Walking the path to Creativity

"I've discovered that success is all about running your own race, feeling comfortable in our own skin and living your life on your own terms. You do not want to get to your deathbed and realize you were not the real you (and that you ended up living someone else's dreams). That'll break your heart."
Author  - Robin Sharma

The past couple of weeks I've been holed up in my studio working on a new series of paintings that has me alternately delighted and stymied.  Just when I feel that I have this "painting thing" figured out I discover that my subsequent effort fails miserably.  Unlike math, formulas in painting are always short lived.  They tend to lead to predictability and (yawn...) boredom, both on the part of the artist and the viewer.

Paintings and artists often benefit from a little "shake-up" now and again.  I like to leave the studio for a while, go for a walk, rake the leaves and observe the sounds and colours of nature.  Autumn is a feast for the senses, vibrant colours, crunchy leaves underfoot, crisp winds, the smell of wood stoves, wooly sweaters.

Autumn Berries
Sandra King-Allikas

My week has been full of autumn walks; alone my walks tend to be brisk, with my dog they involve a lot of starts and stops for sniffing, and with my two year old grand-daughter, Sadie, our walks are meandering and full of discovery; "What's dat?" - "Leaves", "What's dat?" - "Airplane", "What's dat?" - "Squirrel". With such little legs and such big curiosity, we don't cover much distance but my walks with Sadie are some of my favourite.

After even a brief change of pace, I see new possibilities and solutions when I return to the easel. Time away from the "problem" allows me the distance and perspective I need to see the situation with fresh eyes, something that is beneficial both in and out of the art studio.

Thank you for stopping visiting My Turquoise Kettle Life today.

Wishing you a day full of creativity,

Sandra