On Friday I tried to “make a painting”. I planned the whole thing out so that I would feel confident in the application of the paint. And I made a MASSIVE FLOP. On a large, beautifully stretched paper canvas. It was painful.
Today, I remembered that it can’t ever be about the finished piece. It can only be about the process. Starting and not knowing how it will end up. Getting lost in it. Making delicious marks and new discoveries.
Art is such a weird thing. The best art happens when you play, when you switch off any thoughts about whether anyone else will like what you make, and make for yourself. It’s like a little cave you have to go into, to find the source. And then you can slowly move outwards again, pretending the world isn’t there and no one is looking.
Read MoreWhen you work on large projects, it can be very easy to become overwhelmed. Making Skillshare classes is like this. From idea to finished class is a MASSIVE undertaking.
Since publishing my class "Watercolor Without Fear: Painting for Pattern Design" in the summer, I have been painting in my studio, and also grafting away on Part 2 of the class. And, *drumroll please...* this week I finally got to the Finished Pattern Stage!
Today I am thinking about art in a new way: art as a flow of energy. You see, this morning I felt low. I read a thread on one of my social networks which confirmed that the cost of everything is going up, and incomes are going down. It made me question my chosen path, worry about my employability, re-evaluate my strategy.
Then I sat down to paint. I do this because I need to. It is my moment in the day of calm. It’s MY time, where I listen to a podcast, get lost in the world of whatever I’m creating, and put aside all my problems for a short while.
Read MoreFor over a week I’ve done bad painting. Little bits of this and that, that didn’t hold together, didn’t feel good, didn’t amount to anything. I told a friend I’d forgotten how to paint. She said, you can’t forget how to paint, you just need to play. She was right, partly. I had forgotten to play, but there was more to it than this…
If you’re in that space where everything you make sucks, and where everyone else appears to be better than you, hold onto these three things…
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