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I wrote a blog post for @jacksons_art and it's been published today! See link in my profile for some behind the scenes studio action and all the tools and materials that help me make my art.😊👩🏼🎨 . . . . . . . . #happyartistmovement #inmystudio #wip #artpractice #studioscenes #mystudiotoday #artwork_in_studio #doitfortheprocess #artprocess #paintingprocess #creativeprocess #ontheeasel #artiststudio #artistlife #lifeofanartist #artwork_daily #homeinthestudio #createeveryday #createmakeshare #artsbeautifulx #mybeautifulmess #wednesdayworkspace #artgram #createmagstudio #abstractpainter #stylingmycreativity #create_mag #ourstudiotime
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Two paintings I submitted for an exhibition were rejected yesterday. I'm sharing this because 'failure' happens along the path to what you want, and that's ok. While I actually don't subscribe to the idea of failure - we may never truly know what it means when something doesn't work out the way we hoped - that doesn't mean I don't feel disappointed, or that a no doesn't sometimes smart a bit. {I found out while painting and it did rather drain the desire out of me in the moment.} . I'm not saying I have the magical solution to never feeling disappointed {unless you're able to have absolutely zero expectations, and I'm personally not quite that enlightened yet 😆}. But here's what helps me: I throw a LOT of pasta at the wall in my quest to reach my goals, and inevitably some sticks. Some doesn't, but if you don't put all your eggs in just one basket, more of those eggs have a chance of hatching. {Or is it not breaking? Anyway.} . Then, instead of worrying that my art is no good after all when it's not accepted for a show, {which I did for a few seconds}, I can turn to one of my other baskets. Or grab another handful of pasta. Whichever food metaphor works! . Here endeth the lesson.😊 May you go forth and throw some pasta today! I shall be picking mine up off the floor and thinking about where to throw it next. 😉 . . . . . . . . #happyartistmovement #todaysartreport #abstractarts #abstractartorg #artfinder #originalartwork #flaming_abstracts #instartists #artflowsessions #artgram #artprocess #doitfortheprocess #creativeprocess #mybeautifulmess #artsbeautifulx #passioncolorjoy #artistlife #artwork_daily #lifeofanartist #thedailygallery #natureartist #natureartwork #paintingoftheday #createmagazine #dsart
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My collection of seaweed. It's the little things.😊💦 . . . . . . . . . #happyartistmovement #inmystudio #wip #artpractice #studioscenes #mystudiotoday #artwork_in_studio #doitfortheprocess #artprocess #paintingprocess #creativeprocess #ontheeasel #artiststudio #artistlife #lifeofanartist #artwork_daily #homeinthestudio #createeveryday #createmakeshare #artsbeautifulx #mybeautifulmess #wednesdayworkspace #artgram #createmagstudio #abstractpainter #stylingmycreativity #create_mag #ourstudiotime
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I talk a lot about truthful self expression through art - about uncovering what's already in you and developing it into work that consistently carries the truth of 'you'- who you really are, not who you thought you were or should be. I wouldn't call it 'easy' work, but it also doesn't have to be a constant struggle. As I talked about in yesterday's Artnote, adding kindness to your commitment can make all the difference between a hard and lonely journey, and a rich, challenging, connected one. . While all my courses address this in some form, Touchstone is the one where we dive deep into what makes you tick as an artist. {Typed that as 'what makes you rock' by mistake - love an appropriate typo. 😉} What you want for and from your art, how to navigate the inevitable hard parts with clarity, confidence and a deep sense of purpose to guide you. Obviously no single course can do this for you - we're in this for the long haul, any course will give us only what we bring to it, and there's always more to learn. But I know - because students tell me - that it can be a game changer. So much of doing what you really want to be doing is about mindset, and once you start to shift that, the limitations start to melt away and you discover what you're really capable of. {Always, always more than we think!} Touchstone is full of what I know about being a happy {truthful, fulfilled, consistent} artist, and I like to think I'm quite a good ambassador for it.😉 . The doors to this session of Touchstone close tonight, at 9pm UK time. I won't be offering it with live feedback next year, although it will be available as self study with optional Facebook group, and this is the last time it'll be available at the current price. {£137. See xe.com for your currency.} Link in bio for more details and to join us! Any questions, hit me up below. If anyone needs me, I'll be in the studio.😊 . . . . . . .
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I've been thinking a lot about my process lately. It looks like it's shifting slightly, to something that my logical brain isn't quite convinced by! I set myself a minimum hours-per-week in the studio to aim for, and despite not reaching it this week, I finished 3 paintings and am wildly pleased with them. So my brain is like, 😶. . Process is a wily thing. You can't pack it into a neat box and put a bow on it. Sometimes it means hours and hours of studio time, sometimes it doesn't. Sometimes one brings results, sometimes the other. Both are essential. It's like flying a plane {I'm told} - you're never actually 'on course', only ever course correcting. And with that comforting {?!} thought I wish you a happy and art filled weekend, whatever that might look like! 😊🎨 . . . . . . .
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Took an awful lot of photos yesterday in an impromptu photo shoot for updating my various online homes, and this was the only one I felt looks like how I think I look! {Alarmingly 70 something others suggest otherwise.😆} Anywho! This is a little hello as there are some new friends around here. . I'm Tara, I live by the sea in Cornwall, and I'm an artist and online course teacher, and what I've always thought of as a creative encourager. Over the past 6 years I've created around 10 courses and a million blog posts, all very process oriented and focused on helping people uncover and develop what's truly theirs about their art. It makes me happy that none of the people who take my courses make work like mine. 😊 Several of the courses are self study so you can jump in any time and go at your own pace, and right now the 'live' course is Touchstone and registration is open till Oct 29. See link in my profile for more details. . This year I renovated a barn and built a studio in the garden {see stories for the journey of both}, and have become a 'slightly' obsessed sea swimmer. Now it's colder and the studio is complete, there's more art and less swimming, but water is what fuels the paintings. {That and coffee.😉☕} I share my work over at @taraleaverart should you be curious. . Got any questions about me or my work? Hit me up in the comments.😊 Wishing you a very happy art filled week! . . . . . .
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Can we just talk about the wonder that is masking fluid for a second? I hadn't used it for years, but the new paintings, with their washes and delicate layers, have been calling for a way to preserve some areas while expanding those around them. Enter masking fluid. It's so therapeutic to paint it carefully onto the areas you want to keep, then later the peeling off is so satisfying. Here I used it to preserve the seaweed shape so I could deepen its background with walnut ink. . . . . . . . . .
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You might have seen in my stories from the weekend, the new studio now has an official name.😊 It's a name I've been carrying for years now. At first I thought I'd rename the barn, but then it was suggested I use the name for the studio and it felt like the right fit. I found an old piece of driftwood this weekend and decided to make the name real. It's not brilliant, but it works until I can get a proper sign made. This one won't last 5 minutes outside as I used sumi ink and it'll run. So this is my inside sign. . And spindrift, if you're not familiar, is the spray that flies off the top of waves. I've always been mesmerised by it, especially when the light shines through, but didn't know what it was called till a few years ago. Does your studio or creative space have a name, and if not what would you call it? . . . . . . . .
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Friends! I popped a question in stories and of course it's disappeared already 🤦🏼♀️ so am sharing it here too as I think it's an important one that affects many. Annalies of @blossom1975 asked me for advice about making art within the limitations of a chronic health condition. I didn't feel qualified to answer so we decided to turn it over to the lovely community here, as I know Annalies is far from alone with her challenges to art making. . I'm putting together a blog post with some of the responses, so if you do share advice please let me know whether you're happy for me to put it on the blog. Thank you! . . . . . . .
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Well friends, it's the final day of our 7 day series challenge and I think it's fair to say it's been another fantastic week of art and discovery! Thank you so much to everyone who participated with such enthusiasm, and also for supporting and encouraging each other - such an important part of growing as an artist. . And! Touchstone is open once again for registration! This course has a special place in my heart as it's the one I wish I'd had when I was trying to find my way with my work. I've poured everything I've learned about tackling the ups and downs of developing yourself as an artist into it, and am happy to say it's helped a lot of people on their artist path. See link in my profile for all the info and I'm here if you have any questions. You can start any time once registered, and take it at your own pace. . . . . . . .
