When I’m at the beginning stages of a painting and deciding where to go next, I first try to figure out what I like about the piece. I then do the opposite of what I like about that piece – it’s a great way to move forward when you’re looking for a little inspiration.
What do you do when you’re stuck?
19 Comments
Hi! I’m
Nicholas Wilton
the founder of Art2Life.
With over 20 years experience as a working artist and educator, I’ve developed a systematic approach that brings authenticity, spontaneity and joy back into the creative process.
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I appreciate the simplicity and focus of these short clips. Painting is inquiry. Gaining skill enables me to articulate the inquiry so others can participate. These clips help me to articulate simply with focus. Sending gratitude your way Nicholas.
thanks PJVickers! I appreciate that…
This is a counterintuitive and intriguing idea. I look forward to experimenting with it, to see what happens.
I often find myself mindlessly making marks that do not contribute constructivly to the painting. Thank you for that suggestion! Will try it!
Yes it really moves the art in a direction…
Everything you say makes sense to me, your statements are simple but profound. Thank you so much for sharing, it’s helping me so much.
More of the same is the same…shake it up. So simple but so true! Thank you for these wonderful short videos .Simply said I love them,
so helpful and inspiring on a Sunday morning.
So glad Francine…thanks
I know in general what I like.. but if I try to go there in a straightforward way then it doesn’t go there.. but if I do something more similar to what you are describing then there is more of a chance of arriving at a desirable painting place.. it is like life.. so much is lived at a different level than the ordinary.. I want to try more of what you are describing.. as I err in letting the unconscious take too much control.
Yes it is a balance…still figuring it out for sure…
Yes, I try to make contrast somehow – size, shape, colour, texture, sometimes it feels like a bold move, but that really pushes it forward;-) Happy Easter!
brilliant, Nicholas, thanks so much for talking on this topic. I love your “cool pivot”. I try to work intuitively, but as I have several paintings as that stage that need more direction, I will try to “think” about opposites to move the work along. Actually, I am excited and can’t wait to try this out. Thanks, I’ve just started watching your videos and I love them. You share great stuff with such humility, thank you.
What are you using Nicholas? Are those oil pastels or oil bars? Thanks. Really looking forward to your workshops.
Thank you, I will try this out….would also love to see where this painting of yours goes Nick!
i take a break…take a walk,listen to music and look for inspiration from the world all arond me….filtering it through my own thoughts and feelings finds expression
Very interesting way to think about it – usually I think about what I like and then how to show that best, (which can often be having something different around it) but this is a bolder way of approaching it. More decisive adding and bringing richness rather than skirting around the issue. Will try and remember this!
I do collage work, but I am trying to start adding painting to my work as well. However, I find that when I lay down that first layer of collage, I am really hesitant to cover it with paint. I am trying to get less attached to that first layer! I once read about a collage instructor’s technique where he asked his students to cut go through magazines and find the images they loved and cut them out. Once the class cut out images that resonated with them, the instructor then told them to create a collage with the OPPOSITE side of whatever they had cut out. They had to let go of those beautiful images and get creative with whatever happened to be on the opposing side of the paper. I can see how this technique would be a great creative challenge…one that I will be trying 🙂
I think this is a great idea. Not one I would have come to on my own. I usually, when I’m stuck ask someone’s opinion who is further along the road. But I welcome any strategies that gives me tools for self direction. Thanks for this , greatly
That’s a great idea, and I’ve been reading the other responses…which made me realize that when I’m stuck I may ask someone whom I respect (usually another artist!) what they think about it. But as I’m writing this, it occurs to me that maybe the best way to respond when in a “stuck” moment is to do what you’ve done…just make a different or opposite kind of mark and see how i respond to that. It would seem to me a way of keeping one’s art their own (authentic) expression and evolving in a faster and more organic way. Thanks for another wonderful and helpful message and video, Nick!