The only thing I have ever wanted to do is artwork and I have never been tired of it. It is as important to me as the air I breathe to me. So, why am I not painting constantly? Time. My enemy is and always has been time.
I am aware that so many other artists struggle with the issue of time, also. And I am fascinated to learn just how they deal with it. What kinds of clever ways have they discovered of finding more of it? From where do they steal it? Who or what suffers? Where do we all find the quality time that produces the level of art we all seek? I suspect that the answers for each query would be unique to each individual. There are no universal habits that will work for every artist. Each must experiment to see what might work for him. And what might work this week might not work the next. That is what is so frustrating. But, even if one’s new plan works for only a short while, it is still worth following.
I used to get crazy because I would constantly change my “schedule” (the days of the week and the times of the day in which I do different tasks) in order to find an efficient way of getting things done – all in an effort to find more time to create art. I tried painting as soon as I got up. Then, I would paint at night after dinner. I used to paint after I finished all other work for the day, but the problem with that system is that I am usually too tired to do much painting at that point. Then it occurred to me that even though no system was perfect, at least I had a system. Without any order, there is chaos, and my schedule was working somewhat – better than no system at all. There have been several things written regarding finding the proper time to work. Each person has his own system and schedule for creating that is peculiar to him.
I may never find the perfect schedule. I have resigned myself to that fact – sort of, but something tells me that I will keep trying to find that perfect elusive schedule.
