Drawing Challenge

Lately I’ve been feeling off my game. I don’t know if it’s because I’m juggling three different jobs or that I’ve been trying to figure out new ideas and projects to do for this blog. Making things and being creative takes time and energy. Having an idea is easy, it’s making that idea come to life that’s the tricky part. 

I’ve always been into art; from a very early age. My dad used to take me to museums here in San Francisco and we’d sit and draw all the taxidermy animals. In school I was always the one in group projects that drew on the poster boards. I had no idea what we were learning, I just liked drawing. 

I have this tremendous imagination. Great ideas. I get excited thinking about all the things I want to build, paint, draw, write, create. Sometimes I’m effective in my endeavors as an artist. My creative juices are flowing and my brain and my hands are so connected to each other. 

Lately however, I’ve hit a wall. My creativity, and my motivation, and my belief in my own ability has stopped working. Nothing I do is working, and it’s very frustrating. 

Today I just wanted to give up. I was working on a new project for this blog and the whole time I just wanted to throw it away. 

Half way through, I did. I chucked it and laid on my bed, watched funny youtube videos and ate cereal.

After two bowls of frosted mini-wheats, and a movie night with my friend I felt a little better. 

I realized that it’s okay to be frustrated. 

The fact of the matter is that I love what I do. I don’t care whether its super easy or really hard to work through. I care about what I’m doing–I care about working on projects, and drawing and painting and teaching people how to create work of their own. I don’t want to quit. I want to break down that wall and challenge myself to keep going. It’s okay to stop. Everyone needs a break every once in a while, but to me, quitting is not an option. Quitting means that’s it…it’s over…I’m never doing this again. 

If I quit, I’m giving up a part of myself that makes me uniquely me. 

So I need to stop, and re-organize. 

What is it that will make me creatively happy? 

What do I need to create that will get me excited to create more?

I’ve been in this spot before as an artist. I’ve been stuck behind this wall. I know that what I need to do is just draw. I need to put away my paints, and my computer, and my piles of project making things that are strewn about my living room and just focus on my sketchbook. 

Like I said before, I draw ALL the time…but when it’s mixed up in all the other stuff I work on, it doesn’t get the attention it needs. 

So for the next while,  it is back to basics. I will be just be drawing. And I would absolutely love for you to join me!

To be honest, it always bugs me a little when I see drawing challenges with a list of things to draw each day. I feel like they’re rules I have to follow, and I’m not much for rules. Or even guidelines. Or instructions for that matter (if you couldn’t already tell by previous posts with recipes).  I like to draw what I want, and whatever I feel like. 

So I have made a short list of suggestions for those of you who don’t know where to start:

But really, the purpose of this exercise is to just draw. Grab a pen or pencil and start moving it around on a piece of paper and see what happens. Draw something that’s right in front of you. Draw your kids’ shoes, your stove, draw some scribbles and add some arms and legs to it. 

Just draw.

I’ll be doing so every day–and I’ll be sure to show you guys my sketchbook as I go along.

If you’ll excuse me, I’m going to go get started!