I did a little “process” post a few days ago, and felt like I didn’t really say much of what I wanted to get across. (see 11 February 2018)
So I took photos again during this drawing, whenever I paused between spates of scribble and brush, and I’ll try writing about it again.
I started this blog, not as a showcase for my fabulous talent (lol) but because I had determined that if I really wanted to feel like I was taking time in my life to make art, then I had to take time to make art. Every day. The blog was a way of holding myself accountable. I hoped it might also provide encouragement for other people who were feeling creatively stuck. So it felt important to show all the work, even the stuff I personally thought was weak or lame.
My big block was that I love art-making and have some skills, but I had no idea what I wanted to do with it. I was stymied by choosing subject matter, and was super judgmental about whatever I made. I dismissed drawings that were playful, whimsical or sweet as being trivial, but had no idea how I’d make ‘serious’ art. I’d get a bit bored focusing on observational work, even though I think it’s really good to do occasionally for skill-building. And I do really love a good still life, landscape, portrait, or nature study. I long ago dismissed the idea of trying to make a living in the arts, because I was not able to stand up even to my internal critics. Some of the actual critiques I faced in my few years of formal study stopped me from exploring large format painting, which I still haven’t picked up again, 30 odd years later.
I determined to choose parameters for my daily drawings that would give me enough distance from my internal critics to get around them. I try to get into each drawing session with a clear mind, no preconceptions about what I will produce. I keep a range of materials handy, and try to settle down until I feel an intuitive push toward some material or idea. I try to stay as open as I can during the whole process, working with whatever happens rather than criticizing it when it’s not what I intended or expected.
So with that background, here’s what happened during my drawing time on 2/13/18:





So I’ll call this the drawing for today, put the date on it, and turn it loose on my blog. Sometimes the drawing snaps into focus sooner or later, and I can tell a more coherent story about it, but this is not one of those days. Still, I really believe that nothing is wasted, if you’re paying attention.
Thanks for looking and reading!
I really appreciate how you showed your process and what you thinking and feeling as the drawing progressed. I totally understand that inner critic, I struggle with it every single day. I didn’t realize how much you rely on intuition to draw or paint. Your inner critic came out to wreak and destroy, I hate it when that happens to me. When it starts to ‘whisper’, I stop immediately and only continue when my inner artist is in control. I really like your drawing, to me that seed looks like a placenta firmly attached to the tree but reaching out in positive growth. There is a book by Jeanne Carbonetti that I think that you would like, it is called “Making Pearls, Living the Creative Life” very valuable and enlightening book.
Thanks, I’ll look that book up for sure! Your description of the drawing resonates for me, so thanks for that as well.
I am currently reading it, so good! ❤️😊
Thanks for going into more detail about this drawing. I’ve had similar judgements about various things I’ve done but when I look at them later, I’m less judgmental (maybe because it seems more like someone else’s, LOL). No matter what, your output is prodigious, you can always be proud of that. ~Rowan M.
yeh it’s funny how things from the past can almost seem like they were done by somebody else (“how the heck did I come up with that?” is a feeling I’ve had looking at old work!)
This is a beautiful share ❤
Thank you Lisa!