Back to drawing
Dear friend,
Welcome to this blog ! I hope you are well today 🥰
This is my first blog article in almost a year, and it feels intimidating to start writing again here !
Which brings me to what I wanted to share with you today - how intimidating it can be to start doing something again after we stopped for a while. And, more specifically here : how hard it can be to start drawing or painting again after a break.
I spent the whole month of March and a good part of February working on my shop opening. I was mostly working on the computer all day, and did not have much time for my paints, sketchbooks and pencils. Oh, I did try to take my sketchbook out a couple of times to doodle for fun, but I was so nervous about preparing everything for the shop that I did not fully immerse into these drawing sessions and ended up closing my sketchbook earlier than expected in order to go do something else, because I was frustrated about not being focused on my drawings.
After the shop open, I was suddenly left with plenty of time to paint, much more than I had in weeks.
And it felt very scary. What to do with all this fun time ? I had gotten used during the past few weeks to not think twice and just go through the to-do list, doodling a little at the end of the day if I had a spare moment. And I know that this feeling is natural and it comes back very regularly - everytime I spend more than a week or two away from paper and paints. So, little by little, year after year, I have tried to figure out what helps me feel better in these moments, and I thought maybe I could share some of it with you in case it can help you too 💙
Things that help me when I feel stuck / uninspired / rusty
Going outside to have a walk - paying extra attention to little details, sounds, colours, the wind on my face, the birds singing…
Creating a cozy atmosphere before I sit at my desk to draw / paint / sketch 🌞
I usually prepare a warm teapot of my favourite tea (replace with any beverage you love), light a candle (extra points if it has a nice smell, but even a regular one makes me feel cozy), choose a playlist or an audiobook that makes me feel calm (I love listening to Studio Ghibli playlists on Youtube, or Harry Potter audiobooks). It helps my mind understand that I am relaxing, that it’s okay, this moment is fun and light, and it takes some pressure off.
Trying a new medium !
It can either be a new kind of paint, pen, pencil, or something very different such as embroidery, photo, video, air-dry clay… when I try something new, I know from the beginning that I am going to create a masterpiece (I rarely do anyways, but my mind always hopes so). So I can relax completely and simply enjoy the process of experimenting, learning, seeing what works or what does not, instead of focusing on the result.
Creating constraints before I start drawing / painting
It can be about the format, the colours, the shape, the theme… When I feel scared of the blank page, I usually pick a very limited colour palette (maximum 4 colours), and many times I even only use one. For example, I love painting with only one shade of blue watercolour. This helps me focus on composition, textures, shapes, patterns, contrasts, rather than looking for the perfect shades. By deleting some of the aspects that make you feel pressure (maybe it is having a beautiful colour palette ? Maybe it’s having a striking composition ? Or maybe you are scared to draw on a big format ?), our mind will probably relax and the fear will slowly fade away. Having constraints can even make us more creative because we have to come up with new ways of making something (for example, if you are only using yellow and pink, you will see that you can draw greenery without using green, and maybe you’ll discover that you love it !)
Here for example, I decided to only use three colours : a green, a black and a pink watercolour. It helps me play with value and pattern rather than focusing on the right shades 😊
Sometimes, we might try all of the above, but inspiration still does not come to us. We are staring at the page, not knowing what to draw. In this case, there are a few things that can help me.
🌼 First of all, I scroll through Pinterest - maybe look at something different than what you do. If you are an illustrator, look at ceramics. If you are a photographer, look at paintings… sometimes, trying to paint beautiful ceramics I encountered on Pinterest really helped me jump and break the fear of the blank page, and find my flow again ! Moreover, by searching for things that I don’t necessarily make myself (in this example, ceramics), I avoid comparing myself and making the scary feeling worse. Because looking at other artist’s works who use the same medium as you can be very inspiring sometimes, but when we already feel insecure it might not be helpful !
🌼 Secondly, if you want to avoid Pinterest (sometimes we just need to be in our own bubble and not face the Internet, and this is totally normal), try drawing little objects or furnitures you can see around you. Focus on the shapes and patterns. Don’t feel like you have to draw them in a super realistic, sophisticated way. You can try to simplify them a lot, and have fun !
Some other times, what helps me is to write down how I feel - many times, I write how I am scared to paint again and how rusty I feel. After this, depict this feeling with a small illustration (I usually go with a self-portrait where I am a little elephant). It looks very similar everytime, but it helps me take the first step and draw something onto paper. You can also try to write about the things you did in the past few days and have a small drawing for each of them (you don’t need to draw a whole scene, maybe just an object that represents what you are talking about). This can help you find ideas and slowly find a flow that suits you !
🌼 And lastly, what I love doing when I don’t feel like any of the above is helpful, is to go through old sketchbooks (or scrap papers if you don’t use a sketchbook) and find ideas I had there. I take one little element I liked and try to draw it / paint it. This way, I don’t have to come up with a new subject to draw and can only focus on having fun painting.
This is an older sketchbook page, but I still like it very much because it shows how I was just writing my feelings and then making small vignettes to illustrate them 😊
Changing your scenery
It might seem silly, but sometimes just changing the place where I sit helps me a lot ! Instead of sitting at your desk, maybe sit at the kitchen table, or on your bed ? It looks like a very small change, but it can give you a new perspective. When we work / draw a lot in the same spot, I think our mind ends up associating work with that seat. And then we feel the pressure of doing something wonderful when we sit there. Sitting in a more neutral place might help eleminate this feeling and makes us feel more free to draw. I know it can help me tremendously to let go and have fun 🌞
Doing something completely different
This sounds obvious maybe, but I know how hard it can be sometimes. If nothing works and you still feel stuck or scared of the blank page, maybe you just need to take some time for yourself. Don’t feel guilty to not be drawing / painting / whatever your activity is, and just go outside, read a book, watch a TV show, bake a cake, go visit your friends or your grandmother, clean your flat, go to the cinema… just anything completely different, that will ease your mind and make you think about something else. We tend to forget it and put a lot of pressure on ourselves many times, but creativity is like a flower that we need to water and nurture before it blooms. Sometimes, our creativity gets tired and it needs rest in order to live again, and pushing ourselves too hard does not help. There are some periods when we feel incredibly motivated and inspired, and after a while, our mind needs to recharge, to fill itself with new imagery, feelings, adventures, to come up with new ideas. It is a normal and natural cycle and sometimes we just have to accept it and allow time for our inspiration to be back again. So, go live the adventures that bring you joy, outisde or under a blanket, and let your mind rest 🌼
I think this is all I have to share for now, I hope this article can, above all, make you feel less alone if you are going through a creative rut or a period of low inspiration/creativity. We tend to forget it in these moments, but we all go through these, you are not alone 💙 And even if sometimes we feel desperate, like we will never draw again, it always fades away. So please take your time, take care of yourself, and everything is going to be okay 🌼
Sending all my love and a cup of coconut tea (it’s very yummy !).
And a ray of sunshine (let’s enjoy it while it’s here, it comes and goes these days !)
See you soon 🥰
Cécile