The I'lljust Syndrome

Crisis Affects Women Artists There is a crisis affecting women artists today. It eats into their studio time and artistic output or, more to the point, it creates a lack of output. Evidence of this crisis is based not only on observation but on surveys and through conversations and is reaching alarming and epidemic proportions. Yet it goes unrecognized on a daily basis. Up until now, most women artists cite a lack of time as their reason for not creating the art they want to make. Based on my findings, I have discovered another, more insidious reason for their behavior. It’s not that there is a lack of time, but there is something eating away at their time. So what is it? Diagnosis I’lljust Syndrome Simply put, women artists (and, truly, women in all walks of life) are letting the I’lljust syndrome get in their way of getting into the studio. Symptoms Signs and symptoms appear immediately before sitting down to make art and may include any or all of the following: I’ll just throw in a load of laundry I’ll just rinse those dishes I’ll just call Mom I’ll just check my email I’ll just tidy Annie’s room I’ll just get the grocery shopping out of the way I’ll just clip my toenails I’ll just post on Facebook I’ll just put away... I’ll just relax a bit I’ll just go get... I’ll just clean up... I’ll just straighten up... I’ll just... I’ll just... I’ll just... Before you know it, the whole day has been I’ll justed away. And it is not a 24 hour virus, Chances are it will linger on indefinitely unless she takes immediate action NOW. There IS a cure! Treatment & Prognosis A 10-Step Program As with any condition, the prognosis is determined by how consistently the patient applies and continues treatment. Not only that, but she must believe that she has the power to gain and maintain control of her physical, mental and artistic well-being. Presented below are the 10 steps necessary to overcome I’lljust Syndrome: Recognize you have a problem. Acquire a calendar, planner or scheduling system Group like activities together. ie: Laundry & housework on Monday; errands Tuesday AM; social media 7-7:30; etc. etc. Schedule no-excuses studio time on a regular basis Show up and remain at the appointed studio time whether you feel like it or not Pass by or delay all I’lljusts until their appointed time Maintain a notepad on your studio table to write down all distracting I’lljust thoughts while working Repeat steps 3-7 consistently until improvement is evident. Remind yourself daily that you are in control of your artistic future. To ensure excellent physical, mental and artistic health, make this treatment a part of your wellness plan. Lesley Riley, The Artist Success Expert, is the creative founder of Artist Success, Solutions for the Struggling Artist. To receive her bi-weekly articles on creating your own success as an artist, visit www.ArtistSuccess.com.

Playing during the Holidays

This time of year gets so very hectic that I found myself just playing with photos on my ipad to relax. What fun this is, o dear I have just added one more thing that I want to do with my limted free time. There is always time for a little creativity - right.

Mind is on babies

I did this piece while waiting for my first grandchild, a little girl. Well she has arrived and all is well with the world. I am entering this piece in the Great Lakes "Small Works" juried show at the Riverside Art Center to be held in their wonderful gallery in Ypsilanti Michigan.

Thanks Leslie Riley

This article came across my desk, o my, how I can relate. I know I have more creative ideas then Ihave days left but I continue to gather more. If you are like me this is for you.

How Not To Drown When
You're Swimming in a Sea of Ideas

If I had a finished piece for every idea and inspiration I had, I could fill the National Gallery of Art here in DC. I know you can relate. You and I both will always have more ideas than we could ever take action on. And to that I say – HOORAY!

Problems do arise, though, when ideas outweigh time, resources and even space. I’ve identified the top four:

1. Overwhelm - When there are so many things you want to do you can often end up in overwhelm and do the unthinkable…..nothing.

2. Fear - “What if I start on this one and it doesn’t turn out the way I expect. Then I’ve wasted my precious time and money on materials.” So there goes that idea.

3. Regret - “If I work on this one, then I won’t be able to work on that one and what if I forget about the other great idea?”

4. Flitting – While working on this really great idea another even greater one pops into your head and you abandon the first and start on the second. Nothing ever gets finished and you end up with a closet full of unfinished projects you have lost interest in.

So what’s an artist to do? How do you swim when you are drowning in a sea of ideas?

To save you from one or all of these situations, here are four life preservers I’m tossing out for you:

1. Keep an idea catcher. It is inevitable that you will get many new ideas while you are working. Keep a note or sketchbook by your side so you can jot them down as you go. You’ll be amazed at how catching those ideas frees up your attention to focus on the work at hand. P.S. Use your idea catcher 24 hours a day.

2. Work on several things at a time. Who says you can only work on one thing at a time? Ideas need time to percolate, paint needs to dry, workspace shrinks and grows with each project. By having several things in the works at the same time, there’s always something to do, even at a moment's notice and even in 5 minute snatches of time.

3. Decide! Keep in mind that it’s the journey, not the end-result. Any art you choose to work on contributes to your success as an artist. Whether your reason is to reduce stress or to propose an article to your favorite magazine, knowing why you are making your art gives you purpose and direction and conquers the inertia, fear and regret. You will benefit no matter what your purpose is. The biggest reward is the joy and physical well-being that results from creating.

4. Have a goal in mind. If you don’t know where you want to go, you’ll never get there. Not knowing why you create can prevent you from creating, even if you have a bazillion ideas. Knowing what you want from your art will help you decide what to work on and why.

P.S. If you want to know what opportunities are available for you or if you know what your goals are but are not sure how to accomplish them, be sure to sign-up for SEEK when you receive your special invitation on July 5th. It’s FR*EE and FULL of Solutions, Experience, Expertise and Knowledge to get you on your way.

Lesley Riley, The Artist Success Expert, is the creative founder of Artist Success, Solutions for the Struggling Artist. To receive her bi-weekly articles on creating your own success as an artist, visit www.ArtistSuccess.com.

Thanks Leslie Riley

Playing with Photoshop

I did this picture so long ago I can't remember how I did it. It is a picture of my sister-in-law, Alice. My plan was to do a piece where I had all three of my sister-in-laws in their early twenties and layer them together. I seem to have more ideas for art work then I have days to do them all. I wonder if other artists feel the same.

Bacon on Artist's Job

Bacon 's quote is: "The job of an artist is always to deepen the mystery." This new piece celebrates spring with a mystery of it's own

Happy Easter

It is the time for chocolate and colored eggs. It is supposed to be spring but here in Michigan winter is hanging on for dear life. I can remember when I was a little girl and I wanted it to be warm enough so I would not have to wear my coat and everyone could see my new dress and of course those shiny shoes. I would get three pairs of shoes a year, sneakers in the summer, dress shoes at Easter and saddle shoes in the fall for school. This little girl all in pink puts a smile on my face. There is a cloud of pink around me because I am expecting my first grandchild, a little girl, this July.

New Artwork

This piece is called "tenderness" worked in layers and a variety of mixed mediums. I also wanted to share part of a poem from Ben Okri, "Healing The Wounded Learner or the Pygmalion Complex"

We are all wounded inside in some way or another

We all carry unhappiness within us for some reason or another.

Which is why we need a little gentleness and healing from

one another. Healing in words, healing beyond words

Like gestures. Warm gestures. Like friendships, which will always

Be a mystery. Like a smile, which someone described

As the shorest distance between two people

I hope you received some smiles today and were able to return the gift.

Watch, Wait and Wonder

Since April is Poetry Month, I started to look at some poems I had written many years ago, 1999 to be exact. This is a painting I was working on from a class called Portrait and Poetry. Maybe I will finish now.

Watch, Wait and Wonder

I keep getting this lesson of

patience

and the wonder that

can be found

can be seen

can be experienced

it can take your breath

away

and give you a stillness

that is profound

a joy that has no

end

in that moment

Corinne Vivian 1999

April is Poetry Month

As most of you know I am fascinated with faces. All kinds of faces. I love to layer them in mixed media pieces of art. I am playing with this one right now. I also wrote this poem while waiting for a friend. Enjoy.

Faces

Dreams

found

in a

new face

Memories

stored

in an

old face

Hope

given

to a

forgotten face

Spirits

raised

in a

familiar face.

Corinne Vivian

Could Art Change the World

I saw this wonderful video on TED the link is http://www.ted.com/talks/view/id/1085

If you want more info on this go to insideoutproject.net I am hopeing to do a project at the local community center with children. We will need some digital cameras donated so if anyone has any leads on that, please let me know.

I have attached a digital piece that I have been working on that I may paint.

My favorite quote for the week is "Creativity is allowing yourself to make mistakes. Art is knowing which ones to keep." by Scott Adams. I have created some of my best works thru my mistakes.

Memory Show

I am currently in an art show at the Riverside Arts Center Gallery in Ysilanti Michigan. These are some of my newest pieces. Enjoy

Coming Clean

I have not been here in such a long time. Kept telling myself soon, soon. O, I have been painting, I have been in shows but there was some other technique, some other teacher who knew better and then this article comes across my desk. I could not believe it, here is an artist I love and she has the same problem and I thought it was only me. Read and enjoy I bet there are more of us out there.

I'm Coming Clean On My Addiction

“The first step is admitting that you have a problem.” I’ll be honest with you; many times over the years, I have wondered and then dismissed it. “No, not me, I need this.” But as time goes on I can see the evidence mounting. It is becoming harder and harder to deny that I have a problem. Most days I am too close to it, too caught up in the excitement, the rush of getting more. Enough is never enough. I’m blinded by it. I am always wanting more, searching for more, consuming more. You should see my stash. It’s easy to deny it’s a problem, because let’s face it – everybody does it. OK, not everybody, but I know a lot of people who do. Not regularly perhaps, but on occasion. Really. I’ve seen others do it. I’ve seen you do it, too. No? OK, you’re right, I haven’t actually seen you, but I’m pretty sure you do and maybe you don’t even realize you have a problem. Most people don’t until it’s too late. I am coming clean today because it’s the only way I can see my way out of this. I’m going public because I need the accountability. Knowing that you know will keep me focused on my goal. Does it sound like I am stalling? You bet. It’s embarrassing and I have to admit, I really don’t want to stop. As I write this, I still want more and I’m afraid that the feeling will never go away. Oh, and did I mention that it’s not as easy as staying away from it? It’s everywhere I look. It’s something I have to resist daily, often more often than not, several times a day. I am addicted to information. OK, I said it. I have a need to know. No matter how much I know, I want to know MORE. I am guilty of waiting until I know everything before I take action. And what does that do? It stops me before I can even start. It’s illogical, I know, because I already know a lot. I have learned by experience, the best teacher, this I know for sure. Experience is the best teacher because it means you are taking action. And that’s one of the reasons I started coaching – to share what I know. But then it started. I felt I needed to know more, to be able to give you more, to give you the best. As a result I am looking to others for knowledge, when I know better. Like Dorothy seeking the Wizard of Oz, the power is inside and I have had it all along. Another reason I am coming clean is because I think you may have a problem, too. I have heard more than once - you won’t start, can’t start, until you learn one more thing, take one more class, buy one more tool that will magically turn you into the expert you want to be. You may not be addicted to information, but you are addicted to looking outside of yourself for the answers. Just like me. And we both know better. We know the answers lie inside so why are we still searching? We’re human. That’s the answer. We’re normal. We can take comfort in that. We are searching because we do not believe in ourselves. We are taught from an early age to question everything. We spend 12 or more years in school finding out how much we don’t know, but no one ever teaches us to become aware of what we do know. As the years go by, we bury our own knowingness deeper and deeper until we doubt we really aren't shre of anything at all. We do not trust ourselves. So here’s what I propose. Grab a piece of paper and start writing down everything you know, big and small, significant and insignificant. Write until your hand hurts. Take a break and write some more. Do it again tomorrow. In fact, I bet you could do this every day and never run out of things you know. Daily practice: Write down 12 things you know about the area you continue to seek knowledge in -12 things. Do that every day for 12 days. When you begin to see how much you actually know, you will build confidence and certainty in yourself. Confident people do not have addictions. That’s my 12 step program. Lesley Riley, The Artist Success Expert, is the creative founder of Artist Success, Solutions for the Struggling Artist. To receive her bi-weekly articles on creating your own success as an artist, visit www.ArtistSuccess.com.

Artist collaboration

"We all have to fight our obsessions and prejudices and try to keep our eyes open to new forms. I know I do, for one. It's very difficult to see something that's new, and not a repetition 0f something you've already seen and responded to. But if you can get into the right kind of receptive and appreciative -creative- way of seeing, then the whole world is full of new ideas and new possiblities." Henry Moore

This photo is from the latest show I took part in, called Balance, an artists' collaborative game. It is a traveling show that will be in four galleries thru out Michigan in the coming months. It is a Women's Caucus for Art exhibit. I was paired with another artist and we exchanged three works of art. Mine were 2-d,hers were 3-d. The artist was Sandy Shelly and she does wonderful altered books and assemblages.She helped me to think outside the box about memories and balance. In the photo is a painting where I have my Mother center, I am to the right and my daughter on the left, we are all in our early 20's - each in our own way trying to find balance. This was my third piece.It is a mixed media where I used photo transfers, watercolor and pencil.

Layering Your Art

I also have been taking a online course with Gary Reef. It was his Layering/Texture Course. I was in heaven, so many ideas that I still have to try. He also has a great website - Art from the Heart. His U-tubes are really entertaining with lots of ideas for folks who love mixed media. These are samples from his course. They are before and after so you can see how I built up the surface, then covered it with tinfoil and then used a variety of paints. Interesting what alittle paper, glue and paint can do. More examples of artwork from this class will to come.

Another great online course

I said I was busy this summer. I took Mary Ann Moss's stencil class called Pure Exerimentation Stencilry. She had great videos and it is so much fun seeing what everyone else was up to. Here are a few of the ones I did. I am still cutting out more.I used an electric stencil cutter which was pretty cool. It's interesting while I was taking this class I found all kinds of things that I could use as a stencil.Second hand stores and garage sales added to my supplies.

Facebook and Artists

How quickly this summer has gone by.I had all these good intentions of posting and then don't get to it. I took a great seminar this summer called Facebook and Artists. The instructor was Dee Overly and she was terrific. We learned the why's and how's of using this popular social networking tool as part of your art web presence. If you get a chance to hear her take it - www.deeoverly.com.

This painting is called Questioning and it is a mixed media piece that was in a show at the Riverside Arts Center in Ypsilanti, Michigan. It includes paint, collage and a photo transfer plus pen. I ever seem satisfied with just one medium.

Chaos

"The creation of true art requires some mysterious innate ability to thrive in chaos" - Sharon Hubbard. Ain't that the truth!  I have been meaning to post for some time now but other things like committee meetings, local art groups, museum openings ( University of Michigan has just reopened and it is fabulous), and now I am a on facebook talking to other artists but I will not twitter at least not yet. These two paintings were in a show I was in at the Riverside Art Center. Lady of Means is a mixed media piece with a photo transfer, the model was a gal I paint with and is also a Chelsea painter - a group that I am a member of. The first piece "remembering" is also a mixed media piece with a photo transfer of her face and a lot of other media on top. This afternoon I am going to try to conquer some of the chaos in my studio.

Men at Work

 This is a piece I worked on while mentoring a young lady, she just turned 17. She also wants to be an artist. First we covered some print paper with black gesso, let that dry. Then we cut out figures out of plastic, different weights. We then applied watered down white gesso over the black and layed our plastic on top. Let that dry and then I went back in with colored pencils. She has not finished hers but I will post her's soon. I want to do a whole series of shadows and figures. I have them dancing around in my head, we'll see if they want to come out and play.