Unblocking Artist's Block

It's not easy to produce painting after painting, day after day. You lose freshness. You get tired. You run out of ideas, and nothing inspires you.

And then, the downward spiral of negative self-talk takes you to the edge of the dark abyss: "I'm no good. I'll never paint again." I would rather sleep. Or watch the tube.

Van Gogh got tired, too. And he had to do laundry, shop, cook meals, and entertain insane artist guests. He still managed to paint.

Get Happy Again.

• Take some forced time off. Get recharged. It's healthy to take a breather. Just recognize it for what it is, and let yourself have a vacation from your work.
• Take a class or workshop or join a plein air group. Being with other artists injects me with a boost of energy I can't get on my own. And it's a great way to learn new techniques and laugh a lot.
• Oh - and laugh a lot. Laughing rev's up the old happy juices. Don't laugh alone, either - it helps to drink plenty of wine with insane friends.
• Try something new. Play with a new subject matter, a new medium, write some poetry, or take a cooking class. Force your brain's synapses to connect in a whole different way. 
• Paint for YOU. I am least happy when I have an obligation to fulfill. Commissioned paintings and book illustrations can suck the life out of me. I get the most inspiration and joy when I'm just painting what I want to.
• Positive self-talk. Don't believe it when you tell yourself "I'm a hack." Be gentle on yourself. Smile. Tell yourself that "You're a great artist. You are a great person. You rock. Yay!"
• Throw away the dogs. Don't keep around the bad paintings - they only reinforce sneaky negative self-talk by proving to you that you're a bad painter. Instead, burn them and move on.