April Theme:

What is your antidote for creative burnout?

Barbara Ehrentreu— My antidote for creative burnout is a lot of things. If it’s a nice day I find a walk out in nature helps me to revive. Many times I have taken a walk and have had to stop and write about what I have seen. I jot down notes on my phone that I have used many times for my writings. Some of my best poems have come from these walks. But sometimes you need a bigger jolt. This happened when I was in the middle of my first book. I didn’t know where to go. So I took a workshop to brush up my writing skills and learned more about character development. When you develop your characters more they give you the plot. It was at that workshop that I found the plot for my secondary character, Jennifer. I finished the book and it turned into a series.

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Maria Friscia — When I’m not creating art, I create food. Baking bread and experimenting with different flours becomes my antidote to creative burnout. In that quiet process, the mind clears and I return to painting with fresh eyes.

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Lynn Garelick — For a block when I am looking at a white page … what do I want to draw/paint?

I go down to the beach, Tod’s Point in Greenwich, and take a long walk around the point. I always see something, a scene and/or a group of people that inspire me. Plus, the exercise and fresh air is wonderful!
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Antidote for Creative Burnout?     Catherine T. Horn

I am never at a loss for words.
Inspiration is everywhere.
A song on the radio,
a passage in a book,
a news article,
a photograph,
a memory,
anything
and everything
can serve as the spark
that lights the match
leading to an essay,
a story.

Little black lines
on clean white paper
offer endless opportunities
for creativity
and that flame
never burns out…
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Dana Goodfellow — When I’m feeling burnt out I usually take a break and spend more time outdoors.

I also go to see any other art, preferably at an art museum!
The different colors, compositions, and  substrates and the emotions they evoke along with the enthusiasm of the viewers makes me want to run home and start painting!

As Ron Pokrasso teaches: “Just make the first mark”.
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Karen Heffner –
1. For me creating is play.
To shift into a playful mood I go outside and blow small bubbles. It makes me feel like a kid again. I can easily slip into being in the moment and not the past or future.
2. Most mornings I scroll briefly through Pinterest to see what resonates that morning and figure out why – color combination or composition.
3. I have learned to give myself permission not to create art. It doesn’t matter what I’m doing as long as I am enjoying what I am doing in the moment. I am addicted to the experience of being in the creative flow, not to make a product.
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Doris Mady – I stop. Figure out what’s bothering me. Once I do, and it could take weeks, then I can go full throttle again.
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Adrienne Reedy — When you have a million things going at once, for some it’s like draining a battery, but for me, it’s like I’m building a power grid. I never feel that “empty well” people describe because my inspiration doesn’t come from one single source—it’s a network. For instance, if the “painting” brain feels tired, the “songwriting, music making” brain steps in. If the writing falters, my visual eye takes the lead. In other words, I’m never at a loss for my creativity to be released. I can honestly say that I never, ever feel burned out. There’s always something to be inspired to create.

My life is a deliberate, beautiful garden of over-stimulation—a gallery that never closes and a symphony that never hits a resting note. At any given second, the world offers a prompt: the specific way light hits a watercolor wash, the thousands of images saved on my phone, or the cadence of a conversation that begs to become the bridge of a new song. To live this way is to exist in a state of constant, rhythmic replenishment.

While others might see a “busy” life as a path to exhaustion, I see it as a landscape of infinite choice. My brain is a kaleidoscope, and with every slight turn of my attention, a new pattern of possibility emerges. I don’t need a break from the creation; I just need to keep turning the glass. So that’s how I don’t burnout!
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May Theme*:
Question: I never get tired of… (seeing, reading, hearing, doing, etc.). 

* Thank you Heather Sandifer for this suggested topic. We always welcome ideas from our members.

Apply for Grant and Residencies. You may be afraid that your work isn’t good enough…but the greater risk would be not applying at all and never giving yourself an opportunity for a life-altering experience. Cast a wide net and get yourself out there. ~ Jessica Bastidas