Creative Prompts #6
How to find your style?
Welcome to issue number 6 of my creative prompts series devoted to exploring different topics, techniques and processes.
These month’s prompts are an addition to my recent post on artistic style and its elements.
This issue is a little unusual, because it doesn’t provide you with a series of little exercises, but rather gives you three strategies you can implement in your practice to achieve more cohesion in your work, hence, move towards developing a recognisable style.
Finding your style is of course a process that takes a lot of time and requires a lot of artwork being made. A couple of humble art prompts wouldn’t provide you with an immediate answer to the question “What is my art style?”, but I think they can help you to find more focus in your practice and start noticing common threads across your body of work.
Here are three ideas to try:
Take a look at your own work. The answer to finding an artist’s style lies within the artist. Look at both your older and more recent work, notice your progress, identify common themes and stylistic elements you’re drawn to. Have a positive attitude and ask yourself some questions, e.g. where you are right now and what directions to you want to focus on in the future.
Narrow down and stay focused. After you reviewed your work and recognised the directions you want to focus on (what art do you want to make?), commit to a regular practice to go deeper into finding your style. To reduce the “noise” determine some limitations (subject matter, media, substrates, etc.) and stay within those limitations for a period of time, it will help you to not be side-tracked.
Find what you enjoy the most and use it as your creative compass. Keep asking yourself - What brings me joy? The uniqueness of your style lies in your uniqueness, and as you change, your art will change, but it’s important to follow your own “creative compass“ and not current trends. When you reach a point where you want to start exploring again and change something in your practice, feel free to play with the elements of your style. Adjust and push the boundaries of your process, experiment and evolve, but always use enjoyment as a signpost.
Approach these strategies from your own perspective, show up as you are! If you have many interests and want to explore several paths at the same time, it’s totally fine. Most artists haven’t “figured it out” and an artist’s style tends to change and evolve a great deal throughout their careers, so there is no need to worry too much about it.
Learn to love your own work and feel connected to it.
I hope you found these ideas inspiring. Thank you for reading and being here! Feel free to share these prompts with a creative friend and I’ll be happy to hear from you in the comments!
Until next time!
Lisa
Humph! @Lisa Burda!
Someone comes here to find their style and gets told "Go look within" !
This should be labelled Spiritual prompts!
*protests for the Right of people to find their style outside themselves*