This morning I sit here grateful for the routine of my day job. I find my schedule thrown right out the window again. A family shake up, a disturbing event during travel and then an evacuation alert has left me sitting here in survival mode. This time though it's very evident how this affects my art practice and I look at finding center again.
As is my pattern all things in my personal life stop and I tend to sit in that anxiety for a long time. Years past I wouldn't recognize I was doing this. I would make excuses to myself for my lack of productivity and justify why it was alright.
In the last few years I have been working on recognizing when this is happening. Instead of holding my anxiety close i try to instead deal with it in a productive manner. Looking at why I feel the way I do and validating my feelings. Then working through those feelings and finally letting go.
Most things I have become fairly good at naturally going through this process but events where I feel I have no control still are the toughest to deal with.
As part of this process I make myself resume daily activities I enjoy such as writing this blog or getting on with finishing my video from a few weeks ago.
As I move forward towards pursuing my art on a more full time basis I have to ask myself, what structures do I need to put in place to ensure I have the same follow through I do in my day job? I think tonight I will sit down and write a list of all the things I need to work on.
Although I didn't get enough time to finish off this blog yesterday morning I did finish writing the script for the video and finish a submission to a magazine open call. Today I am laying gesso on canvases and refining sketches to start painting tomorrow. With the easing back into daily activities I am already starting to feel like i am getting back to myself.
Here's the sketches I am refining today. My thought processes are very all over the place as I work through what I want to do and what i want to convey.
My quick 2 min sketches are usually done on sticky notes until i sort out the direction I want to go. Today's next step is I turn to my sketchbook and sort out the final sketch and color palette before transferring over to the canvas.
What are you processes in the designing phase? I'm always curious how other people create.
Until next time
Jackie ❤️