29 Nov Taking Vacation

How much time will I get to work today? There are days that I can’t get the time in to do the thing I love to do the most paint, and boy do I resent it. It is because once I move away from painting, and into another mode of thinking my “artistic flow” has been disrupted, and horror of horrors I might not be able to retrieve it. It is this continuity of creating that I love, and fear. Fear because this artistic voyage may disappear, may vanish, never to be experienced again. I had a friend who just stopped painting after years of gorgeous productive work. He said one day it just stopped. “It” being that need to create, that passion to paint. He left his studio, and that was it. He never picked up the brush again. His reminder is like an echo in the distance that things can change, that I might not be able to paint again if I stop if even for a day.

Not all artists after being away days, or even hours can easily tap back into that creative place. I would venture a guess, and presume most need time to settle in. In my own creative world I allow time to get comfortable after being away. I allow much needed time to refocus before I paint. I may pour fresh paint, clean my work area, do some required art related business, settle in with a favorite art book etc. before I begin to work. It is a time well spent before I make the first brush stroke. It can be like slipping into a comfortable pair of shoes, finding your favorite painting brush, putting on that old work shirt. I love the way my artistic self moves through me, and readies me for the work at hand. It is a feeling I would never want to lose. I understand the occasional disruption, but will always look forward to a full day of work. It is with much appreciation that I am here ready to begin again.