The romantic notion that all art is done when the artist is passionate is false. Frequently passion is generated through the act, we just need to start.
Sometime starting is the hard part but I have some tricks that I use to get over that arduous hump of beginning. My motivation wains most when I have a lot of work left on a painting. The amount of work seems daunting. But much like climbing a mountain or going on any journey you focus on the smaller steps, what is right in front of you, and not the summit or the destination.
A successful painting is built up of thousands of correct brush strokes much like a successful journey is made up of thousands of correct steps. Focusing on doing our best with the smaller steps will inevitably lead to a successful outcome.
Looking at any amount of work in this way makes it much easier to start. Just say to yourself “I’m going to focus on this smaller portion and do my best”.
Starting is so much easier when all I have to worry about is painting one ear, or one foot, or one hand, or one finger.
If I think about it, I’ve never painted an entire figure, I’ve always just painted parts of a figure, shapes on canvas, that ended up being a figure.
Days in a life, hours in a day, seconds with the one you love… it all seems much more wonderful to me when I focus on the details.
“The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step”…I’m guessing so say Confucius