My style is something I've always been pretty confused about. I can't say I have a style, even after having spent my entire life fully dedicated to being a better artist. I can't remember ever really wanting to be anything other than an artist and I have spent so much energy on my technical skill that I never really got around to questioning myself about what I actually wanted my work to say about me!
I've done extensive research into other artists who also struggle with this same question and most of them have very sound and helpful advice but I've got to be honest here and admit that even with all that, the emotional toll on trying to wade through my tangled up mind and ideas and clearly focus on what I want to produce through my art has been exceptionally challenging.
It's really only the past two years that this question has been in such clear focus for me and it's a process I'm learning all the time to not only allow for but respect, despite how scary it feels and how ugly my art is at times as a result of my experimenting. Giving myself permission to mess up has really been a big hurdle for me.
In my experimenting, I've repeatedly come back to watercolours. This is a medium I've always avoided but actually really love the versatility and effects it creates. I tend to work in quite a controlled manner and have therefore really struggled to harness and utilise its free-flowing and unpredictable nature. I only recently produced something I'm quite proud of and since then, it's spurred me on to try more.
I've also found that in the search for my style and asking some deep questions of myself, I've had to turn away from social media, at least temporarily. I figured if storefronts can cover up while they redress, then I don't really see this as a bad thing as I think it wise to step away from noise and distraction to really focus on our work as artists and develop further. Like most artists, I'm also not totally comfortable sharing the experiments I've made online. If you're anything like me then you know posting the good stuff is hard enough as it is. Putting yourself and your work out there can be tough.
I'd really love to hear your thoughts on how you've developed your style and some of the challenges you've faced in doing so.
Photo by Amaury Salas on Unsplash
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