Art as a Habit

Creating art can be like working out. We intend to do it... but even if we slam some money down on a gym membership or (even better) have buddies to work out with, we don't tend to keep it up. Then our skills or muscles start to degrade. If you are like me and fall into these traps, you need to adopt a strategy with specific goals to ensure you are making it a habit

Designated Time

One action to take is joining art classes or groups that meet at set intervals. If you have someone to keep you accountable then you are more likely to keep at it. Otherwise set a designated time interval that you will sit your butt down and create. Then your skills can grow instead of suffer. At worst, you end up creating some things that are good ideas or practice for future art. The main idea for this actioin is to have a designated time that you will always dedicate to creating. If you must miss a session due to life circumstances, you must always make it up.

Well if I'm going to sit here for hours to paint, I may as well play... oh hey. Neat.

Piece Goals

Another option for action is setting a goal for creation for set intervals. Instead of setting time aside, you will commit to creating X number of pieces on a repeat time frame. It's not feasible to meet with other people because you are not planning ahead. You could commit to finishing one painting a week or 20  anythings a month, whatever is best for you. But start with a small goal first, so that it remains achievable and you don't stress yourself out of doing it. It might end up that you are sitting down to create a stack of mad crappy art at the end of the time frame- SO BE IT.

LOOK AT MY DEADLINE GARBAGE. And that's ok!

On the Go

My favorite option is to just be prepared. You'd be surprised how much "down time" you have during the day that you could spend creating instead of say, glued to a smart phone. You can get a good sketch done in 5-10 minutes. The trick is taking along a medium that fits in your environment. The cleanest and cheapest are graphite and crayons. CRAYONS- no joke! I take them everywhere with a small sketchbook. Mobile tablets can also suffice to create digital art.

If you can't creep people out around you, why create art in the first place?

Advantages to Habitual Art

When I was taking art classes, I created some cute things. More importantly, I experimented with a lot of ideas out of sheer necessity due to the volume of products that the professors demanded. If you have 15 pieces assigned on Tuesday that are due Thursday, you can't sit on your butt or focus too much. They're not typically good art. They're not supposed to be good. The point is to get your engines warmed up, to familiarize you with the mediums, try different things, and get you into the habit of creating. Everyone gets creative blocks, so (unless it's an assignment) you can even use coloring books for kittens' sake!

This lovely kitty was one of 15+ inks I did in one sitting. Most of the rest were crap.

Disadvantages to Habitual Art

The byproducts of  habitual art aren't always positive. Art created this way may be forced, and devoid of a point of view. It's not that forced art can't be good or beautiful art. It's that it tends to be more clinical, and often feels unfinished or imperfect because it had to be done by a deadline. I urge anyone to not feel discouraged if habitual art isn't a masterpiece every time. The point is to have spent time honing your craft.

Now if I can just convince myself of that.

Bunny, missing a foot but submitted on time, zero fucks given.