Kind of off (my normal) topic

Old 12-13-2017, 02:36 PM
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Kind of off (my normal) topic

Something has been on my mind a LOT lately....art. I used to dive into drawing, painting, photography etc but years past have really put that on the back burner. I had lost so much brain power focusing on the A in my life that I couldn't even bring myself to think about creating...once upon a time I made fairly decent money but let it go due to lack of self esteem.

I have felt the urge to paint again. And make art. I have a HUGE blank canvas I have been hanging onto and want to put something pretty on it. I am having trouble as I have no real idea of WHAT will go onto it...but the urge is coming back. Recently I was commissioned for a fun holiday mural and I have received numerous compliments and encouragement to do this more. I have in my heart the desire to work on a gallery and perhaps even a showing of some work once I gain some inventory...I have not shared this with anyone, keeping it in my mind until now...but I feel like I need to run with this and use my growth as a catalyst for maybe something great.... Spiritually, financially, I don't know...

I don't really know what I am saying here really, but encouragement is welcomed. I am very..shy...about this topic. I need to follow my heart I just lack direction I think. Any others out there resonating with this urge?

This may be a sign I am growing back into myself even further and it is exciting.

Posting something good for once, and all about me. *weird* haha.
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Old 12-13-2017, 02:45 PM
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Pray... and follow.

Pray... and follow.

Enjoy the places your Inner Self brings you!

I painted a canvas as a wedding gift for my daughter and her husband almost three years ago. I took a fun, whimsical approach to it and when I saw it on her wall last week I enjoyed seeing it with new eyes... seeing the joy I'm capable of adding to life with colors and brush strokes.
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Old 12-13-2017, 02:46 PM
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thousandwords...I think that this is a signal that your "self" is trying to emerge...to have expression and to be "heard".....to have a voice.....
a voice from deep down, inside yourself.....

If you are good with children...perhaps you could start by volunteering to be an assistant to an art therapist.....or, even an art therapist who works with adults...
It would, at least, be a starting p oint....to get your toe in the art water......
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Old 12-13-2017, 02:50 PM
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Originally Posted by sylvie83 View Post
100%

I left my creative career in my 20s because I doubted myself badly, struggled to show myself and was given pretty heavy advice against the arts...LOADS of anxiety and controlling from my dad...and have JUST gone back to it after many many years...

I started back partly as a result of my crisis when my ex left for the first time. As I started working on me...it become the obvious way to go. My other career never brought the stability I was seeking and was definitely stuck.

Interesting....tell us more
Very cool! Glad I'm not alone here. My current career has stability, but not much more than that, although I do enjoy it...I need more. This new urge is bubbling up as if I literally was bottling it inside. I even have an idea of a theme for this project...based on passion and inner beauty and the human form. This will really test my follow through which hasn't been a strong point of my life- I have grand ideas and lack the ability to see a project through to completion. But if I reverse engineer it back from my end goal this could be very fulfilling for me. I see it as a mixed media - photography/painting gallery. It's like imagining a grand party or wedding and then filling in how to get there. I think I just need to start.

Many nights I lay in bed and aimlessly peruse the internet or watch true crime when I had whole heartedly planned on using my insomnia for art progress...I need to discipline myself a bit more. This is great. I am glad I posted this.

What about your projects Sylvie? I can see how the crisis of your situation could spark this in you!
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Old 12-13-2017, 02:53 PM
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Originally Posted by dandylion View Post
thousandwords...I think that this is a signal that your "self" is trying to emerge...to have expression and to be "heard".....to have a voice.....
a voice from deep down, inside yourself.....

If you are good with children...perhaps you could start by volunteering to be an assistant to an art therapist.....or, even an art therapist who works with adults...
It would, at least, be a starting p oint....to get your toe in the art water......
This is a great idea Dandy. I am setting out for the year 2018 to be big on growth and blossoming...considering returning to school..and helping people is top on my list of interests. This would be an amazing way to combine those passions.
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Old 12-13-2017, 02:55 PM
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Originally Posted by keepingthefaith View Post
Pray... and follow.

Pray... and follow.

Enjoy the places your Inner Self brings you!

I painted a canvas as a wedding gift for my daughter and her husband almost three years ago. I took a fun, whimsical approach to it and when I saw it on her wall last week I enjoyed seeing it with new eyes... seeing the joy I'm capable of adding to life with colors and brush strokes.
Pray and Follow. That is beautiful. I will keep those words close to my heart. The last paintings I did for pleasure were for my children's rooms while I was pregnant. I look at those daily with a smile. What a great gift for your daughter and husband. I am ready to make art for me now. You guys are amazing.
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Old 12-13-2017, 05:16 PM
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Pray...faith...follow.
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Old 12-13-2017, 05:40 PM
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Thousand,
Maybe start with a smaller blank canvas, take some pressure off and
let yourself relax with the artistic spirit you are feeling the need
to express again.

The blank canvas/page/paper can be intimidating visually, so scale it
down so you can have fun with it

I believe artistic expression is very close to one's spiritual nature and
the feeling of needing to be creatively expressive is a true gift.
So happy for you!
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Old 12-14-2017, 10:40 AM
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Originally Posted by mylifeismine View Post
I believe artistic expression is very close to one's spiritual nature and
the feeling of needing to be creatively expressive is a true gift.
So happy for you!
Yes, so well said!!!

I saw a resurgence of my Creative Self as well - although it's still a work in progress for me since I still have a hard time seeing myself as "creative" or valuing the time spent in that way.... but I've learned that I AM massively creative in untraditional ways.

Have any of you been around long enough to remember a member named LaTeeDa? As part of her recovery process she ended up retiring earlier than planned from her career to pursue the artistic side of herself that she'd abandoned long before. She was just about done posting here regularly around the time I became active & her story was magnificently inspiring to me. She showed us all how possibilities become realties and nothing is too far out of reach with enough determination & grit.

Seriously, her historic posts are worth a read & her photography is breathtaking: Advanced Search/ this forum/ threads started by LaTeeDa.
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Old 12-14-2017, 10:59 AM
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Oooh Firesprite that sounds intriguing I will definitely look up her threads. Her username does sound vaguely familiar. So inspiring and exciting!! The encouragement has really lit a fire in me.

I truly feel this deep within, the need to follow my heart (finally)
Great things happen for those who do so and I'm just as worthy to jump for it
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Old 12-14-2017, 11:59 AM
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It's great to hear about this surge of creative energy. I think that's the truest expression of the life force, and the desire to bring forth what is within us.

Over the last year I started doing a couple of things. One was writing poetry again - and I'm happy to say that earlier this week, I was one of four writers giving a reading as part of a poetry series at a local cafe/restaurant. People have said to me "so... you're a poet?" and the answer is "um, yeah, kind of, I guess I am". Not planning to quit the day job any time soon, but I really did love reading my work in public.

And the other thing is getting excited about making collages and crafts out of scraps of things I find at Goodwill and thrift shops. Some of them come out looking really interesting and cool and frame-worthy and some ...don't. But I love making them
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Old 12-14-2017, 12:00 PM
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(Definitely going to look for LaTeeDa's pictures on the weekend!)
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Old 12-16-2017, 11:56 AM
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The freedom and bravery of creation—a lesson in the art of living.

As he worked with the canvas, following the energies of color and light, Anton would share brief observations: Be fearless. There are no mistakes. Master your canvas. Innovate. Experiment. Allow chaos, knowing that order will eventually emerge. Give depth to a flat canvas with contrasts of cool and warm, dark and light. Trust your instincts. Release criticism and perfectionism. Surrender to the process. Follow the energy and keep adding to the energy of your canvas.
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Old 12-16-2017, 06:46 PM
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"Trust your instincts. Release criticism and perfectionism. Surrender to the process. Follow the energy and keep adding to the energy of your canvas."

This!!!!!
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Old 12-17-2017, 05:22 AM
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Poetry Sasha? That is awesome! I love poetry, esp. Emily Dickenson.

Funny story with my artistic endeavor. Took a class because I didn't
believe a woman (excellent artist) who told me anyone could learn
to draw. Well, turns out I did learn and I have amazed myself by
how quickly I have learned and how skilled I seem to be. People
come up to me in class wanting to see my drawings & I hear them
talking about how well I'm drawing in just a few months.

I have no explanation for my ability and now accept it as a gift
from my higher power. I will gratefully and humbly accept it
and only pray to continue to love it as much as I do now. It
is tremendously healing and I would encourage everyone to
find a way to artistically express yourself.
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