No, this post isn't about anything medical. It's about removing a psychological blockage.
Since I returned from Ohio I have felt, for lack of a better word, "off." Before that fateful trip, I begrudged every minute I had to spend away from my studio. Since I've come home I have found myriad excuses to avoid being there. I need to do housework, I need to weed the garden, I need to reconnect with friends (I can be a hermit when I'm "on"), I need to finish this book and find out "whodunnit", I need to work on genealogy, I need to organize the garage.....the list of excuses was limitless. And although these are all very good occupations, they are just different ways to procrastinate.
I have spent some limited time in the studio. But I have literally had to force myself to go up there. Why is that? I love to work at my art.
When I look back at the pieces I've made during the last six weeks, what few there are, I see that I have mostly worked very small. Quick and dirty. I have pretty much finished each quilt, quilting included, in a few days. And while I think some of them are very nice, I don't like either the small size or the direction the work has been going. They aren't exciting.
I can't seem to find the joy in my work. And I need desperately to find it again.
So I've been reading online articles about getting rid of artists' block. I've tried a lot of the suggested strategies, visiting gardens and museums, reading about artists I admire, changing mediums (I've done some paper collages), taking long walks, avoiding the studio for a whole week -- nothing seemed to work. And then I realized what was wrong.
After my two weeks in Ohio, I felt forced to change my style. The last few weeks I've been playing with some new ideas, some new formats. And nothing feels "right." I want to go back to my old, comfortable way of working.
So today, I am back in the studio. Working on a large Tuning Fork. And feeling much happier. Whether this is the right thing to do, I don't know. Perhaps I need to move on. But at least I'm working again.
Here's a peek at my current project:
How do you get unblocked?
Since I returned from Ohio I have felt, for lack of a better word, "off." Before that fateful trip, I begrudged every minute I had to spend away from my studio. Since I've come home I have found myriad excuses to avoid being there. I need to do housework, I need to weed the garden, I need to reconnect with friends (I can be a hermit when I'm "on"), I need to finish this book and find out "whodunnit", I need to work on genealogy, I need to organize the garage.....the list of excuses was limitless. And although these are all very good occupations, they are just different ways to procrastinate.
I have spent some limited time in the studio. But I have literally had to force myself to go up there. Why is that? I love to work at my art.
When I look back at the pieces I've made during the last six weeks, what few there are, I see that I have mostly worked very small. Quick and dirty. I have pretty much finished each quilt, quilting included, in a few days. And while I think some of them are very nice, I don't like either the small size or the direction the work has been going. They aren't exciting.
I can't seem to find the joy in my work. And I need desperately to find it again.
So I've been reading online articles about getting rid of artists' block. I've tried a lot of the suggested strategies, visiting gardens and museums, reading about artists I admire, changing mediums (I've done some paper collages), taking long walks, avoiding the studio for a whole week -- nothing seemed to work. And then I realized what was wrong.
After my two weeks in Ohio, I felt forced to change my style. The last few weeks I've been playing with some new ideas, some new formats. And nothing feels "right." I want to go back to my old, comfortable way of working.
Here's a peek at my current project:
How do you get unblocked?
Comments
Jay, I'll see you tonight!