enough and what I can only describe as impostor syndrome an the feeling of alienation to one’s art. It really tackles the (wrong) idea of the Artist as genius, as someone that was born with a divine gift for the arts. (this discussion actually remind me of a great essay called (Why have there been no great women artists? By Linda Nochlin)
This idea of the genius artist is confronted by 4 main ideas: Skill can be learned, ordinary people make art, viewing and making are different roles, and art making is something older than the modern view of art.
I’ve always hated the distinction between arts and crafts. For me it only feels as if one practice is less difficult than the other, when each one has its difficulties and requires skills. (In my opinion there is also a link of crafts being perceived as a feminine activity, but I don’t really have proofs). This separation comes from the difference between something learned and something innate. Anyone can make crafts, only Artist can make great art.
This chapter also go over the fact that art is personal, but does not define the artist. This also shows the importance of differentiating the process and the result, specially when it comes to see the roles as an artist and as a spectator. I liked how it explains art as a modern concept, because yes art existed before, but it was not perceived the same way. (I wonder how this concept has been recently affected by technology)