When Creative Energy Returns

Sep 12

2 min read

Before the Laguna Art-A-Fair, I was painting up a storm.

My creative juices were flowing; I was in high gear, with what felt like endless creative energy running through my veins. I was on a roll, and I loved every minute of it.

There's a high that comes with being in that kind of creative flow. One idea leads to another.

Paintings start talking to each other. You wake up thinking about color and go to bed wondering what might happen on the canvas tomorrow.

Everything was leading up to two months at the Art-A-Fair.

And then, almost overnight, the brushes were cleaned and put to rest.

At first, the break felt wonderful. Necessary, actually. I had been going hard for quite a while, and suddenly my creative life looked very different. Instead of spending my days alone with paint and canvas, I shared my work, met people, talked about art, and taught workshops.

I still got to dip my hands into paint now and then during those classes, but for the most part, I stopped producing new work.

And I noticed something about myself.

My creative energy seems to be cyclical.

I paint like a madwoman for a while ... completely consumed and energized by it, and then eventually, I need rest. A break. Maybe even a little creative sabbatical.