Brooke Peterman On Losing Your Groove (And Getting it Back!)
When I create, I feel part joy, part accomplishment and part miracle magical goodness. As an artist, I have always experienced creative monsoons followed by dry seasons and – a time or two each year – periods of drought. It’s natural for creativity to cycle up and down, in much the same way other parts of our lives go through booms and busts. But when I don’t make art, I notice it. I miss it and I’m quite sure I am less pleasant to those who spend time with me.
Painting and creating through uncertain times (read: all of 2020) has been a challenge for me. My creativity has ebbed, more than it has flowed this past year, but there has also been some beautiful growth that came out of the struggle.
I could have told you, last year, that I liked the structure. I could have told you that setting goals and establishing habits motivates me and often pushes me through those creative dry spells. But, I could not have told you how much I rely on a solid framework to get me from “drought” back to “miracle magical goodness.”
Sliding into a creative slump? An art show on next month’s calendar encourages me to pick up my brushes. Not feeling inspired? A daily practice of painting, while two of my kids are at school, keeps me working – even on days when it feels like more of a chore than a pleasure. But what to do when the art shows are canceled and everyone in my family is home 24/7 with needs for the foreseeable future? What do I do when my framework for planning and all of the daily and weekly rhythms and habits I’ve established fall away?….
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