Overcoming Creative Road Blocks

There are moments in ever artists’ career where he or she questions the ability to move forward as a creative. This often comes out of a personal catastrophe which becomes an emotional creative block, not the easy kind you can easily push out of the way, but a "the life just dealt you a big emotional blow kind" and left it sitting in the middle of the road. These boulders hit us hard, like a death in the family, a relationship break-up or long-term depression.

As an artist consultant and creative coach, I work with clients to press through the trials of being a successful artist. The nature of creativity is that it is often volatile and often artists need an outside force to push them along and keep them on track with their career goals. Several of my clients have had to bust through emotional blocks, so I thought I’d pass on the methods that carried them through.
All artists approach creativity differently. Some artists approach their work from a technical standpoint: the method, the technique, but some artists are blindly following the heart through their medium, and when emotional turmoil strikes, their creative flow is completely deflated. My suggestion to those of you who find yourself creatively blocked because of an emotional pitfall, is to swing the other way. Seek out the technicality or method of your craft. If you are a painter, refer to the classics to find your pace, or go to the park and sketch forms. A photographer? Look through your lense to find line and space relation, instead of inspiration. A potter? Go back to hand building 101. Pull an image from a pottery magazine and recreate the form.

What if you don't feel like crafting at all? Research a new means of marketing your work through a social media outlet such as Twitter or Facebook, or check out a new blogging site. Do you need to reorder business cards, or do you need to research art shows and festivals? Focus on the business aspects of your craft for a while and take a break from creating. Don't lay down your pencil and retire your craft, just continue from another place of being and stay on your track to success.

Sometimes, emotional blows can keep artists from creating anything, ever again, so it's important, during the time that you really don't feel like working, to just keep pushing your art career forward and not stall out.
And by the way, this method works well for those on the other side of creativity as well. If you work from method and technique, and find yourself stumped, allow yourself some time to play with your tools. Forget how they are supposed to be used, or what your line should look like. Forget about meter or pace. Let your hand lead you outside the lines, pull out a journal and free write, or try collaging from old magazines and photographs. Take some time to roam and eventually, over time, you'll veer back on course.