“Make art, be happy,” popped into my mind this morning as I was having my first cup of coffee while drawing in my sketchbook and listening to my Steely Dan playlist on Spotify. I often have these types of thoughts pop into my mind that throw me a curveball; they’re deceptively simple but they somehow make perfect sense. Crazy, right. There’s a lot to be said for keeping things simple.
This past week has been decent; it’s been a mixture of both good and bad — mostly good. At the end of it all, I learned a few things. One of them is that the things that leave a bitter taste in your mouth are often the things that teach you the best lessons. At my age, I’ve learned that there are something’s that are simply not worth my time and that it’s best to move on. A lot of my thinking is done as I draw. That’s one of the magic things about drawing: I can totally cut everything around me out and focus on one thing. It enables me to work through whatever it is as I put pencil or pen to paper.
This week’s drawing afforded me to sit and enjoy music and podcasts that put new ideas into my head. That in of itself is priceless. Household objects may seem boring but they’re actually quite fun to draw. Not only are they great practice but they also challenge you to try and put some character into them and use them to help you communicate what you’re experiencing at any given moment. It’s like a quick snapshot of a moment in your daily life that others wouldn’t necessarily ever know about. That type of communication is what art is all about; pulling the viewer into your personal world is the whole point. Writing and drawing about your daily life is one of the best things you can do. It’s therapeutic, it helps you to focus, and it gives you an outlet to express yourself. What more could you ask for, right? Make art and be happy.
So what thoughts were rolling through your head as you worked?
In that moment, I was mulling over projects that I have in mind and want to work on.
Your post eluded several times to something much deeper happening below the surface than simply you daydreaming about your next piece. A whole inner world passes by inside my head when I’m working, so I think I’m picking up a bit of what you are saying, but surprisingly, I have to admit that thinking about the next piece usually isn’t one of those thoughts, all the thoughts about the next pieces are what feeds the constant daytime fantasies that keep me sane while I’m at work.
Does your emotional life power your work in any way?
Keeping a sketch-journal, and writing a blog can be challenging. You have to find a balance of what to leave in and what to leave out. That’s something each person will decide for themselves on an individual basis. It’s a process that all creatives go through. You’re statement is correct, a whole world passes by as I work. A multitude of things are always whirling around my mind as I draw. Some as pedestrian as my next project or something in regards to technique or something more personal. My emotional life is as present in my work as anyone else’s. How could it not be? It’s a part of who I am, it’s going to find it’s way into my work. It’s unavoidable. I hope that you’re able to find a balance in what you do. Thanks for the great comments.
How does your emotional life manifest in your work? Is it what you select to draw, the technique you use, the pen you pick up? It’s looking like different personalities have very different ways of approaching this question. My emotional and phycological ticks tend to manifest in how I use mico narratives, color, and textured surfaces.
There’s lots of ways this can happen. Some are more obvious, and some are more subtle. It can be in a statement or it can be in the stroke of a pen or a certain color scheme. It’s never ending.
I love drawing still-lifes that that are in front of me! Very cool!
I noticed you’ve been making heavy use of statements in your work. It definitely colors a piece and marks it as yours.
Stay busy, be happy. See you around.
Thanks Joel, the same to you. Thank you for your comments — it’s nice to get thoughtful feedback. Take care.