I saw this bit of graffiti in my rear view mirror today in a parking lot in Newport Beach, CA. I did a double-then-triple take and finally realized my brain was tripping out on it because it was done in a continuous line! I have never done graffiti art, but I imagine that you’d want to avoid detection. If you are an artist and not just a punk basically treating the city like a big fire hydrant you want to piss on then you’d want to make sure all of your desired visual elements are present. This design addresses both needs, like a big, graceful signature. It’s one fluid line. I feel like I should have seen this before. After mentally retracing it a handful of times I think it has to feel immensely pleasurable to paint, with all the loop-di-loops and the satisfying closure at the end – how could it not be satisfying? Is drawing a single-line skull something people do that I’m unaware of? Like that Stussy “S” that people draw that’s not actually a Stussy “S” but everyone thinks it is? Maybe someone will enlighten me. Doesn’t matter to me, though. I appreciate the line and the bright orange against the blue (no filter omg!) sky and it got me thinking about single line contour possibilities of my own.

I’ve shared that henna is a form of art that I love. Recently, I tried something else: painting in acrylic using henna forms and flows. Here are a couple of process pics and the final result — let me know what you think!

I’m not going to tell you what doesn’t work when you are in a creative rut, but I can share what did work for me.

First, I committed to myself that finding time to be with myself and to create was a priority, and that meant finding time either to create, or finding time to find time to create. Let me explain.

Putting time aside to swim in creativity is tricky business. Sometimes it flows. Sometimes there’s a huge dam in the way, and despite all desire to do something, anything, I’ll sit there falling asleep looking at a canvas.

That’s when finding time to find time comes in handy. By this I mean putting time into finding scenarios in your community that you can participate in which demand output. For example, taking a class at a community college or signing up for local art competitions. These are both tactics I have used, and they are particularly effective because you have to pay to play. You have to put down cold hard cash (not a lot) and once you do that, you’re taking a risk. In order for the risk to be worth it, you have to deliver.

The great thing about a contest is there is a deadline. Participating in a deadline-driven project pushes you to do something, anything, and all of a sudden you have made a thing! Sometimes that little jump start is all you need to take exploring your art back into your own hands.

Classes are great for a different reason. If you are working on establishing a habit, I think classes are great, especially if it’s a class that meets at least a couple times a week over the course of a couple months. This establishes regular intervals of time when everything else gets put aside, and you have an opportunity to just focus on your ideas, or development of technical ability, or just flowing.

In 2016 I did both tactics, and I have been on a creative high ever since. I’ll share more about some of my other endeavors later, but for now, here are some photos of a painting I did for a plein air contest. I signed up for the contest and was running out of time in my day, so I painted at night! I set up right outside a bar in the historic downtown strip of my city, and painted from about 11pm to 1am, and here is the result:

On the left is my setup that night, and on the right – me with my People’s Choice ribbon!

Thinking about The Porch and why art always came up, why art is important, and why it always seems to be fighting for survival while simultaneously being ever-present I decided to just search it: Why is art important?

I was surprised to see a whole slew of scholarly articles from a variety of educational institutions. Everyone from Quora to The Guardian to Huffington Post, teacher resources websites and even the TEDxGhent had a speaker, Katerina Gregos, who expanded on the importance of art.

The Huffington Post piece was a slightly more lighthearted approach, but I particularly enjoyed point number seven, that art lasts longer than most things, and the author’s example of statues of fat women from 40,000 years ago made be laugh a little, because I have a tattoo of one of those statues. Here’s a link to the full list:

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/maria-rodale/top-ten-reasons-why-art-i_b_214504.html

And if you’re curious about the tattoo, here’s the statue I have a tattoo of, and a snapshot of the tattoo:

While people think she may have been worshiped as a fertility goddess, I think she is beautiful and have always enjoyed that she was kind of one of the earliest Barbie Dolls.

Last but not least, here’s a link to the TED talk, where Katrina speaks and expands on the ideas which started this post — art’s struggle to survive:

I just dug up a black and white digital self portrait I did over ten years ago, and I just completed a self portrait a couple weeks ago. I haven’t looked at them side by side, really, so I’m posting them here for comparison.

Enjoy!

I came across this article in Forbes online, and it’s all about the paint and drink phenomenon that seems to have swept everyone into its clutches. I don’t think that it is the most creative use of one’s time, but it definitely brings art a lot closer to home for people who are participating, and tons of people are! This article makes for an interesting read about recent growth and models of the paint and drink business, but the thing that strikes me most is that it replicates the very idea of The Porch, which I have been doing with friends for years. Get together, surround ourselves in some sort of art, have a drink, and just spend time together. The best part about these times is the connections developed with other people.

For more about the industry, read here:

https://www.forbes.com/sites/caroltice/2015/02/13/drinking-while-painting-the-party-franchise-niche-thats-booming/#542abb0b3d6a

Sometimes when I am bored I like to surf the net for hyperlapse henna designs, so I’ve started trying out my own hyperlapse recordings. It is still a work in progress, as I’m still trying to figure out how and where to hold the camera, but here is one from today:

Found this floating around the internet – what do you think?

Henna is an art form that crosses into both of my creative worlds. I love, love, love doing henna, and I happen to get paid for it.

I will often practice with henna cones that are shot (old, kinda crusty, probably won’t stain) just because I enjoy it so much, and it’s nice to practice and not have a stain because I can use that space for another stain sooner.

Here is a photo of henna I did today.

Growing up I heard that I could not be an artist as an adult because artists never make money. That’s why we’re known as “starving artists” and not “wealthy creatives” in the world.

I don’t feel the need to defend the real earning potential of being an artist, but I thought this pie chart was pretty cool — it has a nice breakdown of the different kinds of artists making a living in the states. The data is old, but interesting nonetheless.

Enjoy!