You hear a lot about making time for art, and we all endeavor to do that. But are we taking the right approach? At first thought, you may think this means setting aside the whole day for art, or maybe completing a whole “project” in a day. But that’s not really what “making art every day” means.
Making time for art means making time to be involved in the artistic process. Sometimes that will result in a completed project, other times it will involve jotting down information and ideas for a future project, and still other times it will mean adding something to a piece in process. It’s not about how much time you spend in a day, it’s about spending time every day.
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Debbi Crane challenged herself to make a miniature book every day for a year. Further, her books would all be styled like a purse. Thus, “The Purse book Project” (Cloth Paper Scissors, Winter 2006) was born. Working in such a small scale made the time and materials involved in making these purses very managable. What small piece of art might you make?
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In the premier issue of Cloth Paper Scissors Pages, Julie Fei-Fan Balzer guides readers through her process of art journaling every day. “The point is to open the journal every single day and do something creative in it—even if it’s just for 10 minutes.” It took Julie nine days to complete the spread shown here. She created every day, and along the way gathered ideas and techniques for use in future artwork.
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Chrysti Hydeck’s Workshop article in the January/February 2009 issue of Cloth Paper Scissors encouraged readers to enhance their artwork with digital art. After explaining the how and why of adding digital art, Chrysti encouraged readers to start a photo-a-day project.
What would you photograph? And then what would you do with those photos? |
Like any other part of our lives, we have to make the time for art, rather than thinking we’ll find the time. Thinking about a project, large or small, in its entirety can be daunting, but if you break it down into managable parts, or focus on a particular task, you may find “the time” magically appears in your day.
Do you make time for art every day? How do you make the time? Leave me a comment here.
Happy creating. AND Happy Thanksgiving to all!
