How is it that hours of concentrated artistic effort can produce nothing of worth and yet a few minutes can be inspired?  Determination is not alway efficient use of painting time.  It sometimes seems that the art we work hardest on is not always the best.

While creative inspiration might sometimes seems hard to find, at other times the muse is at one’s shoulder whispering more ideas than the artist can use.  Plain hard work is always necessary but the results are not dependable.  Creativity is a mysterious thing and it is not always available when one wants it to be.

After several hours struggling with  a painting that was not going well, I went back to the house in disgust.  Later, after avoiding the problem for a while I returned to look at it again.  Almost instantly a solution came to mind and ten minutes of exhuberant painting brought the finish I had struggled so hard for.    Why was what was once painful and difficult suddenly easy and a pleasure?  I really have no idea, but the same has happened on a more or less regular basis for many years.   There seems to be help in avoiding the problem for a while; a change of perspective or a change of view.   Perhaps our subconscious works on the problem while we are doing another activity or perhaps it is merely the brain needing a rest.

No matter the actual cause, the certainty is that creativity is always in ebb and flow.  When a painting problem seems insurmountable, taking a walk or turning to other activities for a while can help.  The important thing is to realize that the creative spark has not gone out but is only in need of recharging and will return brighter than ever.

Sharon Himes

This entry was posted on Thursday, February 1st, 2007 at 6:44 pm and is filed under Artists Journal. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.