Happy New Year. Yes, it’s that time of year to set art (and
other) goals and just, well you know, think about how one can ‘do better’. Today’s letter from
Sara Genn of the Twice Weekly Letters at The Painters Keys was about ‘Making a Plan’ and I found it helpful and timely. I
have been in a bit of an art funk lately (feeling uninspired and bored with whatever
I was painting) and have tried to get out of it by continuing to just ‘jump
into painting’ (but mostly wasted a lot of paint and time), without the preliminary work that is
often necessary for a successful outcome. These failures have not been fun, and
I have known for several weeks that I needed to try something else.
Sara writes
“……if
you’re going to make a plan, why not work backwards? Begin with your dream. Be
as specific as
possible……. Imagine, for example, the art you always wanted to
make. Visualize in detail this reckless,
heightened expression of your
creativity……...Make a long list. Visualize anything, everything; let your
imagination soar. What’s needed? What do you really want? What’s practical?
Throw in some luck”.
In order to get back on track, have fun and enjoy painting again,
I need to do some thinking, maybe re-focusing, some experimentation, and more
drawing. So I am going to make my list and a plan. Whether I share it or stick
to it is another question, but it seems like a good thing to try on this, the
first day of 2016. I hope that you and yours have wonderful day and best wishes
for a healthy and happy coming year!
