He’s Always On My Mind painting by Dangerous Lee
Whether you are a writer or a painter, a sculptor or a graphic designer, any artist at some point in their life will suffer from artistic block. It is natural to sometimes feel creatively flat, and in such situations, it is important to seek out some inspiration—change things up and rejuvenate your artistic senses. So how do you do all that?
Switch mediums.
Sometimes we all need to try something a little different in life, which is why switching mediums is a great way to break your artistic block and get inspired. If you are a writer, try painting a mural. If you are a painter, take up sculpting. If you are a musician, try street art. It does not matter if you are bad at your new hobby—all that matters is that you have fun, get inspired and take your mind completely away from your usual kind of art.
Need some inspiration? Here 5 crazy ways to break your artistic block and rejuvenate your art.
1. Create Street Art
Street art occupies a precarious space in the public consciousness somewhere between Banksy and graffiti, with most people being unaware that street art is a varied and incredibly artistic sub-culture with plenty of history. Street art doesn’t always have to be illegally scrawled on the side of a wall—you can off buy space on which to practice your art, or even do it indoors. Street art is all about breaking conventions and doing something different, so don’t be afraid to color outside the lines—so to speak.
2. Take a Dance Class
Dancing is an art form that you perform with your body, encompassing everything from ballet to street dance. Movement is important to any kind of art, whether is it the pacing of a story or the sweeping of a paintbrush, and dancing can teach you a lot about movement, pace and feeling. Take a few dancing classes and see if the precision of ballet or the fever of the tango can inspire your art.
3. Paint a Mural
Murals are larger than life pieces of art, that require panning and spontaneity in turns. Why not take a wall in your house and do something crazy with it—if you don’t like it, simply paint over it afterwards. Murals are all about telling a story or making a statement, something all artists should be familiar with. So go crazy, and expect the unexpected.
4. Learn to Play an Instrument
If you are not already a musician, then learning an instrument can be a helpful practice of patience and learning. Take a drumming class, pick up a second-hand guitar or even bang a tambourine Stevie Nicks-style. Just make sure you do two things: listen and appreciate. Music has the power to calm us and to rile us, either through melodies or lyrics. Play along with classics and try to soak up some of their magic; you can even write your own songs. And one last thing: have fun with it.
5. Write Some Poetry
Poetry requires no expert tools, no classes and no instruction: just pen and paper (or a word processor if you like). Poetry has changed so much in the past few decades, and it is no longer about strict rhyming or syllable patterns. Instead, it is about using words, sounds and the spaces in between words and sounds to make something that makes us listen. If you want to throw out punctuation, do it. If you want to rhyme every single like, do it. It won’t always be good, it won’t always be pretty, but it will always be a great artistic exercise.
This is a guest post by Ashley Williamson, a freelance writer who share her creative ideas on various blogs. Ashley is currently writing for Banner4Sale a company which offers high quality vinyl banners for indoor and outdoor use. When she is not working she likes to travel and do yoga.
Filed under: Artsy Fartsy, Featured Writers
