“Making art is dangerous and revealing. Making art precipitates self-doubt, stirring deep waters that lay between what you know you should be, and what you fear you might be.”- Art & Fear

Yesterday afternoon, I found myself lost in a maze of handwritten notes about books I’d enjoyed and was excited to recommend.

Twenty minutes in, an article about Da Vinci piqued my interest, so I moved to the comfy sofa to fully concentrate. An endeavour that culminated in me falling asleep.

Ironically, I’d sat down to share the secrets of avoiding procrastination, mastering time management, boosting art sales, and living a more creative life – but I had gotten distracted.

That said, reading about Leonardo was not only fascinating but enlightening.

Architect, engineer, scientist, sculptor and painter. His first job was as a theatrical producer and set designer, teaching him tricks with perspective that he carried on through into his paintings.

The Last Supper, Leonardo Da Vinci, Tempera on Gesso, c.1495-1498

Notice the viewpoint and how the angle or perspective of the table top has been shifted very slighlty towards us to reveal more of the surface but still sits comfortably within the composition, I’d never really noticed this before.

If you wanted ideas, he was your man.

Leonardo’s interests were broad, and new subjects compelled him so intensely that he usually left projects unfinished, which meant working with him was a nightmare. Clients would avoid relying on him because he couldn’t be trusted to finish.

“to urge Leonardo the Florentine to finish the work on the Refectory of the Grazie, which he has begun, in order to attend afterwards to the other wall of the Refectory of the Grazie; and that agreements to which he has subscribed by his hand be fulfilled, which shall oblige him to finish the work within the time that shall be agreed upon with him.” From Leonardo by Martin Kemp

He spent most of his time observing nature or pondering on scientific theories. In his defence, he was just getting interested in other more captivating subjects, like how to fly or understanding human anatomy.

Really, he was just being curious, which is making me feel a lot more soothed about my limited attention span.

“In addition to his instinct for discerning patterns across disciplines, Leonardo honed two other traits that aided his scientific pursuits: an omnivorous curiosity, which bordered on the fanatical, and an acute power of observation, which was eerily intense.” –  Walter Isaacson, Leonardo Da Vinci

So, after reading (or revisiting) over 20 books in 2023, here is a list of 5 books that have sparked my curiosity and given me some ideas and principles I’ve tried to adopt in my daily routines.

Live a More Creative Life

1. The Artist’s Way: A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity by Julia Cameron

“But do you know how old I will be by the time I learn to really play the piano / act / paint / write a decent play?” Yes . . . the same age you will be if you don’t.”
― Julia Cameron, The Artist’s Way: A Spiritual Path to Higher Creativity

The Artist’s Way is laid out as a 12-week program to get back in touch with your creative self, with exercises, activities, and insights that help you overcome creative blocks and discover your true potential as an artist. Ever heard of ‘morning pages’? This book will show you how this simple practice can revolutionize your creativity and bring clarity to your life.

I read this book as an art student and can’t remember finishing the whole 12-week course, but I adopted two key practices that I use to this day.

• Morning Pages
• Artists’ Dates

Morning pages are so handy to stop your mind whirring over issues. The practice is to write freehand using a pen and paper, three pages of a train of thought. No editing, no re-reading, no punctuation. Just pure free-flowing words. If you’ve been tied to your keyboard, writing longhand for three pages can seem to take ages.

Your handwriting might not be able to keep up with the speed of your thoughts, but it can be very beneficial. Just getting any ideas, worries, or frustrations down on a page has a really therapeutic effect.

You’re not looking for solutions; you don’t re-read to try and discover your problems; you just write. The process is the cure.

I also love the concept of ‘Artist Dates’.

If you want to feel inspired, you need to book a date with yourself to go to an event, a museum, or a show. Preferably on your own (although I often bend the rules a bit and go with Vanessa)

So check your calendar for the next month. Where are you going to get inspired?

Making a date, actually going to a museum, going to a bookshop, going to these things on your own rather than with friends is the key; otherwise, you tend to end up just going for a coffee….( erm…I can confirm that is mostly true but we still had fun)

Face the fear of creating your art

2. Art & Fear: Observations on the Perils (And Rewards of Artmaking) By David Bayles and Ted Orland

“What separates artists from ex-artists is that those who challenge their fears, continue; those who don’t, quit. In large measure becoming an artist consists of learning to accept yourself, which makes your work personal, and in following your own voice, which makes your work distinctive.” – David Bayles & Ted Orland, Art & Fear

This book is particularly helpful if you went to art college but haven’t quite fulfilled that potential that you dreamed about whilst quaffing ale in the student union. It looks into the fears we all face – fear of failure, not being good enough, or not being understood. The authors, both artists themselves, share personal stories and advice on their own art journeys.

One key thing that beginners often get hung up on is their own style. If you’re searching for your style and have trouble thinking you’ll never find a unique voice. The exciting thing is that your unique voice is just by being you! Yay.

It’s a short read with motivational insights. The Artist Way is a slower-burn 12-week program; this feels like a little motivational boost when you need it.

“To all viewers but yourself, what matters is the product: the finished artwork. To you, and you alone, what matters is the process.” – David Bayles & Ted Orland, Art & Fear

Make Time for Your Art

How do you control your attention to focus on what matters in a world that’s trying to distract you from living the creative life you dream about?

These next books help you to make time, appreciate the dedication needed for deep artistic work and prevent yourself from becoming distracted from the task at hand.

3. Make Time: How to Focus on What Matters Every Day By Jake Knapp & John Zeratsky

“What Will Be the Highlight of Your Day?
We want you to begin each day by thinking about what you hope will be the bright spot. If, at the end of the day, someone asks you, “What was the highlight of your day?” what do you want your answer to be? When you look back on your day, what activity or accomplishment or moment do you want to savor? That’s your Highlight.

Your Highlight is not the only thing you’ll do each day. After all, most of us can’t ignore our inboxes or say no to our bosses. But choosing a Highlight gives you a chance to be proactive about how you spend your time, instead of letting technology, office defaults, and other people set your agenda.” – Make Time by Jake Knapp & John Zeratsky

‘Make Time’ is helpful if you’re struggling with finding time for your art. Juggling your schedule with your passions and everything else can roll into one. The authors both used to work at Google, and they have some great frameworks on how to prioritize your day. They also talk about social media and ‘infinity pools’. Apps that can continue to show you an exorbitant amount of things to distract you from what you want to get done.

The two main methods I use from the book are:

• Daily Highlight
• Time Timer

Illustration from: Make Time by Jake Knapp & John Zeratsky

I’ve found the daily highlight is a great way to be able to set a focus for the day that you’re excited about, but you know you can achieve without getiing into the minutiae of the to-do list. It’s also a great way to remember what happens on a daily basis, especially if things are super busy. (Another good method for this is ‘homework for life‘ by Matthew Dicks from the book Storyworthy)

My brothers and sisters often laugh at the other method I use.

It’s a timer.

Meant for and used by kids.

And I love it!

You turn the dial, and the red wedge gets progressively smaller as the timer runs down.

I have it on my desk, and I can quickly glance at how long I’ve been working rather than checking an app on my phone and getting drawn down another path! If you want to draw for 10 minutes, set a timer. See if you can answer your emails in 20 minutes and still have time for painting in the hour; set a timer.

It’s not for everyone; Vanessa often tidied it away when it first arrived because, for her, there was no conceivable reason why anyone would need it. And apart from anything else, it was ruining the look of the new coffee table.

But if you find yourself jumping from task to task and not fully concentrating on what you set out to do, it might be worth a go!

Beat Procrastination

4. Indistractable: How to Control Your Attention and Choose Your Life by Nir Eyal

You can start to see a theme with my procrastination!

‘Ten-minute rule’. If I find myself wanting to check my phone as a pacification device when I can’t think of anything better to do, I tell myself it’s fine to give in, but not right now, I have to wait just ten minutes.” – Nir Eyal, Indistractable

What I find interesting about Indistractable is the author, Nir Eyal, had previously written a book called ‘Hooked’. In Hooked, Eyal goes through the mechanics of what makes tech and social media apps so irresistible. Indistractable is like the antidote! Giving strategies on how to maintain our focus and achieve what we set out to do.

The biggest takeaway from the book was that it’s actually not usually the external triggers and influences that stop of from doing the things we want to do but internal emotional triggers.

“As is the case with all human behaviour, distraction is just another way our brains attempt to deal with pain. If we accept this fact, it makes sense that the only way to handle distraction is by learning to handle discomfort. If distraction costs us time, then time management is pain management.” – Nir Eyal, Indistractable

How to stay focused, not get distracted and do the hard (uncomfortable) work.

Make More Money with Your Art

5. Good Art Does Not Sell Itself: The Artist’s Definitive Guide to Visibility and Opportunites by Shirley-Ann O’Neill & Laura O’Hare

“Emma explained how she traced the success of her art career back to taking a mentor’s advice in her early career; to actively seek opportunities to share her work no matter how small. An art prize led to an exhibition, which created more exhibitions, and collectors, art critics and media began to notice here work.“- Good Art Does Not Sell Itself – In relation to the work of sculptor Emma Rodgers  

This was my most highlighted book of 2023.

It takes courage to show your art and make the decision to come out from your studio into the realm of criticism. This is an amazing book to have by your side.

It’s packed with practical strategies for marketing, building a brand, and finding the right opportunities to showcase your work.

It’s split into 4 sections and each page is like a mini-blog post that you can take advice from.

• Mindset & Habits
• Getting Artwork Ready
• Opportunities to get visible
• Implementation: artist visibility path

The different sections are good for different stages of your work. Some of the ideas on increasing the visibility of your works can help you to stay focused on the long game of creating.

One painting hung in a cafe or posted online can lead to a group show, which can lead to a solo exhibition. Every step is a stepping stone that’s hard to see at the start but builds over time.

Notes on the Quotes: Good Art Does Not Sell Itself

This book is relatable, informative and incredibly useful.

Their insights and recommendations are not only easy to understand but also applicable to real-life situations you find yourself in as an artist. You’ll find yourself nodding along and saying, I can do this! Highly recommended!

I really hope you find one of the ideas or books of interest, because even as a relentless pursuer of new shiny interests and ideas, some of the practices have really stayed with me and helped.

But as with everything, it’s unrealistic to say I’m a changed man, so at this moment, I’m sitting comfortably on the sofa nursing a hot brew, saying it’s ok to go down the odd rabbit hole and fully committing to a few creative ponderings.

I love the couple of days after Christmas. It’s like having surprise days off.

No pressure for Christmas Dinner, no expectations on what you could, should or must do. It’s like a deep chill. It can be a nice time to reflect on what’s worked on your paintings and what hasn’t over the year.

Go back on your phone camera roll from 2023 and see where you went, what you sketched, or what you painted (Or what you wanted to paint but just didn’t get the time to start)

Also, take the pressure off and enjoy your inspirations no matter how quirky or obsessional they seem.

I’ve been enjoying photographing festive drinks! hic

Then December 28th dawned.

This period can start the stirrings of being a bit lost at sea. I call this the ‘nearly new year blues’

You start to put expectations on yourself for the year ahead.

What massive artistic brilliance are you going to have to ‘show’ this year? will you ever find your unique style? Or just even do the paintings you said you were going to do.

Everyone else seems to be super productive, it’s enough to crack open the Christmas chocolate again!

But having been here before, have faith. Every brushstroke you make, every line you draw and every new idea you jot down will carry your practice through.

Your journey as an artist is not defined by the destinations reached but by the courage to take action.

This year might not have brought you the goals you anticipated, but the worst thing you can do is get stuck in your own head, ruminating about what you could or should have done and, as a result, do nothing.

So, as you prepare for the coming year, embrace the unknown. Every artist’s journey is unique. Keep creating, keep exploring, and most importantly, try and remember this sense of calm and freedom you felt waking up on boxing day, it will serve you well in your paintings in the year ahead.

Now, all I’ve got to do is remember my own advice!

Have a fab New Year,

Cheers
Will

1. Airtight Resealable Palette | £13  24 compartment palette
   This palette is incredible in keeping acrylics workable, I’ve had paints for weeks and they can still be used. There is a handy spatula that slides in the front of the palette and a thumb grip on the back. There are a number of different brands that all create very similar palettes.

Something they want, something they need, something to eat and something to read is always a good starting point when you don’t know what to buy someone.

Below are a few last-minute stocking fillers for the budding artist in your life (or just a way to treat yourself!)

For Scanning Drawings and Watercolours

2. Epson Perfection V39 II | £119 Epson Scanner

For £100 (there is a £20 cashback offer at the moment), you will get fantastic copies of your images at a super high resolution. Just plug it into your computer and scan. You even get a stand so you can store it vertically if needed. Great for making prints of your sketches, scanning your acrylics and recording your watercolours.

For super matte drawings

3. Faber Castell Matt Pencil Kit | £25.99 (8 Pencils, Paper Stump, Sharpener & Eraser)

Sometimes, with traditional graphite pencils, the surface can reflect light, so your darkest darks aren’t quite as dark as you may like. Faber Castell’s new range of pencils offers a matt sheen to your drawings, allowing you to go super black!

To unlock your creativity

4. The Creative Act: A Way of Being – Rick Rubin. Hardback | £20.99 

One book I’ve enjoyed this year is The Creative Act by Record Producer Rick Rubin. He’s got some fascinating insights on how creativity works and how to get into the act of creating. We get to move forward in our art, a bit like a coach telling you the obvious thing, but you still need to hear it.

“We Tend to think of the artist’s work as an output. The real work of an artist is a way of being in the world.” Rick Rubin

For the wannabe organised creative!

5. Nimbot Label Maker: Bluetooth wireless Thermal label printer | £29

For just under £30, I thought this might be too good to be true. But it’s great! Thermal printing, so you never need to buy ink again (just new labels). You download the app on your phone, type in the label and print. You can also import icons and images to the app. Great for labelling paint mixes and shelves. I got a set of cable labels aswell, so handy when digging behind the computer for plugging in the printer.

For the timid sketcher

6. Pentel Brush Pen | £18.60 Pentel Brush Pen

So nice. I use it in practically all of my urban sketches; it adds shapes and fine lines all within one tip that seems to stay wet and workable even if you haven’t used it for weeks. They now have a grey and a sanguine colour.

For the part-time woodworker

7. Tracer Pencil | £7.91 Tracer-tools.com

These pencils are designed to be used for woodworking and construction sites because the narrow metal shaft allows you to mark holes through woodwork. I find them super comfortable to use and really handy around the studio. They have a sharpener in the rear of the pen and come with refillable leads.

For the perfectionist sharpener

8. Hovel Pencil Plane | £68 MakersCabinet.com

You definitely don’t need this, but there is something therapeutic about having a plane as a pencil sharpener.

For the art appreciator

9. National Art Pass | £56.25 individual year artfund.com

This pass gives you discounts and free entry to hundreds of events and exhibitions across the UK, which is marvellous!

For the digital painter

10. Paperlike screen protector | £34 for 2 Paperlike.com

If you find the surface of your iPad too glossy and slippy to sketch on, this might be the answer. Paperlike is a screen protector that also adds some resistance to the stylus. You lose some of the intensity and contrast of the screen image, but you gain more grab.

Have a creative Christmas, and if you’re running right up to the wire, all the art courses on the blog can be gifted as instant digital Gift Vouchers!

Have a fab time.

Morning class,

Get your pencil case ready and sharpen your brushes, as I’ve been busy in the studio adding the finishing touches to a NEW Acrylic Still Life Painting Course.

In Sunlight & Shadows, we focus on a couple of sunlit terracotta plant pots against a lovely pink wall. Vibrant hues and the mesmerising play of colourful shadows can add so much more variety and intrigue to a composition; imagine capturing the essence of these elements and bringing them to life on your canvas.

Shadows can totally transform a scene. We sometimes think of them as dark, but they don’t have to be dull.

I’ve developed this painting course to teach you the skills and techniques to create a stunning painting. We’ll cover the preparation of your surface, drawing out, exploring colour groupings and blocking-in.

Discover the secrets of a split primary palette, enabling you to achieve the widest range of hues and expand your colour knowledge.

Create an illusion of reality, turning a form following the light fall and experiment with slow-drying acrylic mediums to manipulate and blend colours with ease, enhancing the realism of your painting.

You’ll learn about underpainting, using warm and cool colours to evoke a sense of natural light. When painting the greenery, we mix colour strings and observe value and colour shifts, most importantly, looking at the concept of how the shadows are key, actually as important as our main subject.

Working through this acrylic still-life course, you’ll learn to capture depth, richness, and texture while learning classical painting techniques.

And in the bonus Lesson, The Palette Knife Edition, we start to simplify it even more, learning how to expertly wield a palette knife, adding texture, expression and freedom to your artwork!

New Still Life Sunlight & Shadows Acrylic Painting Course

What’s in the Course?

• 1 x Terracotta Pot Still Life subject from start to finish, based in the studio working from a reference image.
• 1 x BONUS palette knife edition.
• 6 LESSON COURSE, study at your own pace (with lifetime access to these recordings)
• Step-by-step instructional videos so that you can follow along at your own pace.
• Each stage is a detailed yet easy-to-follow process.
• DRAWING TEMPLATE – line drawing to follow to help you overcome the blank page
• LIFETIME ACCESS to video lessons, download on separate devices, keep forever.
• Downloadable Tools and Materials List
• Downloadable jpeg reference images and reference line drawings.
• Printable Class materials list, over 3+ hrs of detailed video instruction.

Painting is all about perspective.

The shifting nature of our perception can be a huge obstacle when learning how to paint.

Have you ever seen your artwork as a masterpiece one moment, only to label it a disaster the next? I know I have!

The first step to advancing your critical judgment skills is to realise that there probably won’t be a moment you see your work with 100% clarity.

We can all be swayed by various cognitive biases of creation.

A cognitive bias is a tendency to make decisions or take action directed by emotions rather than by careful thought. They can subtly skew our judgment and we can become influenced by our own personal preferences, beliefs, or feelings caused by our values and experiences. When viewing our paintings we tend to place excessive value on pieces we have crafted ourselves or have sentimental attachments to certain scenes or memories.

Or you may just been standing at the easel all afternoon, trying to mix the exact colour for too long and you can’t see it anymore!

The importance of self-checking your own work as an artist.

Do you find it easier to notice flaws in other people’s artwork compared to your own?

When you’re so concentrated on your own painting, it can be challenging to assess your work and identify areas that need improvement. This is because you are seeing others’ work from a fresh perspective every time. You’ve no idea of the time it took them to paint it, the struggles they faced with the materials or the entire backstory behind the image. You just have a single image to look at. That’s why having an art tutor or going to a class with live feedback can be so helpful.

So if the success of our paintings is based on the way we can critically view them, what can we do to be more objective?

I’ve put together a list of 7 small but helpful tools and techniques that I use in my painting practice to help me and hopefully, they will help you too.

Painting is repainting.

Back in the summer of 2021, I read the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, were planning the biggest-ever single collection of Vermeer’s paintings for a Spring 2023 retrospective.

Johannes Vermeer (1632 -1675) is one of the great 17th-century Dutch masters, best known for his tranquil, contemplative scenes depicting everyday life.

February saw the opening of the exhibition, and last week we were lucky enough to experience the show!

What I love about Vermeer’s paintings is how he captures the sense of light fall; it feels like there’s a natural volume. He uses different paint handling to express a different quality.

From subtle gradations in the shadows as light streams through a window and drops away. To sunlight falling onto an object so convincingly, if you put your hand in the painting, it would be warm.

Not only did he capture the light, he told a story.

Morning class, this week we’re going to look at how to paint this beautiful moonlit harbour scene using acrylics in this two-part painting study. It’s of Smeaton’s Pier in St Ives, Cornwall, and the reference is a photo taken on a full strawberry moon.

This tutorial is all about colour perception.

Painting landscapes in low light, dusk or evening, makes judging colours tricky. The value range is much more compressed, and we have to overcome our perceived ‘memory’ of an object which can be very strong.

Instead of painting the sand ‘yellow’, we have to paint it a dull purple. And what we know as a bright white sail is now a mid-dusky blue in the evening light. It’s a bit more challenging to focus on what the colours actually are, rather than what you think they should be. It can result in paintings that are too light, too contrasting and not subdued enough.

A Step-by-Step Value Painting Tutorial

Article contents

• Materials
• Step #1 – Coloured Ground
• Step #2 – Drawing out
• Step #3 – Blocking in the background
• Step #4 – Colour block-in
• Step #5 – Painting the lightest plane

…Death of An Artist and New Course coming soon!

Every few weeks, I share my top art inspirations I’ve read, experimented with or listened to. Here’s this week’s edition of things I’ve enjoyed, hoping they might inspire your own work too…

New exhibition

EXHIBITION: Lucian Freud: New Perspectives National Gallery, London, until 22 January

There is a new Lucian Freud exhibition at the National Gallery, London. This video gives a great insight into some of the iconic pieces at the show.

And if you can’t make it to a live exhibition, no worries; this research shows how 3-minutes of online art viewing can significantly increase your well-being!

I’ve been listening too…

Using the Brown Paper Method

Hanging images in straight lines is relatively simple, using a laser level and low tack tape to mark the height of the fixings. But how do you arrange pictures on the wall of all the different sizes?

I like to use the brown paper method.

The brown paper method for hanging pictures