Today’s post: beating the BOWS (Beginning of Winter Slump), per our discussion several weeks ago. Part 2 will be about “beating the economic slump”, next week. By then I hope to have thought of something to write.
Suggestions for dealing with BOWS:
- Do something different. Do you normally paint large? Paint very small (4×6, 6×8). Normally work in oil? Use watercolor, pencil, or watercolor pencil. Do a whole image with palette knife. Etc. Try Yupo!
The image on this post comes from a little experiment I did a while ago: laid a piece of rice paper on a plate rolled with printing ink, then drew on top of the paper. The cave-art quality of this was a surprise to me, and charms me. - Do something even more different. I’ve been crocheting like crazy - something about the colors and textures of all those yarns and fibers fascinates me. It’ll stimulate me in the studio, too. At some point. I hope.
- Look at other art. Go to the library or bookstore and flip through every art magazine there, including ones you wouldn’t normally. The abstract stuff (in ArtNews? American Art Collector? can’t remember them all) is visually very interesting for me. I happened to see a magazine new to me (Horses in Art) and look through it last weekend; much of the work was pedestrian, but there was at least one artist whose approach fascinated and inspired me.
- Clean the studio. We already talked about this.
- Visit artisan fairs and studios. What a great time of year to see what other artists - of all types - are doing! So many craft fairs and similar things happening; fine crafts also get me visually inspired. Even better, make a purchase and support other artists.
- Sketch from life - pets, spouses, trees. Try doing something really unusual, like a study of the reflections in a shiny glass ball ornament.
- Mess with your images in Photoshop. I have so much fun playing with my images - whether artwork or photos - and Photoshop’s filters and plugins. And sometimes it inspires me to try a different approach. Plus, you might end up with something cool enough to print onto a card or shirt.
OK, enough from me. Other suggestions?
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