Shona came to me recently wanting to know how to get unstuck and make work she loves. She loves other peoples work but not her own, she desperately wants to produce better work but finds only frustration in the process. She wants to find joy in the making and success in the result. What advice could I give?

I thought…

Recently I started playing tennis again after 5 months away from the game. I’m not a great or even very good tennis player, but mostly I enjoy it. Not being a natural sportswoman and also being reasonably competitive can often lead to frustration at my inadequacies and wonder whether I’ll ever be able to fully enjoy playing, as I lumber around the court watching balls whizz past my slow flailing limbs. After 5 months without touching the racquet I was apprehensive as to how my return to the courts would go. I feared that by the end of the morning my feelings of inadequacy would be strident and I would leave the courts demoralized and in need of distraction.

Imagine my surprise when after a rather patchy warmup, I started to connect with the ball as well as I ever did. There were of course lots of stray shots and balls that flew directly into the neighbouring court but that is nothing new – it’s all part of my game. What I wasn’t expecting were the good shots that beat my opponent or the tricky ones that take everybody, including me by surprise. I felt great, I was relaxed and just enjoying being out there again, reacquainting with my tennis friends. I had low expectations and was delighted that my fears weren’t being played out. It was all just FUN.

A week later, back on court and expecting the ‘beginners luck’ to have truly run dry, I was flabbergasted to find that I was playing well again!! My first partner commented that I seemed to have control of my shots. Such lofty praise! Of course, I immediately drove the next ball straight into the net, but overall I was pleased with my play.

What is the secret? How can I bottle it and re-use it at will? On reflection, I think it’s because I’m relaxed. I’m there to enjoy the game and I’m not assessing my self-worth with each ball I hit. There could be a nugget of gold here for Shona.

I paint with a similar attitude. In the past when painting had me by the throat, each painting session either left me wailing in despair or elated by an exciting effect or pleasing outcome. It was not fun. I never knew which end of the spectrum I was going to deliver to myself so when I painted my mind was anticipating despair, yet also entertaining hope. Constantly assessing the terrain, what would the experience be today as I loaded my brush and considered my next mark? Fearful of taking the artwork off in the wrong direction I painted with doubt ever present. There was no freedom in my approach as every move was assessed and my self-worth at stake with every judgement. Oh Lordy, how did I get through that ghastly phase?

I learnt from others. I shifted my mindset. Changed the terminology. The word ‘mistake’ had to go completely. Instead I started using words like ‘curiousity’, ‘trial’, ‘experiment’… And I decided that everything I did, whether I liked it or not contributed to the final outcome – even if I painted over something completely it provided lumps and bumps to the surface and would enrich the texture. The more paint I put on meant the final painting CAN ONLY GET BETTER.

Those early paintings were thick with paint, as I rotated the substrate time and time again until I was satisfied with the result. I started to see a pattern in the way my paintings would evolve, and this pattern developed into a process. Slowly as I completed and finished each successive painting my confidence grew and the process became easier. Each stage of the painting became more predictable yet the result always surprising.

Now when I paint, I don’t seem to have to take the work on the arduous marathon I once did to reach the final result. I seem to be able to knock them out with relative ease, in fact now the challenge is to remain in the process long enough to allow the work to mature and develop it’s rich texture and surface that I love in a painting. I must try not to finish them too soon.

To advise Shona on how to get to this stage of ‘easy-painting’, this is what I would suggest:

1. Work small – so many people move to larger formats before they are ready. Your learning will by quicker by working on many small paintings than to be bogged down by a few larger works. Also, you will use less paint in the process.

2. Write on a large piece of paper THERE ARE NO MISTAKES/IT CAN ONLY GET BETTER and pin it on the wall. Live by it every time you lift your brush.

3. Have an abundance mentality. If you’ve done something good, you can always do it again. Don’t be precious and try to keep a nice bit when there are big changes that need to be made. We have all stood before a painting which has a lovely part in it and tried to make the painting fit around that little area. If you believe that you can create that effect again or are even capable of better, you will be able to take a risk and move the painting forward. In my experience, when a big risk needs to be taken it always results in a better painting. Another notice on the wall: I’VE DONE IT ONCE, I CAN DO IT AGAIN

4. Take notice of how you are feeling as you work. If you are getting tired, starting to think of what’s for dinner… it’s time to pack up. Many times I have made poor decisions because I ‘just want to get this finished’, or not wanted to waste some paint I had just squeezed out. Nowadays I rarely do more than 3 hours of painting at a time. I know for myself, after about 2 – 3 hours I’m tired and my decisions are not as sharp as they should be.

5. Don’t be worried about your STYLE. It will emerge, just follow what you love: colours, types of mark, compositions, and hone in on what you love in your work. Do more and more of it and you will get better and your work will get stronger.

This is a life-long journey. You will NEVER arrive, you will always be learning. That’s what makes it so exciting. Relax, and let it all evolve. Each painting doesn’t define you as an artist. Each painting is part of a life’s work. Just as each hit of the tennis ball doesn’t define me as the type of player I am, I am a better player now than I was 2 years ago – marginally. Even Serena hits the odd ball into the net, but what I’m interested most in is the experience of playing, improving and having fun.

Join me in The Upbeat Artists Group on Facebook where I share more of my process. There is a great and growing community all endeavouring to enjoy, improve and have fun as they make their Art.

Are you interested in learning 5 different methods of creating an abstract painting? Check out stARTs where I will take you through a treasure trove of techniques. Or would you like to be able to navigate your way through to finishing a painting with ease, register your interest in FIX & FINISH which I will be offering in October.

But most importantly, RELAX. Have fun, there are no mistakes, no mis-hits, just opportunities to discover more about what is possible. IT CAN ONLY GET BETTER.