Not again... it's the same thing I drew the last 20 times!!!!
January 19, 2023 11:05 PM Subscribe
How do I go about making art with limited time and resources?
I like to make art, and I want to make art. However, 95 percent of my time and energy go elsewhere these days. Whe I do find a moment to sit in my make-art space, I find myself without an idea even where to begin. I fidget, sharpen pencils, scritch away fitfully for a while, get distracted (people talking in the next room! The dryer beeped! Did I pay my car insurance? Oh look a squirrel!) ... scritch away some more, get annoyed with the resulting piece, and stick it in a drawer, there gloomily to molder until I pitch it. In other words, the urge to create is there, but even when I get around the time constraints and distractions, I'm sour at what I produce because it is so very far from what I'd actually like to be producing. It is stilted, shows a lack of practice, and just all-around uninspired.
I don't know how to fix this. In the past, I lived alone and had the luxury of much time to myself. I had a space, not just one with a door, but a door with no enticing distractions behind it. I cannot afford to rent a studio and wouldn't have time to go to and from it if I did. I guess what I am asking is, how do I make the space I have one in which I can calm down and relax enough to make art? It seems that if only I could forget about the rest of the house while I was in there, I might have better luck. If that doesn't seem like it's the problem to you, though, please offer suggestions as to how I can get past what feels like a massive block.
I like to make art, and I want to make art. However, 95 percent of my time and energy go elsewhere these days. Whe I do find a moment to sit in my make-art space, I find myself without an idea even where to begin. I fidget, sharpen pencils, scritch away fitfully for a while, get distracted (people talking in the next room! The dryer beeped! Did I pay my car insurance? Oh look a squirrel!) ... scritch away some more, get annoyed with the resulting piece, and stick it in a drawer, there gloomily to molder until I pitch it. In other words, the urge to create is there, but even when I get around the time constraints and distractions, I'm sour at what I produce because it is so very far from what I'd actually like to be producing. It is stilted, shows a lack of practice, and just all-around uninspired.
I don't know how to fix this. In the past, I lived alone and had the luxury of much time to myself. I had a space, not just one with a door, but a door with no enticing distractions behind it. I cannot afford to rent a studio and wouldn't have time to go to and from it if I did. I guess what I am asking is, how do I make the space I have one in which I can calm down and relax enough to make art? It seems that if only I could forget about the rest of the house while I was in there, I might have better luck. If that doesn't seem like it's the problem to you, though, please offer suggestions as to how I can get past what feels like a massive block.
Develop a routine or find triggers that put you in the headspace. E.g., after dinner a few times a week, go into your space. Make some special tea with a smell that takes you to a quieter or more creative headspace. Get out your paper, and set up your space in the way you like it. A book I'm reading talks about taking a moment to feel gratitude for the plants and people who made the paper and ink and whatnot as you lay it all out. Turn on music that gets you in the right mood. Maybe even have a warm up exercise you do every time (e.g., big looping circles). Then get into whatever it is you want to do. Different lighting (above) also sounds smart.
I also agree with keeping your session times a little short so that it doesn't feel like if you let yourself get on the Art Ship, you will be going on a 6-hour cruise such that you're not sure you can leave taxes etc. behind that long. End at a certain time so that you leave yourself with some energy or momentum left over so that you can easily pick up there again the next night.
posted by slidell at 12:00 AM on January 20, 2023 [1 favorite]
I also agree with keeping your session times a little short so that it doesn't feel like if you let yourself get on the Art Ship, you will be going on a 6-hour cruise such that you're not sure you can leave taxes etc. behind that long. End at a certain time so that you leave yourself with some energy or momentum left over so that you can easily pick up there again the next night.
posted by slidell at 12:00 AM on January 20, 2023 [1 favorite]
I keep a list of craft / art ideas on my phone so when the mood strikes, I can write it down and figure out what I want to work on next. It's hard to mentally be creative at the same moment you're physically creative, so I use those lists and make notes that I can follow when I can physically work.
Some people put ideas in a jar and pull one out of the jar, so you HAVE to do what it says or at least be inspired by it.
You can make your own random suggestion lists, like colors, mediums, subject, etc. Put those into columns and use a random number generator to pull one from each column as a starting point.
Set a timer. [X] minutes of just art, nothing else. Literally anything. Scribbles. Make a shape from the scribbles. I saw someone on social media do an ink splatter every day that they create a character from.
If it's just about creating, perhaps coloring books? Even as a warmup? There are some stunning ones out there.
posted by Crystalinne at 12:05 AM on January 20, 2023 [1 favorite]
Some people put ideas in a jar and pull one out of the jar, so you HAVE to do what it says or at least be inspired by it.
You can make your own random suggestion lists, like colors, mediums, subject, etc. Put those into columns and use a random number generator to pull one from each column as a starting point.
Set a timer. [X] minutes of just art, nothing else. Literally anything. Scribbles. Make a shape from the scribbles. I saw someone on social media do an ink splatter every day that they create a character from.
If it's just about creating, perhaps coloring books? Even as a warmup? There are some stunning ones out there.
posted by Crystalinne at 12:05 AM on January 20, 2023 [1 favorite]
even when I get around the time constraints and distractions, I'm sour at what I produce because it is so very far from what I'd actually like to be producing. It is stilted, shows a lack of practice, and just all-around uninspired.
As a person who would would like to be much better at playing drums than I am, this is a complex of reactions I'm well familiar with.
A few things have helped me work around it.
First is frequent and numerous self-reminders that nobody makes great art from the get-go; always and everywhere, it's all about practice. Just doing it. Again and again and again.
In my case, as well as disappointment in mediocre and generally uninspired results there's the additional emotional drag of the guilt of inflicting horrible noises on all my neigbours. I mean, the drum kit is set up in a shed way down the back paddock but it's loud and there's only so much the inverse square law can achieve.
It's taken many years for those reminders to get me to a point where I'm comfortable with accepting that the only way to become a competent musician involves making outrageous amounts of horrible noise along the way. And one of the things this acceptance has given me is the freedom to lean into the horribleness of the noise at least once during each practice session, which has been great, because several times I've been surprised to find sounds coming out of that process that are actually quite pleasing.
Another thing is frequent and numerous reminders that the person who sits closest to a gradually improving practice is always the one least likely to notice the steady improvement that doing such practice will inevitably bring on. Being the closest person to a process of slow improvement is like sitting and watching the hour hand of a clock: the brain inevitably files that hand under "not moving". But for anybody who isn't keeping a close eye on it, it clearly does move.
If I had a visual arts practice instead of a musical one, so that the natural result of my endeavours involved the creation of a persistent log of my activities, one of the things I'd be tempted to do with it would be to sit down in my totally unsuitable practice space and scritch away at something until it annoyed me, then put it away and stop for the day. And on the next session I would pick up new materials and then, without looking at previous sessions' results I'd deliberately try to remake the exact same thing, including all of its unsatisfactory warts until that annoyed me, and then put it away and stop for the day. And I'd do that until I'd done it at least several dozen times, and only then would I take out all those pieces I'd put away and review them.
None of those pieces you review, by the way, are going to be great and you shouldn't expect them to be. If my experience with the sporadic recordings I've occasionally felt brave enough to make of my own playing is any guide, this will be disappointing. The point, though, is not to assess them for signs of greatness but of change.
I'd bet money that if you lock onto this idea of deliberately limiting at least some of the outcome of your practice to making the same thing over and over and over, then all of the influences that are currently leaving you feeling blocked would redirect themselves to screwing up your consistency instead. I'd also bet money that inside the resulting lack of consistency you'd find unmistakable signs of improvement, both in both your technique and your ability to express yourself in your chosen medium, and you'd start to understand that when it comes right down to it it's never been about the space. It's always been about you learning to thread that internal needle where you actually care more about being in the flow of making art than you do about anything else, including how it turns out in the end.
posted by flabdablet at 12:58 AM on January 20, 2023 [3 favorites]
As a person who would would like to be much better at playing drums than I am, this is a complex of reactions I'm well familiar with.
A few things have helped me work around it.
First is frequent and numerous self-reminders that nobody makes great art from the get-go; always and everywhere, it's all about practice. Just doing it. Again and again and again.
In my case, as well as disappointment in mediocre and generally uninspired results there's the additional emotional drag of the guilt of inflicting horrible noises on all my neigbours. I mean, the drum kit is set up in a shed way down the back paddock but it's loud and there's only so much the inverse square law can achieve.
It's taken many years for those reminders to get me to a point where I'm comfortable with accepting that the only way to become a competent musician involves making outrageous amounts of horrible noise along the way. And one of the things this acceptance has given me is the freedom to lean into the horribleness of the noise at least once during each practice session, which has been great, because several times I've been surprised to find sounds coming out of that process that are actually quite pleasing.
Another thing is frequent and numerous reminders that the person who sits closest to a gradually improving practice is always the one least likely to notice the steady improvement that doing such practice will inevitably bring on. Being the closest person to a process of slow improvement is like sitting and watching the hour hand of a clock: the brain inevitably files that hand under "not moving". But for anybody who isn't keeping a close eye on it, it clearly does move.
If I had a visual arts practice instead of a musical one, so that the natural result of my endeavours involved the creation of a persistent log of my activities, one of the things I'd be tempted to do with it would be to sit down in my totally unsuitable practice space and scritch away at something until it annoyed me, then put it away and stop for the day. And on the next session I would pick up new materials and then, without looking at previous sessions' results I'd deliberately try to remake the exact same thing, including all of its unsatisfactory warts until that annoyed me, and then put it away and stop for the day. And I'd do that until I'd done it at least several dozen times, and only then would I take out all those pieces I'd put away and review them.
None of those pieces you review, by the way, are going to be great and you shouldn't expect them to be. If my experience with the sporadic recordings I've occasionally felt brave enough to make of my own playing is any guide, this will be disappointing. The point, though, is not to assess them for signs of greatness but of change.
I'd bet money that if you lock onto this idea of deliberately limiting at least some of the outcome of your practice to making the same thing over and over and over, then all of the influences that are currently leaving you feeling blocked would redirect themselves to screwing up your consistency instead. I'd also bet money that inside the resulting lack of consistency you'd find unmistakable signs of improvement, both in both your technique and your ability to express yourself in your chosen medium, and you'd start to understand that when it comes right down to it it's never been about the space. It's always been about you learning to thread that internal needle where you actually care more about being in the flow of making art than you do about anything else, including how it turns out in the end.
posted by flabdablet at 12:58 AM on January 20, 2023 [3 favorites]
I draw/paint while watching TV and movies now. This may or may not work for you, but this kind of ADHD quasi-multitasking works great for me.
posted by limeonaire at 12:59 AM on January 20, 2023
posted by limeonaire at 12:59 AM on January 20, 2023
Also cannabis.
posted by flabdablet at 1:03 AM on January 20, 2023 [3 favorites]
posted by flabdablet at 1:03 AM on January 20, 2023 [3 favorites]
Not again... it's the same thing I drew the last 20 times!!!!
The day I worked out that the only thing wrong with this sentiment was the "Not again!" part was a very good day for me.
If I've played the same thing 20 times in a row then I've clearly still got plenty to learn from doing that.
"Repetition legitimizes." - Adam Neely
posted by flabdablet at 1:08 AM on January 20, 2023 [4 favorites]
The day I worked out that the only thing wrong with this sentiment was the "Not again!" part was a very good day for me.
If I've played the same thing 20 times in a row then I've clearly still got plenty to learn from doing that.
"Repetition legitimizes." - Adam Neely
posted by flabdablet at 1:08 AM on January 20, 2023 [4 favorites]
I have a friend who is a painter, and i have often admired his daily routine. What he does is to set himself a goal, eg doing flowers, until he feels he mastered them.
So on Monday he buys a cheap bunch of flowers (eg 5 tulips at Aldi), puts them in a vase and sketches those. Again and again, all morning, every day. They change daily or even by the hour as flowers in a vase will, providing continuing interest and challenge. I think it works well because he does not have to spend time coming up with content every day, rather it is clear the task is to sketch the flowers every day, as petals fall and they droop and then he will buy another bunch after about a week and start again. This way his work or task is clearly defined each day.
Eventually he will move to water colour, then acrylics or oil until the final painting is to his satisfaction. Normally he does not show the sketches but i have seen them and the daily or weekly progress is always visible, in the lines and familiarity with the shapes. They look different each day but yet the same. He says he likes that the flowers change yet remain at the same spot, and also the light changes during the course of the morning.
He does the same pattern (routine task of daily sketching for set lenght of time , of the same object also with stil life (eg some fruit, a bowl), or other objects he finds interesting. Or go to local parks, same spot every day, for months. The point is routine and repetition.
I think it is similar in a way to writers who set themselves a daily target of words.
posted by 15L06 at 1:27 AM on January 20, 2023 [10 favorites]
So on Monday he buys a cheap bunch of flowers (eg 5 tulips at Aldi), puts them in a vase and sketches those. Again and again, all morning, every day. They change daily or even by the hour as flowers in a vase will, providing continuing interest and challenge. I think it works well because he does not have to spend time coming up with content every day, rather it is clear the task is to sketch the flowers every day, as petals fall and they droop and then he will buy another bunch after about a week and start again. This way his work or task is clearly defined each day.
Eventually he will move to water colour, then acrylics or oil until the final painting is to his satisfaction. Normally he does not show the sketches but i have seen them and the daily or weekly progress is always visible, in the lines and familiarity with the shapes. They look different each day but yet the same. He says he likes that the flowers change yet remain at the same spot, and also the light changes during the course of the morning.
He does the same pattern (routine task of daily sketching for set lenght of time , of the same object also with stil life (eg some fruit, a bowl), or other objects he finds interesting. Or go to local parks, same spot every day, for months. The point is routine and repetition.
I think it is similar in a way to writers who set themselves a daily target of words.
posted by 15L06 at 1:27 AM on January 20, 2023 [10 favorites]
When I work from home, water in the background is seriously amazing for my focus. I used to have a tiny fountain I ran, but it broke and I switched to Pandora nature radio. It took a bit to downvote everything that involved instrumentals (too interesting for my focus apparently!), but the difference between having the water sounds on or off while I work is night and day. Maybe combining it with something like a noisy box fan near the door to help with drowning out sounds from the other room would be helpful for you.
posted by Eyelash at 4:10 AM on January 20, 2023 [2 favorites]
posted by Eyelash at 4:10 AM on January 20, 2023 [2 favorites]
Can you reinterpret your drawing time as "time to practice" rather than "time to produce something good?" Don't throw away your drawings because you don't like them, throw them away because you were only ever drawing them to throw away.
There is a lot to be said for practice *for the sake of practice*.
posted by mskyle at 4:35 AM on January 20, 2023 [6 favorites]
There is a lot to be said for practice *for the sake of practice*.
posted by mskyle at 4:35 AM on January 20, 2023 [6 favorites]
Doodle! Anywhere. Everywhere.
Don’t get trapped/bogged-down with compartmentalizing your creativity. Yes, it’s nice to have a dedicated art-making space, but your brain goes wherever you go, and it wants to create 24/7.
Just carry a small notepad and a pen/marker/whatever everywhere, and just doodle whenever the feeling hits you. Just put pen to paper and let yourself wander in those little moments. Quick little 30-second or 1-minute bursts can be very enlightening and freeing. And, the doodles can eventually lead you to more focused work whenever you are able to spend serious time in your artspace.
posted by Thorzdad at 4:47 AM on January 20, 2023 [2 favorites]
Don’t get trapped/bogged-down with compartmentalizing your creativity. Yes, it’s nice to have a dedicated art-making space, but your brain goes wherever you go, and it wants to create 24/7.
Just carry a small notepad and a pen/marker/whatever everywhere, and just doodle whenever the feeling hits you. Just put pen to paper and let yourself wander in those little moments. Quick little 30-second or 1-minute bursts can be very enlightening and freeing. And, the doodles can eventually lead you to more focused work whenever you are able to spend serious time in your artspace.
posted by Thorzdad at 4:47 AM on January 20, 2023 [2 favorites]
You could use a daily art prompt list to ease the mental load of trying to decide what to draw each day. These would also be a great resource for writing the ideas you like on slips of paper to draw from randomly.
posted by rakaidan at 5:15 AM on January 20, 2023 [2 favorites]
posted by rakaidan at 5:15 AM on January 20, 2023 [2 favorites]
My creative outlet is different than yours (I write), but what helps me is having an idea backlog. Literally just a list of things I’ve thought about and might be able to write about but haven’t yet. “Ideas” is a little trickier when it comes to painting, but it’s an abstract concept and you can use it how you’d like.
The benefits are several: First, you’ll always have something to get you started when it’s time. But also, if it’s time and you’re feeling distracted and you can’t focus, you can use that time to add ideas to your backlog. So while you aren’t making anything, you’re helping your future self make something.
posted by kevinbelt at 5:16 AM on January 20, 2023 [1 favorite]
The benefits are several: First, you’ll always have something to get you started when it’s time. But also, if it’s time and you’re feeling distracted and you can’t focus, you can use that time to add ideas to your backlog. So while you aren’t making anything, you’re helping your future self make something.
posted by kevinbelt at 5:16 AM on January 20, 2023 [1 favorite]
Use drawing prompts:
Grab a dictionary. Open it at random. Find a word on that page that provides a visual image. Do your usual art but incorporated the word. The first word I found was "gros de Naples" (My nearest dictionary lists phrases too) which is a type of heavy silk fabric. How could you incorporated that? Look for an image on line if nothing comes to mind. You can incorporate the texture if your ordinary art doesn't include fabric. But if you do landscapes you can try to incorporate that kind of texture such as while representing rocks, or the stubble in a field. Or if the first word that catches your eye in the dictionary is "pumpkin," pumpkin is a colour, as well as a fruit, as well as a seasonal motif.
Go on line and look at images, either someone else's art, or simply images that were not taken to be art but got posted. Find one image and zero in on it closely. What makes that image unique? Find some feature in the art that you can incorporate into your own. It could be the colour palate, the contrast between foreground and back ground, the delicacy of the lines, the expression on the face of a model, the weightiness of the masses.
Set up a morgue of potentially inspirational images.
Set up some goals. Make a list of something that vaguely interests you, perhaps different schools of art: Gothic, Impressionist, pulp cover, Furry, naive... Do five quick pieces over as many days as you need to that incorporate some elements of each one of those styles. At the end of the project you should have done 25 pieces that are slightly different from your usual.
Get a beginner art instruction book that is not your style at all and do the exercises in it, only in your regular style
Do several quick small drawings every day. Forty seconds each should do. Tie it to something you do regularly so you don't forget. Put a small sketch book beside your coffee machine, or in the bathroom.
Regularly look at other people's art. Look at art every day, and actually examine the details and look closely. If you draw manga, reading manga is not enough, as you may stop seeing the stylistic elements. Stop and consider the page. Why is it laid out like that? If you were doing this page would you lay it out differently? What does the page lack? What does the page do well? What are the symbols used to encode things on the page? Is there anything unique about it? Five minutes of thinking like this should help.
Pick an artist that you like and work on emulating their style. Figure out how to change their style to make it your own.
Find a drawing buddy and set the same goals. Compare your art. Find things you like and dislike about their version of it and things you like and dislike about your own.
Do bad art, in case perfectionism is creating a block. If it comes out looking good you failed and need to try again with something new. Try to learn what you did wrong when it turns out well, so it won't fail that way in the next piece you do. Get form right and colour wrong then colour right and form wrong.
Get extra sleep, make sure you are well nourished and hydrated, and that your brain is well oxygenated by a decent heart rate. Do no problem solving or worrying for an hour before you attempt an art session.
When you are going to sleep, think about art. Lie in the dark summoning images. Use structure like you do when counting sheep so that you sleep, or when blocking intrusive thoughts. One: A drawing of a pillar, with grecian fluting. The pillar has both a coarse texture from the underlying stone and yet is polished smooth; Two: a bicycle, ridden by a girl in a large straw hat, intense sunlight making everything soft focused and washed out pastels; Three: a street light with three hanging globes in an empty rain glistening street; Four: a kitten grooming, awkward and snub nosed, all four paws in the air, fluffy fur; Five, laid out like the pips on a dice, a tray of surgical instruments, a man about to do surgery on himself, a tourniquet around one limb to restrict the blood flow; Six, half a dozen schoolboys, all in the same uniform, each one unique, a tall blond, a short boy with a pugnacious jaw, a dream one in spectacles with an awkward smile...; Seven, the heavy heads of chrysanthemums, each one identical and yet different because of the angle in the bouquet, and the way the light hits it. Eight, the identical silhouettes of cranes on a stylized lake at dusk, without using a sunset, just bands of subtle colour behind the birds... Start over when you can't keep track because your numbers are getting high.
Summoning visual or verbal images can take practice, so practice summoning the images every day, even if you can't find the time to record them. Look out your window and imagine how you would turn that into a drawing, how you would subtly change it to make the best use of your space, how you would crop it if you photographed it. Look at your desk and see the shadows of whatever is there and be aware of their shapes and the shapes of their shadows. How would you make those lines? Look at a person. How would you draw their avatar? What symbols are common when drawing a person like that. How could you make a version of them? What would you incorporate in the drawing, and what would you leave out as extraneous distracting detail that wouldn't add to making their character clear? Look at your desk and name the colours. What greys go into the front of your computer, and what high lights would you use. How would you blend the red to make the light look like a light?
posted by Jane the Brown at 5:39 AM on January 20, 2023 [3 favorites]
Grab a dictionary. Open it at random. Find a word on that page that provides a visual image. Do your usual art but incorporated the word. The first word I found was "gros de Naples" (My nearest dictionary lists phrases too) which is a type of heavy silk fabric. How could you incorporated that? Look for an image on line if nothing comes to mind. You can incorporate the texture if your ordinary art doesn't include fabric. But if you do landscapes you can try to incorporate that kind of texture such as while representing rocks, or the stubble in a field. Or if the first word that catches your eye in the dictionary is "pumpkin," pumpkin is a colour, as well as a fruit, as well as a seasonal motif.
Go on line and look at images, either someone else's art, or simply images that were not taken to be art but got posted. Find one image and zero in on it closely. What makes that image unique? Find some feature in the art that you can incorporate into your own. It could be the colour palate, the contrast between foreground and back ground, the delicacy of the lines, the expression on the face of a model, the weightiness of the masses.
Set up a morgue of potentially inspirational images.
Set up some goals. Make a list of something that vaguely interests you, perhaps different schools of art: Gothic, Impressionist, pulp cover, Furry, naive... Do five quick pieces over as many days as you need to that incorporate some elements of each one of those styles. At the end of the project you should have done 25 pieces that are slightly different from your usual.
Get a beginner art instruction book that is not your style at all and do the exercises in it, only in your regular style
Do several quick small drawings every day. Forty seconds each should do. Tie it to something you do regularly so you don't forget. Put a small sketch book beside your coffee machine, or in the bathroom.
Regularly look at other people's art. Look at art every day, and actually examine the details and look closely. If you draw manga, reading manga is not enough, as you may stop seeing the stylistic elements. Stop and consider the page. Why is it laid out like that? If you were doing this page would you lay it out differently? What does the page lack? What does the page do well? What are the symbols used to encode things on the page? Is there anything unique about it? Five minutes of thinking like this should help.
Pick an artist that you like and work on emulating their style. Figure out how to change their style to make it your own.
Find a drawing buddy and set the same goals. Compare your art. Find things you like and dislike about their version of it and things you like and dislike about your own.
Do bad art, in case perfectionism is creating a block. If it comes out looking good you failed and need to try again with something new. Try to learn what you did wrong when it turns out well, so it won't fail that way in the next piece you do. Get form right and colour wrong then colour right and form wrong.
Get extra sleep, make sure you are well nourished and hydrated, and that your brain is well oxygenated by a decent heart rate. Do no problem solving or worrying for an hour before you attempt an art session.
When you are going to sleep, think about art. Lie in the dark summoning images. Use structure like you do when counting sheep so that you sleep, or when blocking intrusive thoughts. One: A drawing of a pillar, with grecian fluting. The pillar has both a coarse texture from the underlying stone and yet is polished smooth; Two: a bicycle, ridden by a girl in a large straw hat, intense sunlight making everything soft focused and washed out pastels; Three: a street light with three hanging globes in an empty rain glistening street; Four: a kitten grooming, awkward and snub nosed, all four paws in the air, fluffy fur; Five, laid out like the pips on a dice, a tray of surgical instruments, a man about to do surgery on himself, a tourniquet around one limb to restrict the blood flow; Six, half a dozen schoolboys, all in the same uniform, each one unique, a tall blond, a short boy with a pugnacious jaw, a dream one in spectacles with an awkward smile...; Seven, the heavy heads of chrysanthemums, each one identical and yet different because of the angle in the bouquet, and the way the light hits it. Eight, the identical silhouettes of cranes on a stylized lake at dusk, without using a sunset, just bands of subtle colour behind the birds... Start over when you can't keep track because your numbers are getting high.
Summoning visual or verbal images can take practice, so practice summoning the images every day, even if you can't find the time to record them. Look out your window and imagine how you would turn that into a drawing, how you would subtly change it to make the best use of your space, how you would crop it if you photographed it. Look at your desk and see the shadows of whatever is there and be aware of their shapes and the shapes of their shadows. How would you make those lines? Look at a person. How would you draw their avatar? What symbols are common when drawing a person like that. How could you make a version of them? What would you incorporate in the drawing, and what would you leave out as extraneous distracting detail that wouldn't add to making their character clear? Look at your desk and name the colours. What greys go into the front of your computer, and what high lights would you use. How would you blend the red to make the light look like a light?
posted by Jane the Brown at 5:39 AM on January 20, 2023 [3 favorites]
Solvitur ambulando.
For a set number of days, use the time you've allocated to creativity to go for walks instead. Make it a sensual experience, breathing deeply, touching trees and stone walls, noticing early signs of spring, etc. so your mind doesn't wander back to your studio. Don't look for inspiration on the way, just walk.
You have to fill your cup in order to draw from it.
posted by headnsouth at 5:46 AM on January 20, 2023 [2 favorites]
For a set number of days, use the time you've allocated to creativity to go for walks instead. Make it a sensual experience, breathing deeply, touching trees and stone walls, noticing early signs of spring, etc. so your mind doesn't wander back to your studio. Don't look for inspiration on the way, just walk.
You have to fill your cup in order to draw from it.
posted by headnsouth at 5:46 AM on January 20, 2023 [2 favorites]
Along the 'doodle' lines - I've been trying (my New Years Resolution from 2021!) to get myself to draw more, and the habit I've gotten into when I don't have a real project is to practice techniques, rather than trying to come up with something new.
I do a Google Image Search for "dog lying down" and fill a sketchbook page with dogs lying in different positions -- some aiming for realism, some using wacky colors, some sketched as fast as possible so they're just a bunch of squiggles and shapes. this can be done in a twenty minutes of free time, and it's not like I'll lose my train of thought if I do get interrupted and have to stop.
This at least flexes the muscles so they don't atrophy, and it's not the 'same' thing every time, plus practice makes perfect.
posted by AzraelBrown at 6:24 AM on January 20, 2023 [1 favorite]
I do a Google Image Search for "dog lying down" and fill a sketchbook page with dogs lying in different positions -- some aiming for realism, some using wacky colors, some sketched as fast as possible so they're just a bunch of squiggles and shapes. this can be done in a twenty minutes of free time, and it's not like I'll lose my train of thought if I do get interrupted and have to stop.
This at least flexes the muscles so they don't atrophy, and it's not the 'same' thing every time, plus practice makes perfect.
posted by AzraelBrown at 6:24 AM on January 20, 2023 [1 favorite]
The thing that finally got me into a sustainable creative practice was Jami Attenberg's #1000wordsofsummer. There's a newsletter as well as a twitter hashtag where writers log their progress and make comments. (But no reading of each others' work or feedback or anything.) As the name suggests, it's for writing, but I think Attenberg had a lot of insights into the creative process. She has a few sessions a year, the longest one in the summer. When a session is in progress she sends you a daily email saying, "Today, you will write a thousand words," followed by some encouraging talk. I just googled to see if there were coaches and people like Attenberg to encourage you in the visual arts, but I didn't see anything and honestly I would encourage anyone trying to keep up an artistic practice to sign up with her. It's free, although you can pay yearly for another level of access.
I am currently in an actual writing program and they have a daily zoom session where you log in and write together. That's surprisingly helpful but again, I am not sure if there is anything like that for visual arts. I think there is something about having a daily check-in an group activity that is very supportive though. On days that I can't make the group session I try to do Pomodoro and that beats the hell out of doing nothing but somehow I think there is a special magic to having other people involved.
posted by BibiRose at 7:31 AM on January 20, 2023 [1 favorite]
I am currently in an actual writing program and they have a daily zoom session where you log in and write together. That's surprisingly helpful but again, I am not sure if there is anything like that for visual arts. I think there is something about having a daily check-in an group activity that is very supportive though. On days that I can't make the group session I try to do Pomodoro and that beats the hell out of doing nothing but somehow I think there is a special magic to having other people involved.
posted by BibiRose at 7:31 AM on January 20, 2023 [1 favorite]
Do some exercises that are designed to get things moving - draw with your eyes closed, draw without picking up your pencil (eyes open or shut), draw with your non-dominant hand.
Try some new materials, like especially wide graphite sticks and pencils. Maybe a type of marker that you don’t normally use. Experiment.
Try some accidental drawing exercises. Close your eyes and draw random lines, then turn them into a finished piece. Make some ink splotches on your paper, turn them into a finished piece. Fill 100% of your paper, no gaps.
Try watching videos of people drawing in real time and follow along. Try instructional videos targeted at beginners with supportive instructors. Often these videos will coach you on being ok with all kinds of output.
Change your location. Draw outside, at the library, anywhere.
Draw with a friend. Or sign up for an online service like Focusmate for a partner to sit with you while you create.
posted by shock muppet at 8:53 AM on January 20, 2023
Try some new materials, like especially wide graphite sticks and pencils. Maybe a type of marker that you don’t normally use. Experiment.
Try some accidental drawing exercises. Close your eyes and draw random lines, then turn them into a finished piece. Make some ink splotches on your paper, turn them into a finished piece. Fill 100% of your paper, no gaps.
Try watching videos of people drawing in real time and follow along. Try instructional videos targeted at beginners with supportive instructors. Often these videos will coach you on being ok with all kinds of output.
Change your location. Draw outside, at the library, anywhere.
Draw with a friend. Or sign up for an online service like Focusmate for a partner to sit with you while you create.
posted by shock muppet at 8:53 AM on January 20, 2023
Not an idea for logistics of space, but for logistics of creative inspiration, I highly recommend Danny Gregory's Sketchbook Skool channel on YT. Lots of really great stuff and I'm enjoying filling up sketchbooks with all kinds of random stuff ranging from collage to ink drawing to gouache.
I currently have limited time, space, and bandwidth and have decided (after 20+ years of a lot of angst coupled with spikes and troughs in artistic output) that I can either make myself and everyone around me miserable about the situation, which is currently not changeable, or try to keep my toe in the creative waters and my skills up for the time when I can dive back in. For me, embracing Brian Eno's admonishment "stop thinking of artworks as objects and start thinking of them as opportunities for experiences" has helped, as has drawing all kinds of things even though the painting I do when I'm being a Serious Artist is figurative but not representational. Sometimes when you have limited head-space (including caring for others or just being distracted by their presence) and you finally get some time there's a tendency to make individual pieces too precious, which is a sure creativity-killer. Letting go of that outcome-based performance anxiety is the key to releasing the good creative brain juju, and weirdly it is a thing you can practice and get better at!
posted by SinAesthetic at 10:04 AM on January 20, 2023
I currently have limited time, space, and bandwidth and have decided (after 20+ years of a lot of angst coupled with spikes and troughs in artistic output) that I can either make myself and everyone around me miserable about the situation, which is currently not changeable, or try to keep my toe in the creative waters and my skills up for the time when I can dive back in. For me, embracing Brian Eno's admonishment "stop thinking of artworks as objects and start thinking of them as opportunities for experiences" has helped, as has drawing all kinds of things even though the painting I do when I'm being a Serious Artist is figurative but not representational. Sometimes when you have limited head-space (including caring for others or just being distracted by their presence) and you finally get some time there's a tendency to make individual pieces too precious, which is a sure creativity-killer. Letting go of that outcome-based performance anxiety is the key to releasing the good creative brain juju, and weirdly it is a thing you can practice and get better at!
posted by SinAesthetic at 10:04 AM on January 20, 2023
I could have written this question! I think all of these suggestions are great and I will be using them. Three things that have helped me:
1. For inspiration, engaging with other art: visiting a museum or artist’s home, watching a film about the artistic process, or checking a bunch of art books out of the library (I love a biography too).
2. For getting out of your head, next time you have friends or family over, get out a bunch of art supplies and doodle together. I do this a lot with my nephew (highly recommend it with any kids) and have had “art dates” with friends, and the goal is just to play with materials. Especially do this with folks who don’t make art regularly - it reminds all of you that artistic expression is for everyone, and it’s very low stakes!
3. Meditating, going on retreat, writing down my dreams - anything contemplative that brings up interesting symbols.
All of this is outside of the moment you sit down, but may help jazz you up for those sessions?
Thank you, this question has inspired me!!
posted by Isingthebodyelectric at 10:14 AM on January 20, 2023
1. For inspiration, engaging with other art: visiting a museum or artist’s home, watching a film about the artistic process, or checking a bunch of art books out of the library (I love a biography too).
2. For getting out of your head, next time you have friends or family over, get out a bunch of art supplies and doodle together. I do this a lot with my nephew (highly recommend it with any kids) and have had “art dates” with friends, and the goal is just to play with materials. Especially do this with folks who don’t make art regularly - it reminds all of you that artistic expression is for everyone, and it’s very low stakes!
3. Meditating, going on retreat, writing down my dreams - anything contemplative that brings up interesting symbols.
All of this is outside of the moment you sit down, but may help jazz you up for those sessions?
Thank you, this question has inspired me!!
posted by Isingthebodyelectric at 10:14 AM on January 20, 2023
I found it helped to set very doable perimeters. Something easy and sustainable. When I was deep in a creative rut but needed to keep the habit of making something, I set up some rules for myself. I was able to fill up a sketchbook of drawings I still reference today.
My rules:
1. It could be done in 10 mins. Because sometimes 10 min was all I could muster. If I wanted to go over 10 min that was ok.
2. I didn't want to come up with an idea every time I sat down. I can spend literal hours looking at reference photos. So I got a wild flower identification book for reference. I'd random flip to a page and then that was the flower I had to draw. Somedays I had a certain type of flower in mind and would draw that.
3. Date every little drawing even the scribbles. That kept me honest with myself about how often I was actually drawing.
And that's it! I aimed for 5 days a week and fit it into my morning routine. When I started the important part was the habit even more important then the actual drawing. Once it got easier to do it everyday I could start thinking about what I really wanted to draw. So now I have a sketchbook full of ideas I can look at.
Some other things that helped was having it all ready to go. I chose drawing (my usual medium is paint) because there was little set up or cleanup required. I bought a student grade sketchbook and used one set of pencils the entire time.
Something that helps when the left side of my brain won't shut up is to really go hard on the right side of my brain, like headphones + some really loud singable songs, or even better move / stand/ dance while drawing or painting. You can't sing and overthink at the same time!
posted by ljesse at 10:39 AM on January 20, 2023 [1 favorite]
My rules:
1. It could be done in 10 mins. Because sometimes 10 min was all I could muster. If I wanted to go over 10 min that was ok.
2. I didn't want to come up with an idea every time I sat down. I can spend literal hours looking at reference photos. So I got a wild flower identification book for reference. I'd random flip to a page and then that was the flower I had to draw. Somedays I had a certain type of flower in mind and would draw that.
3. Date every little drawing even the scribbles. That kept me honest with myself about how often I was actually drawing.
And that's it! I aimed for 5 days a week and fit it into my morning routine. When I started the important part was the habit even more important then the actual drawing. Once it got easier to do it everyday I could start thinking about what I really wanted to draw. So now I have a sketchbook full of ideas I can look at.
Some other things that helped was having it all ready to go. I chose drawing (my usual medium is paint) because there was little set up or cleanup required. I bought a student grade sketchbook and used one set of pencils the entire time.
Something that helps when the left side of my brain won't shut up is to really go hard on the right side of my brain, like headphones + some really loud singable songs, or even better move / stand/ dance while drawing or painting. You can't sing and overthink at the same time!
posted by ljesse at 10:39 AM on January 20, 2023 [1 favorite]
Other comments have good suggestions, but I wanted to speak to the "Not again...it's the same thing" sentiment. There's no shame to drawing the same thing over and over again, if it's what you want or somehow need to draw. There is a long history of artists drawing and re-drawing the same subject--Raphael made over 30 paintings of the Madonna and child, Rembrandt nearly 40 self-portraits. John Constable did 100 cloud studies over two years; Monet about 250 paintings of the water lilies in his garden.
This is not their student work either! But consider that if you were a student, you might be assigned to depict the same still life multiple times, in different mediums, or do a bunch of figure drawings or anatomy studies. It is frustrating when you're not achieving what you try to do, but practice is an essential part of art, not its failure state.
posted by radiogreentea at 5:50 PM on January 20, 2023 [2 favorites]
This is not their student work either! But consider that if you were a student, you might be assigned to depict the same still life multiple times, in different mediums, or do a bunch of figure drawings or anatomy studies. It is frustrating when you're not achieving what you try to do, but practice is an essential part of art, not its failure state.
posted by radiogreentea at 5:50 PM on January 20, 2023 [2 favorites]
For me, calmed down and relaxed is actually not a productive art vibe. Excited and stressed is the ticket.
That is to say: I think deadlines are extremely motivating. I'd look up some upcoming exhibitions or publications, and commit to yourself that you will be submitting new work by those deadlines. If there's a way to further enforce it (as in, you actually commit to the organizations in question), even better, though that's unlikely unless we're talking about local shows/publications.
Often the deadlines also come with content guidance, i.e. if you want to submit to a Halloween-themed magazine cover art call or a miniature portraits exhibition.
Exhibition calls can be found on callforentry.org and entrythingy.com, as well as on your local art center websites/facebook accounts. Publication calls can be found on submittable.com.
posted by vegartanipla at 9:28 PM on January 20, 2023
That is to say: I think deadlines are extremely motivating. I'd look up some upcoming exhibitions or publications, and commit to yourself that you will be submitting new work by those deadlines. If there's a way to further enforce it (as in, you actually commit to the organizations in question), even better, though that's unlikely unless we're talking about local shows/publications.
Often the deadlines also come with content guidance, i.e. if you want to submit to a Halloween-themed magazine cover art call or a miniature portraits exhibition.
Exhibition calls can be found on callforentry.org and entrythingy.com, as well as on your local art center websites/facebook accounts. Publication calls can be found on submittable.com.
posted by vegartanipla at 9:28 PM on January 20, 2023
You may want to give Zentangles a look. The best way I can describe it is "doodling with rules".
A lot of artists use this technique as a warmup before they start on bigger projects, but they can also gratifying all by themselves. I often turn to them in that limbo time at night when I'm feeling too tired to work on a bigger project, but not tired enough to go to bed.
posted by jeremias at 3:52 AM on January 21, 2023
A lot of artists use this technique as a warmup before they start on bigger projects, but they can also gratifying all by themselves. I often turn to them in that limbo time at night when I'm feeling too tired to work on a bigger project, but not tired enough to go to bed.
posted by jeremias at 3:52 AM on January 21, 2023
This thread is closed to new comments.
Sound-canceling headphones
A radio station (who knows what will happen? only the DJ!)
A colored lightbulb (look, brain! we are someplace NEW)
Incense or a scented candle, if that’s your jam
Do a physical ritual before starting, like lighting a candle or doing a set of stretches with your eyes closed
Write a list of prompts on index cards or clip a pile of physical media for a draw-this raffle jar
Pick a medium that you’re not great at or that feels childish and fun (I myself am not an artist, but recently discovered the joy of metallic sharpies on black paper and am making Keith-Haring-style doodles and having a blast)
Notepad for writing down thoughts that come up during art time (Do Taxes, Vacuum, Look Up “Squirrel” On r/aww)
Schedule regular Those Chores time to do these things, but on a different day
(In the past, I used to sing, and singing a little bit every day is often recommended over singing a lot once a week. Would committing to 10-15 min a day, *and no more*, for a couple of weeks or a month be a way to get the feeling back into your body, and some creative pressure building up?)
posted by rrrrrrrrrt at 11:20 PM on January 19, 2023 [4 favorites]