It’s difficult to play a sport or a board game without rules; guides for things you can and can’t do, time limits, a definition of what’s in and out of bounds. These limits make the game or sport fun to play. The same goes with creative work.
I do my best work when I’m bound by rules: a deadline, a limited set of materials, a limited colour palette, a limited surface on which to create. All of these limits are useful boundaries that help guide and inform the choices about what I make and why.
When you feel like drawing flowers, but someone will pay you to draw monkeys, what comes first?
You can catch the flu from another human, but can you also catch their mood?
If I can’t draw a circle how can I draw the sun?
You may be able to find a tool or technique to make a process or drawing more efficient. A digital camera show the photographer the result of their work quicker than a film camera, but it doesn’t make the photo better or the photographer more competent. One still needs to understand tone, colour and composition… Continue reading No shortcuts
If no one else gives a hoot about your art, why should you?
