What I’ve Learned From My Year of Consistency
Are you somebody who likes to reflect as the year comes closer to an end, or in the waning weeks of December are you already looking forward to the New Year and what possibilities await? I admit that I am a bit of both. I love a new year. I purchased my 2024 planners way back in September and I even have a dedicated one in 2024 for all things art. But 2023 was a big year for me and I wanted to give some space to celebrate those accomplishments, especially as I start to think about what’s in store for 2024.
I’m so proud of this year, but dang it was also really hard sometimes. I found myself working on some aspect of this art-work anywhere from a couple hours a week for 10+ hours sometimes. It was a delicate balance of wanting to really start to grow something (my art skills, my website, newsletter list, social media following, all the things), while constantly trying to remind myself that if this stops being fun, I’ve missed the point. Is the dream to have a full fledged art business that pays all the bills and then some, heck yeah. Do I have any real idea how I’m going to get there, not really. Also, I don’t have to. I have a full time job to pay the bills while I figure out what this art thing can even be. I have so many feelings about this year, but I tried to break them down into a few buckets:
Finding consistency.
Developing my style (or starting to) and noticing gaps.
Everything besides painting takes a lot of time.
I’ve barely glimpsed what’s possible.
Finding Consistency
One of my first paintings of 2023.
My word for 2023 was consistency. I knew that I was interested in art. I knew I wanted to see whether this was a hobby or something more. I knew that increasing my painting time meant making it a priority and fitting it into an already busy schedule. I certainly didn’t paint every day, but I painted almost every week. I did not plan on being a paint-every-day-person and I knew I would not do well with that sort of pressure. Sometimes I painted for only 10 minutes and it was really just a doodle that didn’t see the light of day, but usually, once I filled my water jars and pulled out my paints, it was easy to settle into painting, especially with a podcast or a movie in the background. I think I read this in Austin Kleon’s book Show Your Work, but he said something to the effect of: do the work that is in front of you and then do the next thing. This was part of the inspiration of my Summer Vibes project and my approach to painting. I tried to keep a stack of reference photos handy and to just start working on the next painting once I finished something. And for this year, it worked. I created more artwork this past year than I have ever created in a year - over 60 finished pieces! Do I love all of them? Definitely not, but even my ugliest paintings have grown on me.
Developing my Style
I have found that I love how I’m never quite sure how a landscape will turn out and that painting realistically can be very meditative.
Finding one’s artistic style is a thing. There are endless blogs, books, videos, courses, you name it, to help you develop your style or what makes your artwork unique special. At the heart of any of those programs is turning away from tutorials and other artists as inspiration and working on only your own work. In addition to consistency, I wanted this year to be about my own paintings. Since I like to paint from reference photos this also meant painting from my own photographs. Overall, I stuck with this goal and I think my painting style has evolved a lot this past year. More than just how my paintings look, I also have more confidence when it comes to starting a painting and finishing it. I’m less worried during the messy middle stage and am less concerned if a painting doesn’t match my original expectations.
However, it also allowed me to discover where I feel like my skills are lacking and where I want to improve. Drawing feels like a weakness, and in 2024 I want to improve my drawing skills so that it is easier to break down a reference photo and to combine elements of different reference photos into a unique composition. I want a better understanding of color theory and how that can improve a painting. I also didn’t make a lot of room to experiment with different materials. I have a basic acrylic paint set, a gouache lesson book, and a set of Japanese Gansai Tambi watercolors, all of which I have yet to mess with. In 2024, I’d like to balance out working on my own work with some focused practice and instruction. I have a couple unused sketchbooks and think this might be a great way to document my learning process.
Everything Besides Painting Takes a Lot of Time
My largest painting to date at 11 x 14 inches.
At the start of this year, building a website, starting a blog, documenting my art practice were all extremely intimidating. Like with most new things, the fear was in the anticipation of the thing rather than the thing itself. I’ve tried to adopt the philosophy that finished is better than perfect. I’m never going to feel ready to do anything. I already have ideas for how to improve my website design, and every time I publish a blog or a set of social media posts, I am learning something new. I’ve found that I really do enjoy all of these things that are related to my art practice but are not painting. But, wow, it can take a lot of time. A blog post alone is usually 2-3 hours from idea to actually being ready to go on the website. Managing how much time and energy I allot to these different aspects of my art practice is still something I am working on.
I’ve Barely Glimpsed What’s Possible
I learned a ton this year. In addition to painting, I took free courses when they were available, on everything from Adobe Illustrator, to Photoshop, to building email lists, to how to maximize Pinterest. I read new books like The Creative Act: A Way of Being by Rick Rubin, Free to Focus by Michael Hyatt, and Show Your Work and Keep Going by Austin Kleon. I discovered new podcasts like Goal Digger with Jenna Kutcher, Online Marketing Made Easy with Amy Porterfield, and The Professional Creative with Bonnie Christine. I’ve learned that I have only scratched the surface of the possibilities for my art and the limitless directions I could take it. In addition to wanting to improve my art skills, I also want to develop more technical skills, specifically related to Photoshop and Illustrator and explore the ways I can use my art beyond just selling original pieces. Purchasing the Art to Print course earlier this fall was one step in that direction, but now I have to sit down and do the work.
I’m looking forward to 2024. I have no doubt that it will turn out very differently than I am currently imagining it, but I think that is part of the fun. I hope you have a delightful end of the year and my next post will drop in early January.
What are you most proud of in 2023 and what are you looking forward to in 2024?
2023 Milestones
JGagnonDesigns.com launched in January 2023
J. Gagnon Designs LLC registered in July 2023
70+ Finished pieces of art
32 blog posts
16 newsletters
100+ social media posts