Cynthia Morris's Blog, page 31

Portrait of the artist: 100 days of painting watercolor portraits complete!

Being an artist means getting to know yourself on a deep level. We have to dig deep into what we care about and somehow express that in our chosen medium.

Making art is a process of learning to respect and love ourselves. Just taking the time to make art is a huge act of self-respect.

Showing up over the course of several months to make portraits hasn’t been easy. Some days I was barely able to ‘phone it in’. I didn’t have as much time as I wanted to really dive in. It would have been easy to abandon it. But something I have learned about myself: I’d rather lower my own expectations and stay with it than abandon it because of some notion of perfection or excellence.

I’m finishing a week after the rest of the tribe, barely getting over the finish line. I feel successful in my quest to improve my skills. I have had fun seeing improvement.

As I continue this adventure of self-discovery and expression, I am grateful for the art and writing that continues to reveal me to me. Thanks for sharing in this process, and for cheering me on. Your encouragement means a lot to me.

100/100 Portrait of the artist Cynthia Morris 9 x 12 watercolor on Hahnemuhle paper

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Pay yourself for your creativity

You might not be depositing checks earned by the sweat of your pen (yet). But that doesn’t mean you can’t start becoming financially savvy with your writing or art.

One of the top tips for becoming financially empowered is to pay yourself first. But how can you do that without incoming cash? Set your intention, and take action. Here are eight ways to make money a part of your writing, even before you get paid from others.

Begin by setting your intention to match money with your creativity. Do this by opening a bank account for your creative life. Get a savings account and label it ‘creativity’ or another inspiring name that will remind you of your intention.

Fund your account by paying yourself when you submit a query, finish a body of work, or achieve some other creative victory. Don’t wait for others to acknowledge your progress. It doesn’t have to be a lot; even ten dollars for each success signals to yourself that you value your efforts.

Spend from your creative stash only for your creative work. Use your creative funds to pay for contest entry fees, subscriptions, and supplies. Or, earmark your account for a big reward such as a workshop, retreat or conference.

Track of your art-related expenditures. Make creativity a priority and investigate how you can shift your financial priorities to support your art or writing. Keep a log of your creative money and see where you are spending more money than time on your art.

Calculate the return of ‘psychic payment’ on the creating you do. These include the side effects, or benefits, that you get from doing something. Psychic payments from writing could be: feeling of satisfaction with yourself, surge of power from expressing yourself, excitement over completing and submitting something. How do these non-monetary rewards ‘pay’ you?

Affirm your abundance. Write a whopping check and in the memo line, put Book Advance. Carry it around or post it in your studio. I write affirmations about the number of clients I want to work with and the number of workshop participants I want to enroll. I include a dollar amount with plus signs, like this: $50,000+++. I’ve been doing this for years. Guess what? Woo-woo as it sounds, it absolutely works every time.

State clear money goals. Write down when you’d like to start making money for your art and writing, what you’d like to get paid, and what you’re willing to work for. Set a standard for yourself and stick to it. For instance, your intention might look like this – After January, 2018, I publish only for payment in money (not just ‘visibility.

Get dreamy. What will you do with the money you earn from your creativity? You might take a trip, pay off your computer or fund a conference. Write down your big vision of how you will spend your hard-earned cash. I suggest funneling the money back into your writing.

Try any or all of these over the next three months and see what happens. Notice what happens when you take these actions instead of waiting, wishing and hoping the world will pay you for your efforts.

By bringing awareness and financial focus to your art, you prepare yourself for the day when others pay you for your creative work. Keep track of emotions, ideas, and external events that stem from your efforts.

Let me know how it goes. If you already practice some of these things, let me know what results you’ve experienced. Share your money wins in the Comment section below.

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Meet Your Inner Artist and Discover What She Wants

You have an abundance of creative ideas, and sometimes this overwhelms you. Here’s a process that will help you honor your creative impulses, actually do some of the things you want, and finally feel like you are honoring your inner artist.

I’m working on a new book based on exercises I consistently give my coaching clients. In 18 years of helping bring more creativity to light, I’ve learned a few things about what works.

Here is one of the most potent processes I have used to make sure that creating has its place on the calendar. Try this exercise and share your experience in a comment below. 

My Inner Artist Spoke Up and I Listened

Have you ever made a list and gone back to it years later, to discover that you actually DID the things on the list, without necessarily trying? That happened to me.

I revisited my list from 2012 recently. I was amazed to see that I had done 2/3 of the things on it. Not because I disciplined myself to do it. Not because I time managed-my way to do it.

Because I WANTED to do these things, they somehow happened. It feels a bit magical to see that once I put my artist desires on paper, it somehow was easier to make space for them.

Try this process and let us know below how it went for you!

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Delete limiting beliefs and live your creative dreams

Stefan Sagmeister, a hero of mine, recent painting

There are lots of things that build our creative confidence. Being awake to what works in our creative process is vital to feeling happy about our creative lives.

Most important to my satisfaction is noticing progress. When I see improvements and changes, it boosts my morale immeasurably. I train my clients to notice shifts, because when we see progress, we are motivated to continue.

We can easily see progress in our craft – better writing, better art, better at our business. But we often overlook some of the most potent progress of all – when old beliefs and thought patterns no longer apply.

Two limiting beliefs used to hold me back with my art.

I am bad at drawing people. 

Every time I set out to sketch a person, this thought would pop into my head. Of course this made me feel bad about myself and my art abilities. Until one day, when the thought appeared, a surprising new thought came alongside: “Well, you better practice.” So I began, slowly and doubtfully to practice drawing people. Over the course of ten years, I got better. Not great, but better.

Second limiting belief:

If you can’t draw people, you can’t have a career as an illustrator. 

Where did that notion come from? I have no idea. There are plenty of thriving illustrators who can’t draw people in any realistic or appealing way. And whose art isn’t technically accomplished. One of my favorite illustrators thrives on drawing things that look purposefully amateurish.

Logically, that belief needn’t hold me back. But because I thrive on seeing progress, I recently set out to develop my people-depiction skills.

For the 100 Day Project, I chose to paint people. I’m at #75 today, and I have seen MASSIVE improvement. Not only am I having a blast, I am seeing progress.

It’s apparent that I can no longer accept the limiting belief that I am bad at drawing people. Or that I can’t work as an illustrator. These limiting beliefs have fallen away like an old scab covering a wound that healed long ago.

This is the result of dedicated practice focusing on improving specific skills. I call this the Creative Edge, where you grow and hone your abilities. It’s specific, it’s edgy, and it improves your art.

These limiting beliefs seem to relate to the things we want the most, so it makes sense that we’d perhaps be scared to let them go. But if we focus on the joy of noticing our progress, we will have less room – and proof – for those limiting beliefs.

What limiting beliefs relate to your creative dream? What can you do to prove it is no longer true? Share your experience below.

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Design your summer creative residency

Last year at this time I was in Paris, happily ensconced in my apartment with my pal Carl. Engrossed in my self-designed artist residency, the focus of my days was spent making commissioned paintings, exploring new creative avenues and wandering Paris, taking in all the inspiration there.

View of the studio desk

This was one of the best periods of my life, and I look back with deep fondness and nostalgia, as you can imagine! Because Colorado is my creative zone this summer, I wondered how I could recreate the experience at home.

To gain clarity on how to make the most creative summer for myself, I sprung a few coaching inquiries on myself.

So you fondly remember that artist residency in Paris. What do you deeply crave this year?

I really want to focus on my art. I crave days in the studio making and exploring.

How could you meet that desire this summer?

Two things help me: specific projects and clustering my time.

Like many people at the end of the school year, May was packed with a lot of work. I planned and drafted my newsletters for the summer. I launched and delivered the webinar Prioritize Your Passion Projects. I set up my summer coaching schedule on specific days so I have sweet, concentrated time with my clients alternating with time in my studio.

I spent a lot of time noodling about how I want to spend my creative time on this summer. My birthday is coming up and I feel a sense of my mortality. That was helpful to get clear on what I want to create in this precious time. Finally, a plan emerged from my many interests and desires.

There will be three main areas of focus, with one additional daily practice.

Portraits: 100 watercolor portraits as part of the 100 Days Project (ends mid-July)Products: working with my coach to develop my voice and products – starting with an illustrated book that has been nudging me for years.Pattern Play – explore making patterns, using the info from a class I took in 2015 to guide me.Daily videos – this is something I love to do, but it’s also a challenge. I commit to doing a daily video for 45 days, just like I did in Paris. I started on May 13th. Most of the videos are on my Instagram channel and also on YouTube.

What I hope to gain from these projects:

With the portrait project, I am gaining skills and confidence depicting people.For the product line, I am developing my visual voice and clarifying what I want to share with the world. Plus, it’s helping me put a book project on the front burner – one that has been simmering in the background for years!The pattern project also helps me do something that’s been on my list for a long time. That project is mostly for play and exploration with no expected outcome in mind.The videos are for me to continue to share my process and to scratch the performer itch that never goes away.

Instead of the vast inspiration from Paris, I’ll tap into the vast inspiration of Denver. Messing around in my garden – watching flowers, greens, vegetables and herbs grow will be sheer delight. Time spent in gorgeous Colorado – mountain camping, hot springs soaking, forest hiking as well as cultural treats like Cirque du Soleil, Wonderbound ballet, museum and gallery visits. A yard sale to clear out my closets. Time with my sweetie and friends. Space to absorb it all.

At the end of the summer, I want to have made progress on the book, a series of portraits and a sense of growth and satisfaction.

What would your summer artist or writer residency include? I hope this week’s Impulse’s has inspired you to structure your own creative focus for the summer. (A summer that includes play and fun!)

Share your thoughts and plans here.

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Getting back on the wagon when you’ve stopped creating

View video on YouTube.

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Stop Struggling with Your Creativity

Do you ever wonder how in the world you’ll make time for everything you want to do? Most creatives like us have many interests. We’re attracted to new things like bees to a flower bed, buzzing from one juicy thing to the next.

It’s exciting, and fun, to be stimulated by new ideas and possibilities. But the flip side is we can have a hard time prioritizing. We’ll spend hours skimming the surface of our interests, taking inspiration from many sources – popping over to Pinterest, scanning Instagram, reading an article or two, or three…. This feels great in the moment, but then when it comes time to work on our own projects, we’ve run out of time and energy.

And most times, it’s the things we must do – our jobs, our relationships, exercise – that feel most in competition with our creative time.

This is something I’ve struggled with. I remember very clearly the day in my home office in Boulder, circa 2003, when I realized that deferring my novel writing until I was ‘successful’ with my business was a bad, bad idea. It was clear that deferring my creativity was not going to work any more.

This wake-up call forced me to do two things:

* stop blaming my ‘day job’ for my avoidance of the creative work
* dedicate regular sessions – even if only once a week – for writing my novel.

Once I started making and keeping regular dates with my muse, everything got better. I felt more integrity. I savored the sense of progress on the book. I learned how to balance my time and energy, and I shared all this learning with my clients and students. Sure, it took many years to get a polished version of the book out into the world, but along the way I learned how to prioritize things that mattered to me.

The empowerment and satisfaction I gained from making my dreams a priority is something I want for every single creative person out there. Sure, it’s a challenge to juggle all of life’s obligations with our own creative interests. But it’s worth it to feel the sense of integrity and satisfaction that comes with making our creative dreams real.

Since the novel came out in 2012, I’ve been applying the same practices to other passion projects. I’ve learned what works for me to consistently show up for hot dates with my muse. I’ve produced the following passion projects:

* Writual Blessings card deck
* Series of Paris paintings
* 100 Days of paintings (2015)
* Series of illustrated Journey Blessings
* 185 Cup-related art pieces
* and more…

My current passion project is a series of daily watercolor portraits. I’m on number 44 of 100 and am learning so much. Indeed, there are days when I don’t have the oomph or time for this project. But somehow, it happens.

Most importantly, I am not constantly at battle with myself. My creative side and my work side know how to respect each other and get along so everything we want and need to do gets done. This gives me a sense of wholeness and integration that feels good. I can rest assured that I am doing the right things at the right time. Let me tell you, my nervous system is much happier.

As a coach, I bring this approach to my clients. They LOVE feeling a similar wholeness and integrity. They feel so much better as they move through their days at one with themselves versus at battle. I want this for everyone, so I designed a short and potent class to help people get to their creative work.

My 90-minute online webinar, Prioritize Your Passion Projects, is this Thursday, May 25th. The workshop will be recorded if you are unable to make the live session. If you struggle with making consistent time, you’ll want to join us for this class where I share my best practices for making time and space for your creative joy.

Reserve your spot here. 

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Inspired by Maira Kalman

I first discovered Maira Kalman’s funny and colorful illustrations in the Illustrated Elements of Style (Strunk and White). What could be better than a stuffy grammar book made entertaining by irreverent visual interpretations?

From there, I enjoyed Maira’s other books such as The Principles of Uncertainty. I’ve been an ardent fan and student from afar, studying her style and voice. She’s fiercely smart and joyfully expressed, and I’ve learned a lot from her visual narratives in the New York Times.

One day a few years ago, I was walking the High Line in New York with a friend. Suddenly, I spotted Maira walking with her friend. OMG! I grabbed my friend’s arm. It’s Maira Kalman! I SO SO wanted to talk to her, but when I am in the presence of someone I deeply admire, I turn quite shy. We followed her for a few steps before I realized I couldn’t bring myself to approach her.

I remain a dedicated fan and admirer of Maira’s art and multi-faceted, wildly creative life. Thank you, Maira, for being so wholly and exuberantly creative.

 

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Friday Reads: On my reading shelf this week

Books, books, more books! Thank goodness for the library or I would be broke!

Friday reads!!! As usual, a big stack here in the home/studio.

For the Japan book club, I loved Ruth Ozeki’s A Tale for the Time Being. Next up, Pico Iyer’s The Lady and the Monk. Couldn’t resist his Art of Stillness, because I’ll be home for most of the summer.

Getting my travel jollies with Best American Travel Writing, loved the essay on Tokyo and AirBnB.

For my book group, The Sympathizer by Viet Thanh Nguyen, good but giving me nightmares as I read novels before bed only.

Happy City by Charles Montgomery to feed my fascination with cities and how they (can) function well. Speaking of cities, I’m loving the fun Impressions of Paris by Cat Seto.

I took a workshop with Vanessa Edwards at WDS a few years ago on body language and psychology and it was AMAZING! Beyond amazing. Psyched to read her book, Captivate.

Last but not least, I really enjoyed Andy Miller’s Creative Pep Talk, an inspiring visual romp through some of the wisdom of his podcast guests.

Happy Friday! Read well, read often, friends.

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When to surrender a creative project

Last summer, while teaching my Capture the Wow class, I had the idea to do a series of cups… 365 of them. I figured, I draw a lot of cups, why not go ALL IN. Unfortunately for me, when I get an idea I often jump into action right away.

I went for it. Cups from travels. Cups from a madcap Fika Passport dash. Cups from home.

Doing a project for an entire year is mucho difficult. I went way beyond my desired quitting point at 100. My Facebook friends encouraged me and gave me ideas, which I tried. I was able to keep going by doing series within series. I did the cups Tarot series, a turmeric latte series, and started a whole pattern series. Playing with pattern had always In the end, I made 185 pieces.

It’s hard to quit something. I am all for commitment to the finish line.  But when I got to 170 or so and felt I was becoming disingenuous, I had to take another look at my commitment. Being miserable about my projects isn’t an option.

Then the 100 Day Project came around. I loved it in 2015 and I wanted to do it again. I find myself most engaged and excited about making art when I am working at my creative edge. That’s the place in my art or writing that I am learning and growing the most. The edge is often a technical challenge, something I am trying to learn and hopefully master.

I saw a Frida Kahlo exhibit in Mexico last week so of course I had to paint her!

So for the next series, the 100 Day Project, I am depicting people. I’ve felt insecure about this for a long time and it’s time to get over it. Here’s my chance to paint realistic or imaginative people who inspire me, including self-portraits. I’m having a blast and gaining confidence. Check out my series on my Instagram account.

It might appear flaky to shift gears like this and abandon one series for another. But I cannot worry about how it appears to others. I only need to follow my original impulse and make what’s meaningful to me. 

I might resume the cup series, but for now I am focusing on painting people.

What might you want to shift – what is wanting to shift you? If it mattered only to you, what would you do?  Share your thoughts below.

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