A Simple Art Hack to Break Creative Habits and Find New Artistic Direction

The Wait and See Pass is a fast, three-step technique for discovering new artistic directions and breaking out of creative habits. Fill your canvas with random colors at similar values (keeping everything light). Choose the areas you love by observing what emerges. Amplify those areas by adding high-contrast darks in just three or four strategic spots. This method works beautifully because the close values in step one let you see colors and shapes clearly without value contrast dominating the composition. Then the strategic dark placement in step three makes your chosen areas pop dramatically. It’s effective in journals, on large canvases, and anywhere you want to create something completely different from your usual work.

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One of the most exciting parts about creating art is finding new things. Discovering directions you haven’t explored before. When you make something genuinely different, something clicks inside you.

 

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Why We Get Stuck Making the Same Things

Most artists fall into patterns. We reach for the same colors. We make similar compositions. We follow familiar processes.

These habits aren’t necessarily bad. But they can keep us from discovering what else is possible in our work.

I’ve developed a technique I use constantly in my journals and on large paintings. I’ve actually never shared it publicly before, even though it’s one of my most reliable tools for breaking creative habits.

I call it the Wait and See Pass.

 

The Wait and See Pass: A Fast Start to Find What’s Next

Here’s the simple framework:

Step 1. Fill

• Cover the canvas
• Keep values close
• No big contrasts
• (Lower the volume so you can actually see what’s there)

Step 2. Choose

• Step back
• Notice what’s working
• Choose what you love

Step 3. Amplify

• Use value contrast to show what you love
• Increase value contrast to amplify
• Direct the viewer’s eye to 3-4 areas using value contrast

Let me break down exactly how each step works.

 

Step 1: Fill

Cover your entire canvas or page with color. Work quickly and don’t overthink it.

Choose random colors. Lay them all out in an abstract design. It doesn’t really matter what shapes you create or how you arrange them.

The crucial element is keeping all your values similar. Keep everything relatively light. Don’t add strong darks yet.

Mix up different colors if you want, but maintain that close value range. This is the key that makes the entire technique work.

Think of it as lowering the volume so you can actually see what’s there. When everything is at a similar value, nothing dominates through contrast. You can see the colors and shapes clearly.

Leave little hairlines of white between some areas if you like. This helps separate the shapes visually.

Use different textures and patterns as you fill. Make it interesting. But remember, keep those values close.

When I talk about values, I mean the lightness and darkness of the colors. Keep them all in a similar light range.

This is just a first pass. The colors don’t need to be perfect. You’re simply covering the white surface and playing.

You can do this with acrylics, watercolors, or any medium you prefer.

 

Step 2: Choose

Once you’ve covered the entire surface and those close values have created a unified field, step back.

Look at what you’ve created. Notice what’s working.

Because there’s minimal value contrast, you can actually see the colors and shapes more clearly. Nothing is dominating through contrast alone.

Now choose what parts you love.

Which areas feel exciting? Which colors sing? Which shapes or textures draw your eye?

This is where your intuition guides you. You’re not thinking analytically. You’re feeling what resonates.

 

Step 3: Amplify

This is where the magic happens.

Take a dark color (I often use a deep blue, but any dark works) and strategically place it in just three or four spots.

Add these darks in the areas you chose in step two. The areas you love. The parts you want viewers to see.

Watch what happens as you bring in these darks. Your eye immediately goes to those high-contrast areas. The painting comes alive.

Use value contrast to show what you love. Increase that value contrast to amplify it. Direct the viewer’s eye to those 3-4 strategic areas.

The dark doesn’t just add contrast. It amplifies everything around it. Suddenly that yellow you liked becomes gorgeous. That blue shape becomes striking.

You don’t have to stay within the original shapes. You can create new shapes with your darks. But use them sparingly. Three or four strategic placements move the eye around and highlight what matters.

You can roughen edges. Add textures. Adjust as you go.

But the power comes from that value contrast hitting in just the right spots.

 

Why This Works

The Wait and See Pass works because of how our eyes process visual information.

When everything is at a similar value, we see color and shape relationships more clearly. Nothing dominates through contrast, so we can observe what’s actually there. It’s like lowering the volume to hear the subtle notes.

Then when we add high contrast selectively, those areas immediately command attention. But because we’ve chosen them intuitively based on what we loved in step two, they feel right. They’re amplifying what was already working.

This creates art that feels both spontaneous and intentional. Fresh but focused.

 

Breaking Your Habits

Here’s what I love most about this technique.

When you start with random colors at similar values, you’re immediately working outside your usual patterns. You’re not reaching for your favorite palette or your typical composition structure.

You’re responding to what emerges rather than imposing what you already know.

This creates work that looks different from anything you’ve made before. Different colors. Different shapes. Different energy.

And that’s where discovery happens.

 

Practical Applications

I use the Wait and See Pass in my journals constantly. It’s perfect for a quick daily practice when you want to try something new.

But it scales beautifully. I’ve used this approach on large canvases to start paintings that felt genuinely different from my previous work.

The technique is fast. You can complete all three steps in a surprisingly short time.

It breaks habits effectively because you’re working intuitively rather than from established patterns.

And it consistently produces exciting results because you’re following what you genuinely love rather than what you think you should create.

 

Discovering Your Artistic Direction

This technique is all about discovering new things. Where you’re going in the future. What exciting directions can you uncover in your work?

And this is exactly what we’ll be exploring together in the Creative Visionary Blueprint Workshop, happening March 2-6, 2026.

 

During this free 5-day workshop, we’re going to create a roadmap for your artistic future. You’ll translate everything you’re discovering in your practice into a clear, vibrant vision for your creative direction.

I’ve been working on this workshop for weeks, and I can’t wait to share it with you.

 

Try It Yourself

Give the Wait and See Pass a try in your next session.

Remember the three steps. Fill with similar values. Choose what you love. Amplify with strategic darks.

Don’t overthink it. Let the process guide you.

Pay attention to what emerges. Notice what excites you. Trust your intuition about where to place those amplifying darks.

This simple technique might open doors to artistic directions you haven’t explored yet.

Share in the comments below. What new directions are you hoping to discover in your work?

Nicholas