Unhurried Creativity

Since one of my faithful readers asked me how long it takes me to complete a page, I thought I'd base a post on a few things I've learned about time and art.

I used to be a very quick artist. I would rush through a layout and use whatever materials I had on hand even if they weren't exactly right for the project. I focused so much on the process of completion that I skipped completely over the process of creation. I worked this way for many, many years. Yes, I was caught up, but I was dissatisfied. I felt frustrated with how my layouts turned out. I would see potential, but I knew that it was never realized. Then I read a post by Alicia Paulson and various posts by Ali Edwards and I evolved. I began focusing on the creation and worrying less about the completion. And you know what? For the first time, I started loving my art. My projects started taking a life of their own and they started communicating with me.

Their soft whispers tell me when they are complete or when they need a little something more. They tell me when they need another color or when the sketch isn't working. Now, if I feel a bit dissatisfied with a piece, I will fiddle around with scraps or colors or placement. I will take off my glasses and look at the blurry page. I will leave it out all day and every time I pass by my table, I will rearrange or doodle a bit. Or, I will leave a page unfinished and come back to it another day. In the morning, after a good night's sleep, I will instinctively know what I need to do.

So I don't exactly know how long it takes me to complete a layout. Some layouts like Glam Bebe take me about 30 minutes.While others like In her Eyes take me days of tinkering.

And still others like Sometimes in the Midst of my Joy my Heart Aches for the Sadness of the World are the result of weeks of thought.

I have become an unhurried artist and I am much happier for it. And this unhurried mood has seeped into my life as a mother, wife and woman. I remember when I was pregnant with Sweetpea I was sure that she would be delivered after 8 months because I certainly didn't need an entire 9 months to create a baby. (Of course, she was delivered very close to her due date.) And that experience taught me that you cannot hurry creation. Nor can you hurry life. In fact, by always hurrying, we miss precious moments. So, give your children, your husband, yourself, some time to live, to grow, to create, and to remember.