Seasons of Creating (Art Creation) - Artist's Life

 It's been a while I know, but if your here I hope you find it worthy of thought!

A seasonal view from my front porch

This post came about after reading an email from spiritual writer I follow and after having sat in my garden wishing it wasn’t too hot to be out gardening:

I use a lot of gardening metaphors here  - no apologies…….well, I’m a gardener....I just am.  I think of creating just about anything in life is reflected in how our beautiful Mother Earth creates on her palette in nature.  It’s so plainly out your door to absorb if you choose.  If you take the time to SLOW down, observe, to look and actually see those miracles.  For me Art/Creating is about beauty, evoking positive emotions or compassion and appreciation of some of the very simple things in life.  No angst or deep struggling artist vibes needed.  But hey if that’s your thing you may take my seasons and add anything to put you in that frame of mind.  

While the seasons are important steps it’s all in the context of Learning and Skill Building.  I don’t believe you can progress through the seasons without this key to unlocking the seasons of creating in your life.  As a self proclaimed introvert I I find most of this comes naturally to me.  But we all have times when we get stuck in the day to day. I hope you find value here and by sharing I hope you have success!

Learning - Working on Skill Building - A Year Long/Life Long Pursuit 

I place it as a prerequisite to creating but usually skill building comes before, after and during all the seasons.  Although not really a season but a Key, Goal or Frame of Mind which helps the Season of Creating become tangible.  

The thing about skill building is, it is really an ongoing process.  I did not call it Skill Attainment because frankly no matter how adept I have become at a media there is always a challenge to be deciphered with a new lighting technique, genre, subject matter or feeling I’m trying to interject into a creation.  Being an artist is usually referred to as a Practice.  No matter how long one pursues it, if you’re not practicing by doing, trying, failing, you’re not practicing.  And boy, have I learned a lot from the failing part!  Another post on those lessons may arise, but failing brings about its own joys also.  Without practicing your skill those very much appreciated “happy accidents” can’t happen.  And if they don’t happen we don’t learn how to adapt them into an on purpose technique or “look” no one else has.

If you’re new to a media, genre or process, skill learning  as a key I could go on about for a very long time (and actually have in other posts here on the blog).  It is the where with all the other seasons stem from, if we are talking success in creating.  My goal here is to allow for success, thus so more of the seasons can happen for you.  As an almost 66 year old woman who continually is learning some new skill or a fascination with a new life’s activity, the one thing I know is that I don’t know so much.

MY 4 SEASONS OF ART CREATION: (Or any creating activity really)

Glimmer 

Gestation

Birth/Bloom

Reflection/Evaluation

  

1. Glimmer  

Take some quiet time to wonder "What’s Next?"  In our loud world noise competes with our attention at every turn.  It can sometimes feel challenging to get quiet and listen for what can we bring forth or offer.  What a beautiful experience we allow ourselves in a time to get quiet, to go within, and reflect on an idea or experience we had or want to have.  A time to dream and envision what we want to create or see come to fruition.  I think of this as a completely magical season.  For me, it’s where all the spiral of creation starts.  While many can get their glimmers from activities, motion or business.  For me and my continued pursuit of creating, I find letting curiosity lead me in exploring my glimmers is key.  Curiosity in life, period, opens your world to glimmers of so much more that creating.  But we are talking art creation and I’ll try to not run away on another topic.  

A cup of tea that sparked an idea.

For me to be curious - I usually need to get quiet and just be.  Slowing down to observe nature, people or objects, usually gets me there.  Sometimes I need my inspiration folder in my desk, my photos app, ideas folder on my Mac or art master’s images (whether in a museum or online).  Sometimes Pinterest or social media can bring ideas if we are careful not to appropriate someone else’s copyright.  I’m not a big social media person any longer, but I do find Pinterest helpful in putting together images to inspire in whatever creating I do.  Recipes, gardening, crochet or making things for the home it can get your juices flowing.  I do have a file on artwork that inspires me so when I’m in a funk I can tickle a curiosity in technique, style or ideas for playing.  Play well now we are in a new season!

2.  Gestation

A time to gather our resources and prepare, remind us that it’s okay for things to take the time they take.  It can feel tempting to rush or push something that is still gestating, which can create a lot of frustration and actually prolong the process.  Percolating on an idea or project for me can start out as straight forwardly as doing.  But it’s way more fun if you take a playful approach.  Play at how it will look in your sketchbook, Play at the background or if one is needed, Play at color options or placement as in composition.  When I adopted the Playful approach at this point creating art regained the “fun” aspect it had when my media was new to me.  It became less about the seriousness that every painting had to be a finished piece of “Fine Art”.  (While although it’s still a goal, it’s not the only goal.)  It can become paralyzing if we get too serious at this stage.  Which I fell victim to once upon a time.  

If we keep in mind that the garden soil holds our flowers in early spring, before we see the growth, gestating the future plants and blooms yet to be.  Allowing for each a time for the seeds to swell and absorb moisture and nutrients.  Using this as a metaphor for ideas to sprout in a nourished way.  Sometimes we’ll see an image, photograph it and hold it in our one day folder until we are actually ready to attempt it.  I speak from experience here.  We lean back into the learning and skill building stage for confidence, trial and error, or just working it out in practice.  Holding this in gestation for the finished creation.   

Gestation can involve obtaining what you will need in thought and technique or the actual gathering of supplies if we are new to a media.  I also find it is making room in our home or studio for the activity of blooming.  Gathering your tools needed physically and mentally to create.

3.  Birth/Bloom

(A Gift for a tea loving friend): "Let's Share A Cuppa", 4 x 6 Colored pencil on Uart Paper

 This piece spawned a series of pieces   

The period of Action.  A powerful opportunity to deepen our capacity to trust in the fact we know how to give ourselves to the Doing!

This is no small feat, after all you get here after 2-3 other stages.  The wonderment of your Glimmer is about to come alive, Gestation was fun yet brought focus to the growing into an actual “thing”.  

But……..Sometimes………… It’s what Can stop you in your tracks.  Books and blogs have been written about it for eons it seems.  Heck, I’ve written about it “fear of the blank page”, fear of failure, failure to actually do Do.  But I think if you take the idea from gestation - Play - and allow it to guide your frame of mind as a child does but yet as the practiced artist you are becoming you can start.  While play won’t get you through the “work” of it, a playful attitude can help you show up.

As a young woman there was no choice to turning back in my 9th month of pregnancy but to give birth.  The work of it doesn’t need to be that painful but effort is needed.  Sometimes the work is actually not talking yourself out of doing it.  It’s just paper, paint, a panel, if it doesn’t work then no one died, you can start again.  

With our tools assembled, our minds ready and with the heart of a child set to play, we can get to work.  Some pieces seem to take more work than others, and on a rare occasion some come about magically.  I say be prepared for the work, let the magic happen, but most of all check that harsh inner critic at the door.  While I work I am always evaluating, judging color, value, line, subtraction or addition, I try to keep that harsh inner critic silent.  

4. Reflection/Evaluation  

I often prop a piece on the mantel to live with it a few days

All gardens have a season where they were more colorful, grew the best, rested longer.  Art creation is the same.  I can tell you what worked and what didn’t in every painting/drawing I have ever done.  So this last season of creation is perhaps the most important in some ways.  It’s fed by the year long pursuit of learning and skill building.  It’s also what feeds us into continuing our efforts, curiosity, and doing.  Having a positive outlook in a garden, in creating and in life is key.

Not all efforts are Museum worthy, but I guarantee you, all efforts are of value to the artist you are becoming.  While not all flower buds make it to blooming, (some are eaten by deer, or whither from no rain) yet all are part of natures journey.  Your efforts will be much of the same, and we always learn something in the end.  I should have watered it more (skill build, practice a bit more).  I should have pruned it better (composed the scene better).  I should have given it more light (well it’s all about light even in painting).  Whatever your evaluations are remember to be kind to yourself, as you would if tasked to evaluate another’s piece.  What did you do right and what needs work?  See it as a goal for next time.  

Often when our own good taste is evolved beyond our skill set we expect perfection in our efforts.  It’s a good thing to have evolved your taste. It takes a while to know why something isn’t working or how to fix it, but we definitely know “something” is wrong.   The more you know the better you become.  So a period of Reflection/evaluating, is very much an important season.  Just as there is no perfect season for everyone there is no Perfection in creating.  Knowing what to look for in regards to what makes a successful piece of art can help you pinpoint what might may be an issue.  But we have to realize in nature there is no such thing as perfection.  Beauty often lays in the uniqueness, the appreciation of the unique calligraphy of a brushstroke, line or style, 4 leaved clover. 

 

In Closing:

My too hot to work in July Garden 

If you have seen a similarity to Winter, Spring, Summer and Fall, well yes it was part of my thinking.  But in creating art I find like in gardening I’m always thinking ahead to the next season.  Often gardening with all seasons in mind.  Having more than one project, painting, sketchbook at various stages of the Seasonality going at a time.  Often even before one season is over I’m Glimmering or Gestating another.    

Above all things I have Hope for the next years growing seasons or art lessons and creations to keeps us going forward.  How do you view Art Creation?  I'd love to hear.

As always have a colorfully artful day! 

Gloria