Art-Block | What it is and how to get out of one
I define art-block as a creative barrier that occurs to me as an artist and for at least three times a year. It is a feeling that comes with lots of frustration, tiredness, and guilt.
The good news is that when it happens you can be almost certain that it passes with time. On the other hand, the bad news is that there is no straight forward formula or potion you can drink to make it pass faster. However, as an artist for the past two decades, I will share some of my experiences and tips on what has worked and not worked for me to reach the light at the end of the tunnel; which is getting back on the train of creativity. Below, I have listed three tips on what you can do that might help you:
1. Acknowledge its presence in your life
Unfortunately, art-block enters our lives unannounced. Therefore sometimes it can be hard to accept that you day is going to look, feel and be different than what you initially planned. This is where I normally feel demotivated and after endlessly scrolling through Instagram start to feel guilty and end up (angrily) ask myself: ‘why aren’t you creating?’ — normally I do not have an answer, put the phone away and end up procrastinating on the couch.
However, I have experienced that by taking a deep breath, picking up my journal, and writing about how I feel, see and hear helps me acknowledge and name what I am going through. By doing this, I try to keep in mind that even though it is a hard time, it will pass and I will get back to my journey. Even better, I have started to count the art-blocks I experience as part of my journey.
2. Give it time
If you are a perfectionist and motivated person like me, you might find it hard to just sit around and wait for the time to run out until you get your creativity juice back. However, I have found that, channeling your energy and shifting your focus to another hobby or even helping others with a few tasks, can help distract and even teach you something new.
Back in December, due to the cold and gloomy weather, I went through an art-block. This was hard for me, as six months prior to that, I made big plans for December to release a collection. However due to this feeling, I did not manage to keep going and ended up not being successful. After journaling and understanding the underlying feeling, I decided to combat the cold I was feeling by creating something warm: I picked up knitting just to learn and make myself a headband. It took me a long time to finish it, but now I know the basics of knitting something simple. Eventually, one cold winter day, while wearing my warm headband, I got my creative energy back and went back to painting.
3. Take the matter in to your own hands
Are you not a fan of leaving it up to chance? No worries, that is perfectly normal. There is one more way to try to help yourself get over an art-block, by taking matter into your own hands. How you may ask?
Two things that have helped me throughout the years are: following an online tutorial or joining an art challenge. Allow me to elaborate on both suggestions:
Follow an online painting tutorial: takes out the pressure of choosing what to paint, which medium to choose or where to paint. The first two points are already decided for you by the instructor and the last point is at the comfort of your home. There are plenty of (free) tutorials on YouTube. If you have a favorite artist who is providing a free session on their platform, even better and more personal. Just do it, even if it is not your regular style. This simply pushes you to create with no expectation or judgement. I have created a simple exercise where only in a 15 minutes you will be able to get your hands dirty and start creating. Check out this short tutorial video.
Join an art challenge: throughout the year, there are plenty of challenges taking place hosted by many artists on social media. If you do not know any or have not yet come across one, I have listed a few ideas for you below:
- Seven-day painting challenge: paint one artwork, in seven minutes, using only seven colors. You can restrict yourself to just paint: fruits, trees, portraits, or any day to day object.
- Limited palette painting: challenge yourself and paint using only three colors. Experiment. Try to enjoy the process — with no expectation.
- A month Pantone challenge: paint one artwork a day using acrylics on Pantone postcards (available in sets of 50 and 100).
- One week 100 people: this challenge is hosted once per year and hosted by two amazing artists. You are not obliged to reach the full 100 sketches. You can read more this challenge on this Facebook group.
- Urban sketching for a day: this is not a challenge, but perhaps you have a group of enthusiastic sketchers in your city/near by. Check out the rich global Urban Sketching community and feel free to reach out to them. Join the group for a day of sketching, no set expectations and just see if you enjoy it.
I am hoping that by following one of the tips listed above, you overcome your art-block — regardless of the amount of time it might take. Please keep in mind not to force the healing process. Remember that this is a part of your creative journey and it will help you become a better, stronger artist in the long term.
I hope that you enjoyed this blog and it helped you in your journey. I write a blog on a monthly basis and publish them on the first Friday of the month. These blogs are about my experiences along with tips and tricks as an artist and human being. If my blogs interest you, please consider Buying me a Coffee. This way, I can continue to provide you with more content every month! Feel free to also share the link on social media with those around you who you might think be interested in reading it. Thank you for supporting my passion.
