It's no secret that balancing the fun and the boring but necessary stuff in an art career can be challenging. (You question the decision to turn your passion into a career on a regular basis.) How do you keep motivated when churning out pretty pictures is your job? How do you not burn out?
Truth is, you do. Eventually you burn out. And what's next? You still have to keep churning them out, thinking of the target audience in the meantime. At the same time, the projects and tidbits of inspiration that move you personally keep remaining on the back burner.
The answer to marrying scheduling and creativity can be... committing to an art challenge with your community!
One of my major personal features as an artist is that I work in a variety of materials and styles. (It's a gift. And a curse.) I just can't help it (I tried) - it's just who I am, a multi-passionate creative. I switch from making patterns for wallpaper, home decor and apparel to painting watercolor landscapes and florals like I switch highway lanes - it's a necessity if you want to keep moving!
The 100 Day Project is a yearly initiative happening on Instagram February through May - although it doesn't have to be specifically on that platform and can be self-paced anytime. Using social media is just a nice way to keep track of your work while being a part of a vibrant community. The necessity to post daily and keep up with the gang keeps your creative juices flowing. Bubbling, actually! Because it can be quite pressing at times, putting one in eustress - positive stress that motivates and pushes you forward.
Doing the 100 day project during which I was working on my illustration goals, created some new surface design work and painted more landscapes and florals has been one of the most rewarding creative experiences of my life as an artist. It wasn't easy at all - there were days when I almost gave up... I have described my experience in a YouTube video on my channel. It is a good one to watch if you are curious to see my working and thinking process, some behind the scenes and for fellow creatives - if you are interested in learning how to keep your social media consistent if you work in multiple mediums and styles. You can watch the video at this link (opens in a new tab).
And while we're at it, you might want to take a look at my video on the multi-creative scanner personality types - where I review Barbara Sher's book called Refuse To Choose - watch it right here!
Being a multicreative has played a huge part in my creative and overall life - until I understood and embraced who I was, I had been pretty miserable, trying to fit the molds of societal approval - both as a person and an artist. We are constantly told that we need to pick a niche as designers - it hasn't worked out for me so far, and I do have a video on that, too!
Are you a multi passionate creative (also called with a fancy "multipotentialite") as well?