Feeding Your Muse

Part of being an artist is learning how to take care of your muse – and by that I mean your creative spirit. Creating isn't a passive endeavor. It requires feeling inspired and excited to create, and for most artists, it ebbs and flows. So you have to learn how to care for it and nurture it in order to keep it flowing.

Recently, I attended a lunch with other artists, and the conversation turned to what inspires us, what motivates us to keep painting when times are tough, and it's hard to find time to create. Everyone had slightly different answers, which only makes sense when you think about how art is self-expression and all of us are unique.

For me, creativity happens when my body is well cared for - and my body has needs! Not just the normal stuff like food, shelter, and safety. But also quality sleep, specific foods, quiet time, dance, and spending time moving outside in nature - not sitting still and meditating. When I get those things, I feel relaxed and can flow with the creative spirit.

When I don't. Well...then the creative spirit goes away. I feel stressed, annoyed, tired, and uninterested.

I'm sad to say that lately I have not been able to care for my muse, and as a result, not much work is being done in the studio.

My days have been consumed with both volunteer and paid work. My body sits at a computer and gets very little movement or time outside. From moment to moment, someone is asking for something, so I speed up, typing faster and talking faster. At the end of the day, my head is spinning.

I find that I need 2 - 3 hours in the evening to process the day, wind down, and relax so I can sleep without stress dreams.

Dear reader, I miss the quiet.

I miss seeing the sky.

I miss creating!

The other day, I finally had a couple of hours to myself and went into the studio. My heart broke a little as I brushed away a cobweb from the doorway. It had been so long since I was there! Once I got inside, I felt a deep longing to disappear in there and never come out again. I didn't want to talk to anyone, look at a screen, schedule a meeting, or answer a text. I just wanted to dissolve into the act of creating. And for a couple of glorious hours, I did.

I listened to classical music.

I worked on my latest Sensory-Scape painting and made good progress.

I smiled, and I danced.

It was fabulous, and it made me realize that I simply have to find a way to do more of it for my mental health, my nervous system, and my creative soul.

Now I just have to figure out how to make that happen.

Wish me luck!!!!

And don't be surprised if I don't respond to calls/texts/emails. 😉