It turns out that the practice of creating something everyday, is one of the habits that I like to live my life by… but it has been busy lately, really busy. I am no longer in the season of sitting around the kitchen table creating art projects with my kids. It turns out that homeschooling little kids really is only for a time. Life-learning, however is forever, while I have been drifting aimlessly, from one arty moment to the next, I realise that it is time to reclaim my arty mojo.
Sparking my Creative Mojo One Day at a Time…
- Get those ART materials out and Within Reach.
- Activity Books are Easy Ways to Practice Art Everyday.
- Subscribe to Arty Inspiration.
- Read Books that Inspire You.
- Visit Galleries to fill Your Art Bucket.
- Use the Algorithm: to fill your feed with Art!!!
- Attend a Workshop.
For years our art materials lay out on the kitchen table, and in wild moments of tidying up, they landed on the kitchen counter. But… and it is a terrible but, for a while they were put out of the way and nobody touched them. Not that big of a surprise… When my kids were small I made sure that we had fabulous art materials out and ready to use… there were no limits, they were kept sorted, and re-arranged from time to time. The whole vibe was appealing. Art materials are now back on my desk, and they are ready to use and I am delighted to say that they are ready to distract me from any task I am “meant” to be doing.
Activity Books are just as great for kids as they are for adults. The trick is, don’t store them on a shelf, rather leave them lying around next to a jar of markers. I have dozens of them, and lately I have really enjoyed dipping into Lorna Scobie’s series of 365 Days…
These books are playful and fun, and you can work in them with whatever you have at hand… dashed in your beach bag, use a biro; on your desk with all the materials, use all the materials – the paper is firm enough for markers, watercolours, wax crayons, you name it!!!
I have followed friends online for years, who subscribe to art boxes… and just lately I have found a local creator who is creating the most stunning art boxes. These boxes from Your Muse are packed with very different activities and different artists to learn about. I love them, each box contains a few themed projects, perfect for tackling with a cup of coffee, before your day gets out of hand. They really do deserve their own blog post… so watch this space.
Anything by Austen Kleon, is fun and very easy reading. Short, sharp books, that look like they need to be grabbed and read, wherever you are… they are packed with loads of inspiration to keep on practicing, whatever your art is!!! If you are looking for notebook inspiration, then this is definitely a great place to start.
There is nothing more inspiring than stoping by a gallery, a great big city centre gallery, or a coffee shop gallery. You are bound to find something that you love… look a little closer in the gallery and you might even find postcards of the artworks in the collection… start your own collection in your art journal, to remind you of works that inspired you and that you enjoyed. Google the artist, you will be surprised to see what else they have been up to, and check them out on instagram.
Turns out that the more you look at something on instagram the more you will see, I purposefully follow and interact with several artists online and this has ensured that instead of having several negative things thrown in my face on the daily, my scroll time is filled with creative friends making easy and accessible art… look for the hashtag #inktober that is coming up and there will be loads of daily art prompts throughout October.
I love following Max Romey on Trailboundsketches on his adventures, Andrea.Nelson.Art always has something on the go, and kept me moving through July, with her summer sketchbook. I can’t ever get enough of the Wild Wonder Foundation, and I am following along with snippets from their annual conference and so many many MANY online lessons!!! There are so many more arty folk online, go and fill your insta feed with a whole lot of Joy!!!
These are so much fun, challenge yourself to try something new, by attending a workshop you don’t have to buy all the gear until you have tried it… in fact, its almost worth attending the workshop to see if you enjoy it first.
Most galleries have monthly workshops that folk can attend, and if there is something new that you would like to try, google classes in your city. you will be surprised to discover a whole world of novice artists, waiting to try something new.
So just start… fifteen minutes a day is not too big an ask, find something to create, doodle, draw… just start. Let your mind wander, and that fifteen minutes may well turn into something longer and it may inspire those around you, to join you for some arty fun too.