creative ebb and flow

Something I never see coming is the ebb and flow of my creativity… especially the ebb phases.

Somehow this seems to happen every year about half way, probably because it’s the end of the school semester, the kids are tired and it’s winter here in Brisbane which means cold and flu season on top of it all.

The upside of being a few years into my creative practice, is that I now remember this happening every year and that I can take comfort in the fact that it won’t last and to just go with it.

It’s not a creative block as much as it is a change in what I feel like doing. I still feel like I want to create but I don’t seem to have the energy for my abstract pieces but rather feel like working on small paper pieces and the watercolours and coloured pencils are calling to me.

Watercolour landscape

Painted from a reference image taken on my last holiday in Austria.

Creating abstracts is literally creating something from nothing, there is no image to hold on to, no direction other than what is guided by your intuition and experience. It takes a lot of energy, for me at least.

Watercolours are really tricky and representational art for me is also hard, my expectations are always too high and I’m usually disappointed in how they turn out but I can see improvement over time and I believe it’s important for my abstract practice as well, nothing is ever wasted.

So for now, I’m taking the time to go for walks, look, take in the environment, sketch, draw and refill my tank.

The next creative flow phase will come soon enough.