In An Art Slump

Week 7 of staying at home & I am unmotivated

Butter Sky, a tree class painting.

A few weeks before the stay at home order, I noticed that I was not producing good art. And in spite of my best efforts, making art in quarantine has not led to improvement. This has definitely got me in a funk and I know that I am not alone in that.

Here's the thing, I am taking three online classes and each class has homework. I am fairly art busy in the day and in the afternoons with homework. I am painting and attempting to learn. Its the days when I paint for myself on my own that I struggle and end up with wiped out paintings. Seriously I just want one good painting, this is a bit frustrating!

As an analytical person, the hard thing is the art slump doesn't make sense, why suddenly can I not paint a portrait or a still life? Why is the struggle so hard when I have been painting for years?

This week I am going to make a plan of what to paint with hopes that something will turn out okay. I have done this before and feel that I must do this again. On non-class days I have to get into the studio to paint - which I am doing its just that the paintings are not successful. I have listened to art teacher advice and tried painting a black and white study from life. And then painting a color painting from that. My black and white painting was way better than the color painting. I tried painting still life, as that is 'from life' and that was unsatisfying as well... this is not working out for me...

Perhaps this should just be a time for learning for me. I am taking many classes and have much thinking to do (thanks Anatomy)--so maybe I should just use this time for learning? I get it but I am going crazy not having anything to post to my website as to what I have been doing these last 7 weeks. I've been painting and been busy and have no results to show for it!

So what else I can I do about this motivation issue? I am reaching out to other artists for advice. Today I plan to sit on the back deck in the sun to read in order to feel more positive. I am so very glad to see the sun today! And I've been thinking about what I should read.

My reading list: The War of Art, Foster Caddell's Keys to Successful Landscape Painting, Fill Your Paintings with Light and Color  by MacPherson.

What else are your thoughts for staying motivated? What are your suggestions for art reading materials? Please end me a note or post a comment!

Art and Online Learning

In trying times, I've found a new outlook & outlet

Eucalyptus, started in one of my online classes

Hey, I get it it, learning online has never appealed to me before but these are trying times. I need my social interactions plus I love learning opportunities. Yes, I have always resisted the online art classes and courses--until now. Currently I am taking 3 online courses and I have been pleasantly surprised by how great each class is going.

First and foremost I realized that a teacher is a teacher. What do I mean? I mean that a good 'in person' teacher is still a good teacher online--the love of teaching still comes through. If there is a national or local art teacher you have taken with before or wanted to take with, I recommend looking her up and taking a course online. Artists are, after all, "Gig Workers." Invest in your self if you can and pay it forward to the artist teacher, win/win.

I am taking an online self-paced class (lots of videos and note taking), but this artist has been teaching online for many years so there is lots of great material. I like it and there are over 60 modules so plenty of information. My next class is from a national artist whom I was supposed to go see for a workshop in May. The current class with her is 3 hours a week and starts with a demo that we watch online, then we turn our computers and she watches us paint! We email her our completed artworks after each class and it's working, I am enjoying it.

Lastly, I am supporting my local art teacher, whom I have always studied with in person. She is a good teacher, so it was easy for me to sign up with her. Once again we all log in online and chat and watch her teach, she sets up her ipad /computer so that we can see her images and drawings.

Ultimately the online classes are working. The biggest thing is that I am enjoying having a schedule. Because I will be on video, I have to comb my hair and dress and prep for class. Plus classes give me some normalcy in my day. Also the classes fill the day, meaning that I am not sitting at home thinking about painting, I am actually doing. I highly recommend that you look up an art teacher --local or national and see what classes they are offering, and then sign up. What a great way to support the arts and truly, I found that it works.

I still prefer to meet in person, but who knows when that will happen again? Right now I think we should take the online art opportunities, I encourage you to sign up for an online art class today!