I think we creatives often go through a moment where we create so rapidly, with intense focus and motivation (my favorite type of phase) however, the dreadful block often follows this enthusiastic, creative phase. You know, when you want to draw but can’t bring yourself to do it as usual: When you suddenly hit art block.
Some people firmly believe that creative block is not real since they haven’t been through it- and of those people, I am jealous. But since I’m from the group that stumbles across the burn-out obstacle, I had to find ways to overcome this issue.
A week ago, I was working on my art projects with no rest, which seems to have caused me to now struggle with drawing a simple tiger correctly- in fact, I feel like I can barely write this. It is as if I suddenly don’t know how to draw. My failure to take a break between projects and instead doing multiple big projects at once caused my brain to pretty much shut down, forcing me to take a break nonetheless(unfortunate timing).
My remedy for this
In many ways, I’m glad this is not the first time- although I guess I still haven’t learned my lesson not to overwork myself and give my brain a break now and then. But because I have gone through this numerous times before, I quickly found a way to motivate myself again. If you are an artist who is also going through this artist’s block, then I hope this article can be motivating.
Resting
Just like how we give rest to our physical body, we have to give our brain a break, too. Creating often takes up energy, especially if there is a lot of mental pressure and an excessive amount that needs to be done. So please take it as an indication to give yourself a break.
To get out of it
It is pretty easy to fall into a more extended period of feeling unmotivated to create. To avoid being unable to get out of this, I try to motivate myself by drawing things that don’t require much effort—sometimes doing small exercises like blob art challenge(putting down spontaneous blobs and abstract shapes on paper and then sketching what you see) as a way to start making my mind think creatively, without much pressure is a way is to get a push. Inspiration can come from anywhere, but it best comes from what interests you most. This can be from literature, favorite bands, other artists, nature, etc.
I was able to find inspiration by visiting a museum in Scranton. The Everhart Museum was small but still quite enjoyable. I walked around, looking for something to inspire me- and then came across a sculpture. It was a good thing I brought my sketchbook along; I naturally took my little sketchbook and started drawing. By the end of the spontaneous museum trip, I felt motivated and filled with ideas for new projects.
I found a cozy cafe five minutes from the museum-which was perfect! With the motivation still lingering, I started doodling ideas for potential paintings. I wasn’t pushing myself to perfect these sketches, only to get my brain to start thinking creatively again. I still don’t have the exact thumbnail that I want to go along with, but I’m still glad I was able to get started. Although I still don’t feel the most satisfied with my recent drawings, I’m still glad I at least got my motivation back. I sure hope I can illustrate artwork to my liking eventually!
Thank you for reading!
/ᐠ ̥ ̮ ̥ ᐟ\ฅ