“So, where are you going to take your art, and what are you going to paint?”
When last did you have a critique that got you to one of those critical points in your development as an artist?
“You can stay as you are for the rest of your life, or you can change to ……..!” (Some of the older artists may remember the advert).
The right questions had been asked but I’d hit a creative block. How was I going to get momentum?
This is a brief reflection of my journey and some of the learnings I gathered along the way. We’re all wired differently, and we’d all tackle the challenge differently, but it is my hope that there is something helpful for everyone who reads this article.
What follows are 6 key points (there are many more) that helped me start the unblocking process and gain momentum in developing creative strength. Each of the points could be a post on its own, but here we go!
Commit to the Journey
If you are going to parachute out of an airplane it requires commitment, a dedication and a obligation to jumping out of the door of the plane; a mental orientation to staying the course, before you actually jump.
I had an obligation (positively) to myself, and for me – my Creator, to do the best I can with what I have been gifted. I embraced that it is a journey of transformation (of my artwork and of me as an individual) and not a destination. This gave me a strong enough sense of purpose, a reason to embark on the journey, and to stay the course.
Define and Refine
Define and refine the content of your commitment – the ‘what’.
So often we hear, or we face the “What am I going to draw/paint next?” question. I stank at portraiture, so given my stubborn nature, I decided to use portraiture as my vehicle/subject of development; a genre I had no formal training in, one of my weaknesses.
Strength or a weakness? You know which will work for you. I chose one of my weaker areas because I knew I’d get bored with doing what I could do reasonably well already. Tackling a weakness runs the risk of being too challenging. Strength or weakness – both require your commitment.
Choose a genre (still life, interiors, cityscapes, landscapes, seascapes etc) that you know you can work on for at least a couple of months so that you don’t have to deal with the unnecessary, and at this stage distracting, task of subject matter
The other useful aspect of keeping within a genre is that you develop strength in “seeing” the subject. We give ourselves the opportunity to assimilate how light falls on a face, how textures are revealed, edges define form etc. We should be looking/ seeing 80-90% of the time we spend making art – subtle nuances in light, colour, textures, form etc only become obvious to us as we give our attention to these elements, at the same time training our eyes and minds as to what to look for when drawing/painting a particular subject.
How Long?
Commitment and knowing what you’re going to focus on doesn’t generate momentum, yet!
Initially I decided on doing 65 portraits in 65 days; the number was arbitrary in that I turned 65 in 2022, and if I started on 01 January (see Figure 1) my 65th portrait would be on 06 March, the day I turn 65.
Transformation and development always take time. I had to unlearn some unproductive habits and embrace some new ones to develop creative strength, and that takes commitment to the journey for a period of time.
The wonderful thing that happens, is that given enough time to the process develops its own momentum, so that at some stage the question of when to stop needs to be considered.
After even 22 days of the journey, when laid out together, I could already see some development (See Figure 2). After 65 days/65 portraits (See Figure 3) the momentum and progress made helped me come to the conclusion that I had not finished the journey; not enough learning, transformation and development had taken place, so doing an extra 35 portraits/ days was an easy decision – I was hungry to produce more.
On 10 April 2022 I did my 100th portrait (See Figure 4) of what I had classified as a series (a grouping of work done over a period of months or even years, and a shorter period I’d classify as a project).
To make the series a bit more meaningful the first drawing was a self-portrait, number 65 was another self-portrait (Figure 3), and the 100th portrait was of my wife; small aspects that contribute to the momentum you need to maintain.
To optimise my time, I would work on having reference material for 2 or 3 portraits ready so that on the day I would not waste time looking for a subject.
Effort
Each individual artwork required from 40 minutes up to 5 hours (See Figure 5).
I can hear the comments – “I don’t have that much time!” There was one particular day that I could only start the day’s piece at 21.00 – I finished after 12 that night. The next point was a key contributor to maintaining the momentum.
Personal Integrity
When I started this journey, I had mentioned it to only my immediate family, and obviously my Creator. No-one would know if I produced 2 works one day and nothing the next. No-one kept me accountable other than my primarily honouring my God who had created me, and accordingly secondly honouring myself (sounds strange doesn’t it) as I honoured those I drew or painted. As I started drawing and painting some friends and relatives and shared them on social media an interesting “community interaction” started.
The opportunity for strengthening personal character was a pleasant spin-off, but I believe it adds a sense of authenticity to the work.
There were many a day that I wrestled with giving up – the talk in my mind often went around this particular aspect, “No-one will care whether I stop now, or cheat (2 portraits in 1 day so I can rest the next).”
This doesn’t work for everyone. If accountability to someone works for you then do it. DO whatever will facilitate the journey and maintaining momentum.
Technical Flexibility
The first 48 portraits were done in pencil, charcoal and conte. I felt I was pushing my skill in the medium (and was satisfied with the progress), but felt I needed to adjust my explorations and add more colour and techniques.
I experimented with some pastel and then got my hands (literally) into oil painting (another favourite medium). I started finger-painting – the result is that some months now after ending the series I still use my fingers far more than I ever have in my artmaking.
Looking across the body of work you would notice stylistic movements from realism (Figure 6) to looser abstraction (Figure 7) – I indulged myself in exploring different styles, finding that in some instances I experienced greater expressive freedom than in others. What I was allowing myself to do was to break some mental boxes I had inadvertently developed, for whatever reason
Moving On
Did I do any other any other artwork during the series?
I carved out time for other work. I had a few commissions, and I am constantly looking for opportunities to facilitate the development of my work and to get it into the market.
Having completed the series the question quickly came to mind, “What next?”
The Fine Lines Miniature Exhibition organised by The Drawing Guild was great fun – I’d never done a miniature and it was a wonderful opportunity to explore the genre. See Figure 8: Legacy.
Figure 9: Head Forward, was done in June 2022 and was featured in an Artistic collaboration with Magin Alexander, the New York composer and pianist during the “From Brooklyn with Love” concert on 15 July 2022.
I posted all 100 portraits on Instagram, and many of them on Facebook for others to enjoy (adding all 100 images onto my website is taking time – much editing to do). It is now a number of months later and some of the consolidated learning is bearing fruit…
The concept of portraiture has developed into an extended theme that could keep me going for years of continued transformation and development. I continue to make art, avidly look at what other artists are doing, exploring new techniques, looking for exhibition opportunities, and give attention to the business end of my artwork (something few artists enjoy).
I will gladly respond to questions and comments related to the series.
I can be contacted directly on tony@tonypietersen.co.za, or visit my website www.tonypietersen.co.za, or Facebook page on TonyPietersenArtist.
Happy artmaking!!
Side Note
If you loved this blogpost – be sure to listen to Episode 286 of The Savvy Painter Podcast. In this episode host Antrese Wood explores the power of constraints in her own 100 day challenge.
Say Goodbye to Overwhelm (The Power of Constraints) – EP 286 – Savvy Painter
