Who could have predicted when COVID hit a few years ago that life would change so drastically? Since then, my day job has transitioned to full time remote, I sold my home to downsize and moved into a rental literally half the size of my old home, and I tried to embrace the fact that I can't see my daughter (who lives in Australia) until life returns to normal.
Being sequestered for months at the beginning of the pandemic, I thought my creativity would be on high. I no longer had a work commute, spent almost all of my time at home where I was surrounded by nature and had literally no visitors to interupt my flow. That wasn't the case. Instead I struggled to turn my attention to my art. I felt stunted and uninspired. I would sit at an empty canvas or screen and wait for an idea to form. But nothing.
Then I decided I would jump into learning new techniques and that was the boost I needed to kickstart my creativity again. I took an acrylic painting class and learned that I could integrate acrylic, collage, stamping, pastel, charcoal or whatever I wanted into my art. I knew that mixed media was a category but had never considered it for myself. I preferred staying within one medium, coloring within the lines and keeping my art in organized little buckets. There was something about adding and combining mediums and allowing myself the freedom to truly play and explore that seemed to unstick my stuck.
I've been enjoying painting wild florals with many different mediums this past year. They are delightfully joyful to paint and I'm finding more joy in my life, in general. Change is constant, but embracing change seems to be the only way to navigate in these unusual times. How are you adjusting to change during the pandemic? What tips could you share to help others?