Many artists are introvert people who tend to keep their problems bottled up and don’t ask anyone for help. Maybe they are feeling ashamed or believe that they are the only ones struggling.
But that’s not true. Many artists are feeling lost at some point in their career. They might experience artist block, feel unmotivated, and have no idea how to rekindle their creativity. If you are going through such a phase, it doesn’t mean that you have lost your artistic ability.
Everyone goes through hard times and there is always something you can do about it. There are ways to regain your passion and have fun with art again!
But before we look into what you can do to get your creative juices flowing again, how do you actually know that you are stuck in such as phase?
Here are some signs that you are feeling lost as an artist:
- You lack creativity.
- You feel that your art is just not good enough.
- You hate your art.
- You are not feeling inspired and don’t know where to find new inspiration.
- You are not motivated to finish your artwork and don’t know what to create next.
- You feel envy toward artists who you think are better than you.
- You keep overthinking your art and have recurring patterns of negative thoughts.
- You have lost your creative confidence and find yourself discouraged and resentful.
- You are spending more time trying to please others instead of making the art you love.
How do you survive as an artist?
Now, I know what you are thinking. What if you are really working hard everyday, but work comes so slowly that you don’t know how to survive as an artist.
You are going to hit moments when you think you are not going to make it as an artist. But thinking like an artist also means to cultivate a positive mindset.
Luckily, the internet offers endless possibilities for artists to sell their work and make a living.
Do artists struggle to make a living?
Nowadays, it is absolutely possible to create the art you want and make a living as an artist. Social media and art sharing sites allow you to upload your work and directly sell to your fans and followers. You can reach new audiences and potential buyers without the need of a middleman.
Online art sales offer enormous potential, that’s why I recommend making a website for your art, if you haven’t yet. If you are interested in learning more, I have lots of free tutorials and tips to build your artist website here.
Once you have your own little place on the web, there are lots of ways to make money with your art. For example, you can sell art commissions, digital printables, digital downloads, and art prints, to just name a few.
For more tips to help you transform your art hobby into a meaningful career as an artist, you can download the free Art Business Startup Checklist.
You can find more useful resources to help you make a living with your art in the Showcase & Sell Your Art section.
To learn more about promoting your work, these two posts are a good starting point: How To Identify Your Target Market As An Artist In 4 Steps and Why Marketing Is An Art & How To Market Your Art.
Why is being an artist so lonely?
Another reason for feeling lost as an artist can be loneliness.
Being lonely means you are experiencing a lack of connection. That can mean that you have genuinely nobody to talk to who understands you. But loneliness can also happen when you are with people, and even with your friends or family.
Feeling lonely is completely subjective and largely depends on your personality. Some people feel lonely if they cannot talk to other people every day. Others are completely fine if they socialize a few times a week or even less frequently.
Being an artist means you often – if not always – work alone. But that doesn’t necessarily imply that artists are lonely. There is a huge difference between loneliness and solitude.
In fact, artists often seek solitude because it allows them to work better, they are more creative and feel more inspired. I myself couldn’t imagine being creative in a room with other people. I am my best artistic self when I am on my own.
But that doesn’t mean that I am lonely. I have sufficient opportunity to meet up with people in real life and connect on the internet. Everybody must decide for themselves how much interaction they need.
However, if loneliness starts to take a toll on your mental health and well-being, then it’s time to do something about it. For all those of you who are dealing with that issue, I have tip #4 for you below.
How to rekindle your creativity
When you first started to create art, you most likely felt sort of a calling to be an artist. You were passionate about what you were doing and felt joyful and happy when you were able to express yourself through your art.
This is what the creative process should be like, and it’s probably the reason why we wanted to be artists in the first place. But then something happened along the way. Some bad experience that resulted in you becoming unmotivated and feeling lost as an artist.
This happens to all artists at least at one point during their career, and it surely has happened to me, too.
To help you regain your passion and have fun with art again, I've put together 8 tips that you will hopefully find beneficial. Let's dive in:
8 Things you can do when feeling lost as an artist
1. Pick up a new medium.
Sometimes, when you’ve lost motivation as an artist, it can be helpful to pick up a new medium. New media to experiment with can bring new inspiration. Chances are you will get as excited as you were when you got into art in the first place.
For example, if you’ve been making digital art so far, you can try to paint with watercolors – just for fun! If you don’t feel comfortable stepping that much out of the known, you can make smaller changes.
As a digital artist who has been making photo manipulations in Photoshop, for example, you can switch over to Clip Studio Paint and try digital painting. You will notice that little changes like that will challenge you to develop a whole new skillset.
Another possibility to reignite your passion is to approach the same idea from an alternative perspective, perhaps using techniques or tools you’ve been unfamiliar with.
2. Clear your mind.
We all need time to relax and unwind. Especially when we’ve been trying hard to create something but simply couldn’t find the motivation to get started. That’s a surefire way to feeling stressed out.
However, instead of taking time to de-stress, we tend to put even more pressure on us and beat ourselves up for not being able to create. That leaves us feeling even more drained. It’s a vicious circle.
To break out of it, we need to interrupt the loop of negative thinking and clear out minds. Allow yourself to be quiet without distractions to reorganize your thoughts.
There are many different things you can do to relax: go for a walk, take a ride on your bike, listen to music, read a book, take a bath, meditate.
I personally find that mediation is very helpful. Usually, I do two quick meditation sessions per day, one in the morning and one at night before going to bed. Sometimes, the best inspiration strikes me when meditating!
3. Take a break.
If a short-term break isn’t quite enough to refuel your energy stores, don’t be afraid to take a longer time out. If you’ve just had a very intensive period of work, creating one piece after the other, it’s normal that your brain needs some time unwind.
Sometimes, taking on art commissions or work for clients can feel like a race. But it shouldn’t. Making art should be a joyful and relaxing activity, not one that burns you out.
So taking a break after an intense period of work doesn’t mean you have to discard art altogether during that break. It also doesn’t mean that you are going to lose your artistic ability. Sometimes shifting your creative focus is already enough.
Since I’ve built this website, for example, my creative work alternates between making art and writing about it. When I am realizing an idea digitally, most of time goes into the creation process. After having created a couple of pieces in a row, I like to busy myself with creating new content for my blog.
I personally find this alternating cycle of creating very beneficial. Once I’m done with one thing, I can turn again to the other thing with much more energy and enthusiasm.
4. Get involved with your art community.
There are a lot of artists out there who seek to connect with like-minded people. They want to talk about what they love, share their work, and get inspired by the work others share.
Whatever type of art you are doing, there are always people who have the same interests as you. You can join art groups on the internet, connect via social media, or meet up in real life at gallery shows, street fairs, or art conventions.
Oftentimes, it is easier to make connections on the web, especially if you are living in a smaller city or town. A lot of people tend to blame social media for the lack of meaningful connections, but I think it’s a good starting point.
When I started out to make digital art about ten years ago, DeviantArt was the first art sharing site that I joined. Back then, DeviantArt used to be a much more active community than today. Artists used to receive genuine feedback on their creations and I believe the platform helped me a lot to find my path an artist.
When you build a community of supportive artists around you, there will always be someone to lift you up every time you are feeling lost as an artist!
5. Push yourself to be creative.
As a passionate artist, the desire to create comes to you naturally. But if you seek to get your motivation back, it may be necessary to push yourself a little bit.
As Picasso put it:
“Inspiration is possible but it must find you working.”
Sometimes, when you are struggling with creative block, it is not about summoning your muse, but rather about making time to be creative.
If you keep scrolling down your Instagram feed all day long hoping for inspiration to strike you, you most likely won’t get to create.
However, if you push yourself to sit down in your chair, switch on your computer, and make some strokes on your drawing tablet, you are much more likely to succeed.
The artistic process requires a productive mind, but my experience is that every muse needs a gentle push from time to time.
6. Create on a schedule.
Just like pushing yourself to be creative, creating on a schedule can be helpful when you are feeling lost as an artist.
Creating on a schedule means you set aside time to create on a regular basis. If you can make it, then create art each day a little bit. If not, then every two days or every three days.
Consistency is key and working on a regular schedule is the best way to stay productive.
In my opinion, it is best to set aside some time to create on a daily basis. Even if it’s just 20 minutes or half an hour.
Working regularly for shorter periods of time is more efficient than working sporadically at great length.
7. Set yourself goals.
Another tip to rekindle your creativity is to set yourself goals.
For example, to get yourself on fire, you can set yourself the goal to complete at least ten artworks within one year. This is not only a great way to build your portfolio, but also to get ample practice to make creative progress.
To create more exposure for your art, you can also aim to organize a group show with another artist you know.
It’s important that your goals are ambitious but realistic. Well set goals will make you push harder, but they are not impossible to reach.
And once you’ve reached one of your goals, you have a reason to celebrate!
8. Seek a new challenge.
My last tip for you to stop feeling lost as an artist is to seek a new challenge. I believe that if you’re not stretching yourself, you cannot grow.
The challenge can be anything that forces you to expand your abilities in one way or the other.
Challenge yourself to complete one piece each week for the next three months. Instead of spending too much time on social media, set aside one hour every day to be creative.
Take your camera and go on a photo tour through nature. Choose a new medium to work with and create five new artworks. Do anything that you have never done before.
This can also mean that you speak about your art for the first time. Describe your creative process and the meaning behind your art and share it with your fans and followers. Start offering art commissions. Try creating NFT art.
Anything that helps you regain your passion is fine!
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I know that feeling lost as an artist may happen from time to time. Life isn’t easy and we all go through difficult phases. I hope that these eight tips help you to have fun with art again!
What strategies do you use to rekindle your creativity? Please leave comments and questions below or reach out to me directly. I’d love to hear from you! Make sure to sign up for my email list below so you don’t miss out on new blog posts and other cool stuff. ♥
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