A couple of weeks ago I mentioned how good it felt to clean out my studio after weeks of diligent painting and preparation for exhibits. Leftover piles from dozens of projects threatened to put me in contention for a television episode of "Hoarders". As I cleaned up from weeks of creative focus, it felt good to release old clutter that acted like a snag, clogging the flow of fresh ideas with piles of "almost, some day" projects.
This week, it was a lovely feeling standing before an empty canvas, fresh piles of paint lined up neatly on my bright and shiny palette.
Diving in bravely to a 30 x 40 canvas, I'll to share with you the nearly-finished results of this effort.
Copyright 2011 the Artist, As Yet Untitled, oil on canvas
It's a project that's been on my mind for quite awhile. It took a good cleaning of my studio to open up those neural pathways that allowed the concept to form clearly in my mind. And when it did, my palette and taboret were organized and ready to go, offering exactly what I was looking for when I needed it.
How do you get unstuck? Are there practices that you use to clear out the junk so that new art can be created?
6 comments:
I'm am all for clearing the neural pathways by clearing out clutter-in fact had a really good session this a.m. I used to see this as procrastination, but I can make better choices when only the materials I want to use are set before me--not the ones from one, two and three projects ago! And, I am awed by the speed at which your riverside scene came together. Where does the tweaking come in?
This painting felt good from the very beginning, so I enjoyed sticking with it for hours on end. Maybe that's why I'm tired this week. The tweaking may just be my uncertainty about being finished. My palette is clean, so I'll have to decide how important those tweaks are - important enough to mix more paint?!
Wow. What did you do differently with this one? It's not a dramatic variation from what you usually do, but the light and sense of depth are... more fresh, somehow? (I wish I had a better art vocabulary - I get strong impressions from things and don't have the right words for them.) Lovely!
Hmmm, another good question. Clearing my studio seems to have loosened my joints. I held my brush further back, stood further away, and used my arm from the shoulder rather than working from my fingers. Pressure from piled up piles disappeared after my cleaning, and I had room to think. It's been interesting to hear from others who do creative work and have had the same experience.
Ooo, that's interesting. I bet there's a lot of kinetic muscle memory involved in painting, and it's difficult - but freeing - to try different kinds of movement.
Sometimes it's call "bad habits". I like "kinetic muscle memory" waaay better!!!
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