Art, Identity... where are the lines?

I recently read a post by Russ Masterson.  It inspired me to consider how I view my art.   Here it is:

"I think artists (and as a writer I’ll consider myself one) are plagued with the worst disease – self doubt. Somebody, like a grocery store manager, doesn’t deeply battle with their work like an artist does. Probably because in managing a store you’re either right or wrong, and the task at hand doesn’t birth from the core of you’re being. But the artist doesn’t have this privilege; since all the work is from the heart artists reveal themselves to the world. It feels like getting naked in front of everyone you know.

So, there’s all this uncertainty and doubt once something has been created – is it right or wrong? Is it any good? Will people admire it?

We too easily let these questions be about us (i.e. Am I any good? Am I valuable?) rather than the work, but we can’t let our justification for existence come from that which we produce or the approval we earn. Justification is always given, not earned. (I personally suggest the unconditional love of God for the quenching of this need.)

I’ve begun to think that art is always right, that even bad art is good in some sense, because creating is the point. And you have to create bad art to eventually create some good art. If this is true, even if you don’t find yourself in the refuge of God’s love, you don’t have to let your art define you."

-Russ Masterson