Well, January is coming to a close and it didn’t go quite as expected, but I’m pretty pleased. I did not get everything done I wanted, but I have been consistent.
As I sat down today to think about how my month has gone I made a little list of my thoughts.
Keep showing up. Most of the time for me the hardest part is just showing up. It’s a lot easier to make excuses or procrastinate than it is to just show up in the studio and get to work. Once I’m in the studio, no matter what happens, I am making progress.
Be Patient. Good work takes time. I know I’m not the most patient person, and I’m working on it. But, I have so many ideas that come to me that I want to be able to get to all of them and complete all of them without losing steam. I have tried skipping steps in my creative process to allow me to get around to all my ideas in a “timely” manner, but it always gives me more resistance than if I had been patient with my process. I have also found that sometimes getting a really rough sketch or a study satisfies me and helps me weed out okay ideas so I have the time that I need with my better ideas.
Be patient with the process. My process happens in stages, and the length of each stage is dependent on each individual painting.
The first stage is where I block everything in. This is a fun and quick stage. (It’s quicker and less frustrating with a preparatory sketch.) It’s one of my favorite stages, because everything will eventually be painted over, so there is little to no pressure. This is when I can just be pretty loose and just get things where I want them. I do block in basic colors, but they don’t have to be super accurate. This is the stage where major changes are usually made. If I decide I don’t like the composition, I will quickly move things around until I find a composition that works.
The second stage is similar to the first. This is where I go back into my painting and define the shapes and colors a little more so they are a little more legible. For instance, if I am painting a group of cows, my first stage would just be a big brownish blob with straight lines for the legs. In this second phase, I would go back into this blob and shape the group by focusing on the negative space around them as a whole to make it look more like a group of cows than a blob. I also work on the interaction between the cows, usually using shifts of color. This is the first pretty stage. There is something really nice about how simple it is, however, it’s not completed so I have to keep going. (Even though, there are times that I don’t want to, because I don’t want to ruin it.)
The next stage is my least favorite, but also essential to complete a finished painting. It is the ugly phase. This is when I have to make important decisions and possibly destroy what I’ve laid down. This is where I need to really practice patience, and a positive attitude. I have found the times when I have a less than positive attitude or lack of patience, I question everything. I have thoughts like “This painting is terrible. I am a crap artist. That’s it, I should give up painting forever.” Luckily, I can usually sleep off these thoughts. When I have a more positive outlook and more patience I think thoughts like, “what could I do to achieve the look I had in mind? Well I don’t really think this is working so I may as well experiment. It’s okay, it can only get better, right?” I will say having patience and a positive outlook makes this stage not only shorter, but also more enjoyable. I try to have a pleasant ugly stage for my paintings, every once and a while it’s pretty bleak.
Once I’ve made it through the ugly stage, I reach the second pretty stage. This is the stage where most of the serious problems have been solved and I just continue on until I finish. (I should note that sometimes after making it to this stage I will go through another ugly phase or two. It is all dependant on the painting. )
Sometimes a painting goes quickly and sometimes it seems like an eternity. Regardless, I need to be more patient with my artistic process. If I do, I will get the most out of it.
Just because I love doing it, doesn’t mean I will always like it. Painting is just like anything else I love. I love my children, but sometimes I don’t like them. I’m sure if you have kids you know what I mean. Or I love my cat, but I don’t like when he destroys my furniture or wakes me up before the sun to let him outside. I love painting, but sometimes, I don’t like it. I realize this is completely normal, and have even scheduled days that I can take off from painting. I know it seems like working everyday will result in greater improvement and productivity, but I don’t think that is the case. I think it’s much more like exercise. In any exercise program, the rest days are just as if not more important than the actual work out days. It’s important that I take days off when I need them.
It’s also important to remember love does not equal easy. Just because I love painting doesn’t mean it will be a walk in the park. I think the opposite is true. I think because I love it, I will be willing to put in the hard work that it requires.
Make sure to recognize and celebrate my successes. Sometimes I can be really hard on myself, especially when it comes to my work. It’s a lot easier to focus on things I didn’t accomplish than what I did accomplish. But I think for myself it’s important to recognize and celebrate the little wins. Yeah sure I didn’t meet my goal of having five or six paintings done this month, but I did show up in my studio consistently, even if it was just for an hour. And I was able to solve a few big problems I had. So, I’m proud of myself for what I have been able to get done.
So, whatever it is you are doing, be patient and keep showing up for yourself.