Solace in Paint

ocean photo and gouache sketch

To all my painter friends,

Am I alone in feeling isolated and kind of miserable lately? Probably not. 

I find myself wondering if making art even matters?

When I get quiet and calm myself down, I realize here's the thing: our art matters. Yours matters.  Mine matters.  It’s not and never was just a collectible thing — it’s a process that sparks curiosity energy, delight, and wonder.

Note to self:  when the world seems too dark and miserable, it could be that I just need to go paint.

Yes, we need art.  

We need it as a thing we do, a process we’re inspired by, and an action that offers us hope and connectivity.

Spending time in the studio or outdoors painting can put us in touch with the joy at our core. 

For me, I can forget everything else, at least for a while. And for a while, nothing else matters except making art. It's like yoga with a paintbrush. It's focused effort and all-consuming. (And like yoga, it sometimes feels better when you quit a session and rest with the flow.)

Take It Outside

For me painting outdoors is a blissful connection to nature. It's a vacation from my life. No deadlines, no stress, no email to get out, no paperwork that needs doing, no laundry list. All I need to do is stand still, and observe. And feel.Or walk around and observe. It's my only job for this bit of  time. There's nothing else to do but be here, be 100% present and discover the painting that's waiting to unfold.

I should say, in the interest of truth and honesty, painting outdoors is hard work.  It's not really all that comfortable.  To get the good views for a plein air painting can take physical effort and a certain endurance.

Still,  when I'm outside immersed in nature,  I remember how wonderful the world is, how much I love blue sky. Or clouds. Or the way rushes make an architectural tangle at a lake’s edge. Or the voices of birds and frogs.

I remember bigger questions like 'what's on the other side of the universe where the stars end?'  and 'Why are we here?'  This is where the healing comes in. This is the important part, snd why we need to make art anyway.

And at the end of the process, or at some point in time, there will be a painting! Someone will see it. Maybe it will spark joy, or hope or ideas, or peace.  

Thanks for stopping in.  Go make some art today.

Julia