Susan Plouzek

You may think of chilly winter scenes with lots of interesting shadow effects. Or maybe you wish to imitate a master’s version of a stunning floral with emphasis on light and shadow. You envision beautiful light streaming through an old window, casting its golden haze only on your perfectly aged flowers. So you gather your supplies and can hardly wait to begin. Most of the time, this is how it happens.

Have you ever experienced artist’s block? It is a condition where an artist cannot think of anything to create, in spite of all their training and experience. It can be quite terrifying. You never think it will happen to you; and then one day, it’s like a pianist suddenly being unable to read a single note!

It happened to me many years ago. Days and weeks turned into months. Well-meaning friends dropped off self-help books by the scores. Nothing seemed to work. One well-known book for artist’s block even suggested painting a bowl of Jello to help get out of the funk. I got worried.

Things eventually cleared up. I have no idea why one day my creativity worked and why one day it didn’t, but I was finally able to break the spell of being intimidated by a blank canvas.

My advice, should this happen to you, is try something new. Take it easy. Have fun, experiment. Ride it out and then paint a masterpiece!

With Susan there’s always something new under the sun!