Oh Amy! You have given me a lot to consider and reconsider today. You somehow honed in on the thoughts that have been skittering around in my head all week. I’ve read this post twice and I’ll read it again. And ‘Practice Makes Permanent’? That’s going on the wall in my studio. It goes both ways. There are some I don’t want to be permanent and those are practices I going to change. Maybe I should spray paint it on the wall like graffiti?😂
The part of your writing that stood out to me most in this post: “For so many of us, no matter what our aspirations, the doing and making and continuing is personal. We have to have our reasons. We have to at least peripherally have a why. We have to value the process and whatever it offers.”
And I agree. I think it’s hard to realize the process is enjoyable with art-making when the result (a finished piece of art) is tangible and easy to critique, whereas the process isn’t always easy to remember or reference.
Dominoes (in action) remind me of flow/process aspect of creativity.
I do like the “being in the zone” of making art or writing and the feeling- the instinct- that something is finished or that the session (practice time) is completed.
What’s interesting about dominoes are watching them in action (the process) and collectively (ongoing habit) versus evaluating one individual domino (a single created object).
I never realized that I have different definitions of practice that are situational. I definitely believe in the power of muscle memory, and that it is hard to unlearn or modify things that are so far below consciousness. But this applies more to things you would want to be the same every time.
I used to be a swimmer, and I spent hours practicing my form. Maybe this is different for Olympic swimmers, but I never had a need to “go off script.”
When I have attempted to learn a musical instrument, it was also down to muscle memory for me. Make these chords smooth without looking, read the musical notations at a glance. I never reached the point where I might embellish and put my own spin on things.
When people say things to me like “I could never,” “I can’t draw,” “but you are so creative,” or “I am not creative like you,” my mind goes to a few different places.
First, I silently grumble at the teacher or adult that squelched this person’s creativity in their childhood (an oversimplification I’m sure).
But then I want to tell them that artists aren’t born with some kind of special gift.
Some might have a better sense of spacial relationships, or hand eye coordination, or fine motor skills. The only way to do it is to do it, as much as you can. And be brave enough to fail...a lot.
When I look back at my journals, just since February, I can see a huge evolution. Not towards perfection, but to being more comfortable in my artist skin, not being afraid to experiment and explore, finding my voice, and becoming a lot more confident about making art.
I’m practicing dance at a Body Jam class at the gym---it will never be perfect, but I make progress if I do a routine more than once. Or even during a single song, I’m learning the steps, I’m moving my arms, then I’m doing both simultaneously.
Art doesn’t even have a “perfect“ anyway. Guitar playing maybe does (I played oboe in school). There’s a better way to hold your hands or stretch or move with speed or whatever. Art has fewer rules and personal style is appreciated. You have many routes to get what you want.
I don’t have a word to drop. You wrote like a dragonfly this week, flitting from idea to idea. I havw too much to read, always, but I take time for you.
This was so full of gems Amy, thank you I can’t just pick one word. I was a big Bradbury fan growing up but I never read “zen and the art of writing,” maybe I should. I used to read “something wicked this way” every October for many years running but reading that quote made me want to track down the Martian chronicles out of the blue. There is something so atmospheric about his writing. It’s transportive. And repetition is certainly easier doing something you love.
Lime Dr.Pepper or Cherry limeades when I drank sodas. Graffiti, dominoes, Here comes the Sun, ghost. Practicing French pronunciation and sketching Turtles & frogs in an effort to bring another animal comic idea to life. As always, love to hear your thoughts and happy to be one of the handful.
Sparkles! I don't have a Sonic close by but once I got a pineapple diet coke and it was disgusting, do not recommend. 😂😂
As I practice the ukulele, this is all spot on. I found that my wrist was starting to ache, so I went back to the very first lesson - how to hold the ukulele. I had slowly started to hold it in a way that felt easier in the moment, but was harder on my wrist in the long term.
Art is different, though. Improvement can be easy to see over time, but for me the process is everything. It's my time and space to work out my thoughts and feelings and create something. Anything. Sometimes I like the end result, sometimes I don't, but I never regret taking the time to practice. It's always practice, never perfect.
Oh Amy! You have given me a lot to consider and reconsider today. You somehow honed in on the thoughts that have been skittering around in my head all week. I’ve read this post twice and I’ll read it again. And ‘Practice Makes Permanent’? That’s going on the wall in my studio. It goes both ways. There are some I don’t want to be permanent and those are practices I going to change. Maybe I should spray paint it on the wall like graffiti?😂
As always thanks for all you do!
The part of your writing that stood out to me most in this post: “For so many of us, no matter what our aspirations, the doing and making and continuing is personal. We have to have our reasons. We have to at least peripherally have a why. We have to value the process and whatever it offers.”
And I agree. I think it’s hard to realize the process is enjoyable with art-making when the result (a finished piece of art) is tangible and easy to critique, whereas the process isn’t always easy to remember or reference.
Dominoes (in action) remind me of flow/process aspect of creativity.
I do like the “being in the zone” of making art or writing and the feeling- the instinct- that something is finished or that the session (practice time) is completed.
What’s interesting about dominoes are watching them in action (the process) and collectively (ongoing habit) versus evaluating one individual domino (a single created object).
Strawberry limeade to go-take it home and add tequila and sit by a campfire! Graffiti, sparkles.
A sparkle, a ghost,
Graffiti glows on the wall.
I think, let it be.
I never realized that I have different definitions of practice that are situational. I definitely believe in the power of muscle memory, and that it is hard to unlearn or modify things that are so far below consciousness. But this applies more to things you would want to be the same every time.
I used to be a swimmer, and I spent hours practicing my form. Maybe this is different for Olympic swimmers, but I never had a need to “go off script.”
When I have attempted to learn a musical instrument, it was also down to muscle memory for me. Make these chords smooth without looking, read the musical notations at a glance. I never reached the point where I might embellish and put my own spin on things.
When people say things to me like “I could never,” “I can’t draw,” “but you are so creative,” or “I am not creative like you,” my mind goes to a few different places.
First, I silently grumble at the teacher or adult that squelched this person’s creativity in their childhood (an oversimplification I’m sure).
But then I want to tell them that artists aren’t born with some kind of special gift.
Some might have a better sense of spacial relationships, or hand eye coordination, or fine motor skills. The only way to do it is to do it, as much as you can. And be brave enough to fail...a lot.
When I look back at my journals, just since February, I can see a huge evolution. Not towards perfection, but to being more comfortable in my artist skin, not being afraid to experiment and explore, finding my voice, and becoming a lot more confident about making art.
Sparkles
Cranberry Limeade (or straight up Coca-Cola!)
And Your Bird Can Sing
I’m practicing dance at a Body Jam class at the gym---it will never be perfect, but I make progress if I do a routine more than once. Or even during a single song, I’m learning the steps, I’m moving my arms, then I’m doing both simultaneously.
Art doesn’t even have a “perfect“ anyway. Guitar playing maybe does (I played oboe in school). There’s a better way to hold your hands or stretch or move with speed or whatever. Art has fewer rules and personal style is appreciated. You have many routes to get what you want.
Have a good week!
Boo! I am haunted by the ghosts of future promise. I like the idea of having A Practice. Which is less about perfecting and more about being.
Graffiti, sparkles, Let it Be. Practicing gentleness toward myself as I stumble slowly toward my goals, and sometimes slip backwards away from them.
“In My Life” (Beatles) practice allows me to pretend for just a little bit that the world is as I imagine it. Thank you for your writing!
I don’t have a word to drop. You wrote like a dragonfly this week, flitting from idea to idea. I havw too much to read, always, but I take time for you.
This was so full of gems Amy, thank you I can’t just pick one word. I was a big Bradbury fan growing up but I never read “zen and the art of writing,” maybe I should. I used to read “something wicked this way” every October for many years running but reading that quote made me want to track down the Martian chronicles out of the blue. There is something so atmospheric about his writing. It’s transportive. And repetition is certainly easier doing something you love.
Lime Dr.Pepper or Cherry limeades when I drank sodas. Graffiti, dominoes, Here comes the Sun, ghost. Practicing French pronunciation and sketching Turtles & frogs in an effort to bring another animal comic idea to life. As always, love to hear your thoughts and happy to be one of the handful.
Sparkles! I don't have a Sonic close by but once I got a pineapple diet coke and it was disgusting, do not recommend. 😂😂
As I practice the ukulele, this is all spot on. I found that my wrist was starting to ache, so I went back to the very first lesson - how to hold the ukulele. I had slowly started to hold it in a way that felt easier in the moment, but was harder on my wrist in the long term.
Art is different, though. Improvement can be easy to see over time, but for me the process is everything. It's my time and space to work out my thoughts and feelings and create something. Anything. Sometimes I like the end result, sometimes I don't, but I never regret taking the time to practice. It's always practice, never perfect.