Winning in the Art Studio!

Winning in the art studio

Winning in the art studio can be a big challenge when there’s a lot going on!  Moreover, it’s good to hang out with family and be able to take care of them. Then there’s cooking, shopping, laundry and cleaning.  

Meanwhile, there’s work. Writing blogposts, making videos, and maintaining my website takes me a lot of time, too.  Thus, it all seems to conspire to keep you out of the studio.

Only Human

Simply being human can be a deterrence to getting in the studio.  Accordingly, Bill and I were bed bound for days with the flu. Nonetheless, I didn’t worry about making art or videos because I had made several videos ahead of time. I was fine.  So I thought. 

Steep Learning Curve for New Medium

However, the steep learning curve I experienced with ‘Red Playground Derivative Squared’ and Red Playground Extreme took a huge amount of unplanned time. I had little experience printing with oil-based ink. Thereby, it nearly stopped me in my tracks for two reasons:

Plus, the works took longer to dry than anticipated.  Further, it took studio time to make extra space for them to hang to set-dry, while I worked on other pieces.

Printing is Messy

Monoprint with oil-based ink IS messy.  Really messy.  Consequently, cleaning up took a minimum of  30 minutes after each session.  Hence, this up-ended my ambitious schedule of making art and editing videos for 52 works by May 2024.  Accordingly, I did a rethink on how I could meet my deadline. Click here to read, “The Challenge of Printing with Oil Based Ink” to learn how printing with oil-based ink affected me and how I coped.

Change is Tiring

Notwithstanding all this, it was critical for me to take a year to explore where I wanted to go in my arts practice. Creating 52 works in a short time span was critical to that pursuit.  Nonetheless, I battled weariness from constant change.  In longing for the familiar, I acknowledged there would be no growth in comfort. Accordingly, I must continue pushing my bounds.

Does Anyone care?

Alongside weariness, I sometimes battled, “Imposter Syndrome”. Indeed, why should anyone care about my art?

How did I overcome?  I literally stepped up to the mirror and said to myself, ’You’re going to get in the studio, set everything up, hit “record” and start making art!”

This kind of self-talk is very important when you want to achieve a goal that seems bigger than you.  Click here to read something blog about getting into the studio no matter what.

Even though it’s really tough, sometimes. Still, you must persevere.

The Mental Game

Undeniably, winning the mental game is one of the toughest aspects of forging a satisfying arts practice.  Therefore, reading books, watching videos, and listening to podcasts about mindset has helped me tremendously.

Indeed, time and money invested in mentors and programs on leadership, philosophy, and organising skills has given me tools to move forward.  Let me know in the comments if you like to know more about what I’ve learned about the mental game for the studio.

The most important thing about studio mindset is to make at least one simple motion forward, every day, towards a personally important art goal, no matter how you feel emotionally.

Truly Winning in the Art Studio

Therefore, every weekday I make myself go into the art studio. (My weekends are committed to family life). Even if I simply organise, clean up, pr add a few marks to a work, I make sure I move forward. I simply will not do nothing.

Undoubtedly, taking little steps forward every day helped me build up a substantial and meaningful body of work since I shifted to New Zealand over two decades ago.

Click here to see my narrative realism works.

Everything is not a win

Yet, everything I make in the studio is not a “win” for me. Instead, the ones that don’t work are quietly put away in a stash where I review and learn from them.  The value of stuff-ups is you get to study and learn from them.

The simple act of winning

Thus, winning in the art studio, particularly when you’re tired, sad, distracted, or coping with what life throws your way, means you simply show up in your studio.  Then, you move in the direction you’ve determined to go.

Remember, each time you get into the studio and make a forward motion is a win.  Especially when you do not want to get in there, it’s a win.

My Thoughts on Red Playground Extreme 1 and 2

Red Playground Extreme really astonishes me.  Furthermore, a year ago I never would have imagined I would create works like these two.  Additionally, the bonus is they decidedly differ from my earlier Red Playground works too.

Final Word

Ultimately, pushing through my fears and acting on my decision to show up has given me a set of works that demonstrate how well I have pushed myself well beyond that which is normal for me.

Now, in my book, that is a win!

Further Reading

Click here to read, “10 Things I Did to Love Myself:” to read the post and view the first video of the Red Playground series.  It also serves as the first post on my 52-52 challenge.