I am writing all of this excellent advice, (and thank you so much to the 3 kind people who have let me know that they have been finding it helpful), but I am not following it myself, so I need to get some things off my chest:
I Confess:
- I haven’t painted anything in ages! Ouch! It hurts to say that! I want to paint, I think about painting – I have recently tidied out my painting area, but I seem to get caught up in mundane chores, and before I know it, the day is gone.
- I have spent more time in front of the computer this week, than I have spent on my art work in the last month. Ouch again!
- I suspect that I may never be more than an artist –wanna –be.
- Some of the things that I paint and draw, I think are rubbish.
- Some of the things I paint and draw, I think are fantastic, but I am so mightily shocked that I made them, that I am sure that I can never do it again.
- My current sketch book is empty.
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Does this sound like you? Is there hope for us?
Fortunately I always think there‘s hope and I am ready to kick start my creative routines and get working again. In fact, I quite like a little shake up and a fresh start. So where to begin? Here are some ideas that I am working on.
- Accept your feelings. It’s OK to feel that I have no talent. It’s OK to feel that my work is rubbish. I need to accept these feelings, but not be overwhelmed by them. Feel, but work anyway.
- Find a place to work and make it your own.
- Set your working hours. Just knowing when my work time is, helps to get me in the right frame of mind.
- Set a quantity goal – so many hours a day, one small sketch or painting a day, something that you think you can manage – be realistic. There are great examples of artists who are working on daily projects that over time add up into interesting bodies of work. You might like to look at Karin Jurick’s 100 Faces, or Kirsty Hall’s Diary Project or look at Matt Kish’s fascinating images on his blog, One Drawing for Every Page of Moby Dick.
- If you are finding it really hard to get going, get someone to work with you – at least some of the time. I have set up a painting date, once a week with my good friend and fellow artist Judy, this is a great way to get me working again, and it doesn’t feel like work!
- Dust off your sketchbooks and journals and carry them around with you. These always make me feel like a real artist. Look out for future posts where I discuss different sketchbooks and notebooks and ways of using them.
Some Great Resources
- The Creative Habit , by Twyla Tharp
- The Creative Person's Hierarchy of Needs, by Cynthia Morris
Quote of the Day
"Most people aren't as creative as they wish they were, because they haven't mastered strategies for creating while life is going on around them."
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