We’re one month into 2023, and I’ve already found myself longing for some sort of artistic spurt to energize me into creating again. I moved to the desert and slowed down my productive output to redirect and pour into my passion projects. Some days the making flows out of me, and others I have to force myself to put paint to paper. I think one of the hardest things about creating is the idea that you could spend so much time on a project that never gets finished or never sees the light of day to anyone else other than you. A question (maybe more of an intrusive thought) that pops in my mind occasionally is, ‘What if this is all for nothing?’ or ‘Am I wasting my time doing this?’
In times like these where the fearful or negative parts of our brains take over, I like to imagine what I would say to a friend of mine if they shared these thoughts with me. Talking to yourself like you would a friend is an extremely helpful way to be compassionate and nicer to yourself. I’m starting to come around to the idea that nothing is a waste of time. Even if I never publicly shared a piece of artwork, the time I spent in the studio, focusing on the brush strokes, exercising my creative muscle, learning about materials, practicing specific techniques, taking time to not be on my phone, none of that is a waste. There’s a small book I love to revisit now and again called 'How to Be an Artist’ by Jerry Saltz. This is the page I flipped to yesterday that gave me comfort within this uncertainty:
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