I first heard the phrase “creative stagnation” over a year ago and it stuck in my head. The phrase perfectly described my recent multi-year struggle to come up with compelling ideas and engagement in the creative process. The term “artist block” didn’t quite describe it, as I was still producing artwork, albeit slowly and reluctantly. But I wasn’t excited about it, and at my lowest point, spent a year on a painting that remains unfinished to this day.
This stagnation didn’t announce itself. I only knew that ideas were not coming as clearly, that I wasn’t excited to make artwork, and that I felt uninterested in what I was making. I believed that this lack of motivation was because of laziness or not having enough time to create. In hindsight, it is clear that none of these things were the true root of the issue. I believed my only options were to push through or do nothing, neither of which were a true solution.
This time could have been used as an opportunity to explore and expand my artistic practice by trying new materials, methods, or subject matter. And while I did some of that, there was the nagging feeling that I was wasting time by exploring, since I wasn’t necessarily creating “good” artwork or the “serious” artwork that I was used to making. I was too caught up in productivity, concerned with making something significant, exhibiting artworks, continuing the same way of artmaking. This became more important than making artwork that was interesting to me, honest, and sometimes even fun. Ultimately, I spent a lot of time making artworks I didn’t like or didn’t finish, with few exceptions. If I wasn’t going to be productive anyway, at least I could have enjoyed the journey.
As this stagnation continued, I began to see the need for change in my artmaking. The old “language” of imagery that I used no longer fit my new experiences. The images that I was drawn to no longer moved me. The emotions that fueled my artwork changed. This can be the difficulty in making artwork based on emotions and life circumstances — sometimes life changes also require a shift in artmaking. This is where paying attention to my general interests, what moved me outside of artmaking, and what I wanted to paint became important. As I focused less on trying to make artwork that fit within the scope of what I had been making previously and more on possible new directions, I found some clarity on what I wanted to make for the moment, and later what I wanted to make long term.
Another key piece for me was time - allowing myself the time to explore, rather than produce, but also making time most days for artmaking. Because of my flexible academic schedule, I considered when I could work in the studio between classes, office hours, and meetings. Committing to those time slots as much as possible, as well as physically removing myself from my college office and into my home studio space made it possible for me to make art much more frequently. I looked forward to those studio breaks in the day, and felt that I was making artmaking a priority. Finding a rhythm of artmaking that fit that season of life became a way that I made gradual progress with making, even when other distractions were present.
Utilizing small amounts of time also became important. Even if I only had twenty or thirty minutes, I could ask myself what I might be able to get done in that time frame and then make progress on it. It helped to evaluate what small tasks could be accomplished, even if they were tasks like painting the edges of a canvas, wiring a painting, varnishing, or taking photos. These were still things that needed to be accomplished, and by taking time for them as I could, I was able to dedicate longer stretches of time to actual artmaking.
All of these changes were helped along by hearing the experiences of other artists. I started listening regularly to the Undraped Artist Podcast hosted by painter Jeff Hein. On his podcast Jeff interviews many different professional artists (mostly painters) about their journey as an artist, painting/making techniques, art philosophy, etc. Hearing the vast differences between these artists and their art practices was a weekly inspiration and reminder that we all approach artmaking differently, whether our artistic journey has been straight or meandering. Each artist defines their own goals for their art career, all types of training and experiences can prove valuable, and there isn’t a specific path to follow to achieve success.
I am now past being creatively stuck. Making art is still work, but also a joy. I have more ideas than time, and motivation to use them. While it took reflection to understand what happened the past few years, it has been valuable for considering how to handle such a situation moving forward. If I were to go back and advise myself, I would say this: Carve out regular time to make art, regardless of whether it is good, will be accepted into shows, or advance your career. Let go of the need to be productive or to appear productive to others. Forget your own conceptions of what your art is or should be. Instead, pay attention to what actually interests you, whether big or small. Listen to the journeys of other artists and consider their advice and examples. Most of all, keep moving forward.