As I mentioned in my last blog post, I am working on a small ATC swap project with a “Steam Punk” theme to it. Now if you’ve been following my blog for a while you probably recognize this as something a bit different for me. So very correct you would be. So why did I sign up for this one? Well because fairly often I like to stretch my wings and go outside my comfort zone to see if I can accomplish something that’s not the norm for me.
In the spirit of stretching to new endeavors (like I’m doing with this Steam Punk theme), I’ve decided to set the next prompt for our Inspire, Inspire Art-Journals to, “Stepping Outside My Comfort Zone.” Like in weeks prior use this prompt in any way that you want to when drawing a repeat pattern project on your next journal page. It may bring about thoughts of a time when you found yourself in a situation outside your comfort zone. If so I encourage you to create a page that expresses how you dealt with the situation. Consider working through a pattern that you have found to be outside your comfort zone… or like me maybe just weave a page of patterned lines in a theme that’s outside your usual style and see if you get comfortable enough to widen your zones of creativity.
As always – however you choose to use the “Stepping Outside My Comfort Zone” phrase is 100% okey-dokey. Because chances are good that what this prompt brings to your mind will be completely different for you than it is for anyone else in the world! And how you choose to express your thoughts in your art-journal will be uniquely you as well.
Getting More Comfortable in Your Art
One way I have found to help me real in a non-comfortable creative theme so that I can work with it under less stress and have more fun is to use the elements of the unknown and blend it with a style I am familiar with – as I work towards becoming more comfortable with the new. That’s what I did when I combined a wee bit of pipe-work with a dangley ditty in my previous Inspire, Inspire journal prompt. And when I have found myself outside my comfort zone in life situations, I tend to set my mind doing a similar thing. In my thoughts I’m comparing the unknown with something that is more familiar to me and situations that I managed to work through before. With those thoughts in mind I find I can press on and quickly become more comfortable in the situation.
How do you work through a creative theme that is not exactly you? Something that’s outside your comfort zone? I’d love to hear your thoughts on that and I’d especially like to see any creative expression of that in your Inspire, Inspire Art-Journals too. Please share your pages in our Flickr group and in our photo gallery at http://LineWeaving.com/Forums … even if doing so is outside your comfort zone. 😀 Maybe this little step will help you get more comfortable with sharing your art with others. 😉
Here’s to a comfortable day at the drawing table…
~ Cindy
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