Author: Cheryl

A recent writing by Canadian artist Robert Genn used this interesting phrase – or something similar. I think all artists have it. For me, it’s the stocking up of paint when it goes on sale. Naturally I tell myself I’m saving money. And I do eventually use it all, finding myself amazed to be running out of my favourite phthalo again. I think collage artists get it the worst. When you get into collage, dollar stores become gold mines. Glitter and so very many interesting small items that could be adhered to a canvas to make a fascinating image. Scraps of various types of papers wander into your home and start accumulating. Really, when you get into collage, nothing in the house is safe from being glued onto an image. Too much fun! Do you have Artist’s Hoarding Disorder? What items do you hoard? 

It’s wonderful to be following your dream and doing what you are passionate about – in my case, painting. Yet there are challenges to being an artist by profession that may not be obvious at first glance. For example, painting is a high energy activity for me. I keep the brush moving, and I think hard! Much as I love it, painting is not something that I tend to do when tired. So I need to plan my best time of day to do my painting. Other issues are common with those who are self employed. Such as – it’s hard to find a balance with work time and family and friend time. Still, there’s so much to be thankful for – a job I love passionately, and supportive family and friends who understand the unusual hours I sometimes keep. What about you other artists out there – what are your challenges? 

How to Find Your Purpose and Do What You Love – by Maria Popova This is a bit of a longer read, but lots of interesting ideas are presented. The video on this page is pretty good too – although it’s 16 minutes long, so if you don’t have time for that, I recommend just reading the article. Any artistic soul will be touched by something in this article, and likely several things. 

Did you know that if you say to yourself “Saturday after breakfast I’m going to go and paint.” you are way more likely to do it than if you just say, “I want to paint sometime this weekend.” Giving it a time and place in your imagination makes what is called an “Action Trigger”, and people tend to follow through on those. I just finished reading a fascinating book called, “Switch – How to Change Things When Change is Hard” by Chip & Dan Heath. I learned a lot about what motivates people to change. I recommend the book if you are curious about people’s behaviour. Lots of interesting studies with surprising results. I found a number of suggestions that I want to apply to myself too! Here’s a brief excerpt from the chapter ‘Rally the Herd’ – and I think it will make you smile. – “In ambiguous situations, we all look to others for cues about how to behave. Maybe you’ve had the experience of scanning the table frantically at a fancy dinner, trying to figure out which fork is for dessert. (If you haven’t had that experience, we hope you know your forks, because the rest of us copied you.)” – Painting Saturday after breakfast sounds good to me! How about you? 

It may seem like an oxymoron to you, the idea of creative restrictions, but it’s actually not. The imagination, to be at full power, seems to require some parameters or restrictions. For example: if I tell a class of art students to paint anything at all on their blank canvas, the results are not as interesting or dynamic as when some sort of guidelines are given. These restrictions can be as simple as: use only 2 colours, or express in paint the emotion of joy. These minimal parameters become a spark to the fuel of creativity. Of course too many restrictions are not good either. Like too much salt, they can spoil the creative stew too. What kind of restrictions spark your creative mode?