I know it's not easy; believe me I know as an artist you're always wanting to create and run with an idea. I don't know about you but for me it gets even more so when I have a creative block and I'm trying to get a spark going but take it from me, the name of this article fits perfectly for such situations- STOP IT! When you run into a creative block, stop what you're doing and take a break; go for a walk or play a game or go running or whatever you enjoy doing this is the time to do it. If you are in the midst of a creation you've envisioned but are getting stuck or feeling like you have to push the idea further-STOP IT! Put your paintbrush, pencil or whatever you are using to create with down, step away and play with your dog or your children, take your spouse to a movie.
I've been in this boat many a time and believe me, your creative vision will look much better to you and everyone else if you don't push yourself to continue on the project when you are getting to an area that just isn't flowing naturally. What do I mean by this? What I mean is say you have an idea to paint a beautiful river and you have been working on it for a couple of hours now and you're at the point where you have to give the water it's feeling, it's sense of movement but you're looking at the entire image and you just can't decide where to start, what shades of color to use, etc. Should you keep pushing yourself til you figure it out? I say emphatically "NO!" and trust me, I know it's easier said than done but at this point you need to walk away and grab a new perspective. When you come back to it you should have a better idea of how to continue with the painting. Am I saying that after one break you'll come back and be able to complete the painting? No I'm not because sometimes you'll come back and you'll be just as stuck as you were before your break and you'll get frustrated & maybe even angry. How do I know this? Because I've been in those shoes more times than I can count. There have been times I've had to literally take a dozen breaks before I was able to get the painting flowing again.
I think one of the hardest things during these break sessions is to wipe the idea of laziness from the mind. What do I mean by this? I don't know about you but I'm the type who's always got to be busy and preferably doing things I love and that I am making money in such as painting so when I have to take these breaks it's very difficult for me to not feel like I'm wasting my time, or fear getting lazy. A dear friend of mine recently gave me a good perspective on this thought process and it's this: "Don't think of it as being lazy; think of it as recharging your creative energy." And you know what? She's exactly right! When you take a break from your painting,sketch,carving or whatever form of art you're working in, you're not being lazy; what you're doing is giving your mind a chance to re-energize itself, to work out the chaos in your mind that are a bunch of great ideas but you can't organize them into a flowing thought and hence it'll show up in your work as well. For example, as I write this article, I'm taking a break from my latest painting because I became stuck on what to add to it, if anything, where to add a bit more shadow, etc. I have several, what to me are "good ideas" in my head but I can't get them organized and flowing so instead of wasting my time or risking destroying the very integrity of my work, I'm taking a breather and I will return to it later and hopefully it'll flow again.
If you're anything like me- a workaholic, driven to succeed, intense, passionate about your work-will it be easy to take breaks when you get stuck or to take a breather from art all together when you have a creative block? Maybe but more than likely it won't be an easy transition because more than likely you've had this same mindset for your entire life; rarely do you develop such characteristics overnight. You're going to find yourself stuck on a project you're working on or maybe driven to think up a new project because one isn't coming to you automatically. Sound familiar? And you know what? You're going to find yourself still trying to work through it, you're going to find yourself still thinking about what your next project could possibly be. How do I know that? Because after three years as a professional artist I still find myself doing the exact same thing at times. Changing the way you handle art, especially when it's your livelihood isn't going to come over night and for many it won't even come within a few months but it WILL come.
In conclusion, when you see yourself getting aggravated with your artwork or you are having a creative block just try these two simple words that will make all the difference in the end-STOP IT!
