Tag: artist

A New Year, a New Self Portrait and a note on What’s Important.

Posted on by kay

Hello everyone! Happy New Year, and Happy February!  If you’re wondering why I’m saying Happy New Year in February, well it’s because for some reason every year, even though I’ve planned not too, January never seems to “work out” for me. That is, in a creative sense. Call it burn out, call it being overwhelmed, […]

Hello everyone! Happy New Year, and Happy February! 

If you’re wondering why I’m saying Happy New Year in February, well it’s because for some reason every year, even though I’ve planned not too, January never seems to “work out” for me. That is, in a creative sense. Call it burn out, call it being overwhelmed, maybe it’s even seasonal depression, but January is not my month. And that’s okay! I use this month to focus on other things, brainstorm for the year ahead and what-not, but mostly to rest and regroup. I guess it’s my way of hibernating.

Now, I am slowly getting back into things and for todays post I wanted to share something with you I find very interesting.

Here’s a Quick Story…

Kung Fu Panda 4 is coming out later this year. Yes I’m talking about a children’s movie series, and yes it brought me to a deep realization. Because the new Kung Fu Panda is being released soon, my family and I wanted to catch up on all of the previous Kung Fu Panda movies.

We started with the first of the series, which is rightfully named just, Kung Fu Panda. I’ve seen this movie a handful of times. I usually end up falling asleep to it, but for this instance I stayed awake and enjoyed the whole film and one very IMPORTANT part that specifically stuck out to me. If you’ve seen the movie before, you’ll know what I’m talking about. 

A break down of the movie…

Towards the end of the film, Po has finished with his training as The Dragon Warrior, and now it is time for him to receive The Dragon Scroll. The Dragon Scroll is the missing piece, the key, the only solution to saving his village and defeating the evil tyrant Tai Lung. Pretty serious stuff.

He receives the scroll, unrolls it slowly, and reveals… nothing. But this isn’t the part I’m talking about.

A little while after, Po and the villagers are evacuating the village because Tai Lung is on his way. Po meets up with his dad, a goose, and Po is feeling defeated. His dad is trying to make him happy, and finally he reveals a deep secret, THE SECRET to his secret ingredient soup. To Po’s surprise, and much like The Dragon Scroll, the secret ingredient is… nothing. This also isn’t the part I’m talking about.

After Po’s dad reveals there is no secret ingredient, Po asks him, “It’s just plain old noodle soup? You don’t add some kind of special sauce or something?”

AND THIS NEXT PART IS THE PART THAT I’M TALKING ABOUT.

Po’s dad says he doesn’t need to add a special ingredient. He says, “To make something special, you just have to believe it’s special.”

Did this old man goose just blow my mind?!

Here’s a link to the clip of the movie I’m talking about (Fast forward to 1:50)…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YJcBqwKq0qw

This brings me to my point…

A point of IMPORTANCE. Or, as Po’s Dad says, something being SPECIAL.

The definition of Important is, of great significance or value; likely to have a profound effect on success, survival, or well-being.

But what is important?! Well, it’s whatever you want it to be! I think that’s the best part. What is important to you? Much like Po’s Dad’s soup, it’s only special because he believes it’s special. So in turn, if you believe something is special, then it will become special to you. This may sound simple, but it’s something I have to remind myself of frequently as I can lose track of what’s important to me. Do you struggle with this sometimes too? I would love to know if you have a way to remind yourself on what’s important to you in your life, let me know in the comments!

Special vs. Important

I’ve changed the wording from special to important, because going into the new year, I want to focus on what’s truly important to me. You could call it special though if you’d like! The word “important” just has more gravity for me for some reason. Whatever word you choose, I hope this will help you figure out what’s important, or special, to you. On the opposite end, I think if we give things that aren’t important to us less energy and focus, then we can spend more time working towards the things that are important and valuable to us. Does this make sense? Basically why waste your energy on things that aren’t important to you.

A quick activity to try…

Let’s give power and energy to those things that are important to us! For me today, I’m focusing on my art, more connection offline and giving more time to reading. Here’s a list of what’s important to me

1: creating or finding a space for my art. (see my post on renting a space here)

2: painting more. (this seems to be a constant on my list!)

3: writing more.

4: getting more involved in-person through my community.

5: setting up my online shop. 

So far, that’s it! And these aren’t in any particular order, but if you would want to list yours in order of importance that could be fun. I hope because I’m giving these things importance, maybe everyone around me will find them important too!

A Self Portrait…

Self Portrait on What's Important

To explain my portrait a bit more, I’m very much into reading books lately. Instead of doom scrolling on my phone, I read. I love finding a new book (any other goodreads lovers out there?), or highlighting quotes I find interesting, hence the highlighter in my back pocket. The leaves in the air are a nod to a project I’m working on, and the pencil and paintbrush are nods to my art focus. Lastly, I’m sitting outside, which being outside is always important to me, and my little mouse friend in the picture is a reminder to keep my work whimsical.

So what’s important to you? What’s special to you? Finishing that sketchbook? Sharing your work more publicly? Selling your work for the first time either online or through a show? Whatever it is, it WILL BE IMPORTANT, IT WILL BE SPECIAL, because you’ve given it that energy and power it deserves.

Thank you for reading along, and have fun creating!

-Kay

 

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Bit Bobs & Knick Knacks

An Illustration Blog with Monthly Updates.

Ohkayyay 5 things October Edition

Posted on by kay

Hello everyone and Happy how is it October already!? My favorite time of year, and also, the BUSIEST! Out of three of my kids, two of them have October birthdays, also not to mention all the pumpkin farms, haunted houses and hayrides, apple and pumpkin picking, and last but not least, HALLOWEEN ITSELF! There is […]

Hello everyone and Happy how is it October already!? My favorite time of year, and also, the BUSIEST! Out of three of my kids, two of them have October birthdays, also not to mention all the pumpkin farms, haunted houses and hayrides, apple and pumpkin picking, and last but not least, HALLOWEEN ITSELF! There is so much to do within the month of October. What are some of your favorite fall activities? I would love to know! For now, let’s get into this months “Ohkayyay 5 things”. 

*As mentioned in the previous months, “Ohkayyay 5 things” is a loose and free monthly based prompt challenge with zero pressure! Just some things to get the gears turning if you need any inspiration, all based around a particular month. See September’s Ohkayyay 5 things list here.*

 

Here are the “5 things” for October:

 

Moon:

“When witches go riding, 

and black cats are seen, 

the moon laughs and whispers, 

`tis near Halloween”  

I love the way Halloween gives the moon an excuse to be a big character within illustrations! Especially in vintage Halloween illustrations. Here’s a link to a Pinterest board that has so much vintage halloween inspiration, and even some moon characters sprinkled throughout.

Ghost:

If there’s ever an excuse to draw a ghost, October is it! One of my favorite things to play with when drawing/painting ghosts, is the fact that they are transparent. Playing with bringing the background colors through the ghost is always a challenge for me, but a fun challenge! Here’s an example of what I played with in my ghost character from Peachtober last year here.

Pumpkin:

Nothing says fall and Halloween like PUMPKINS. Every year I go to buy pumpkins I think to myself, how many pumpkins is too many pumpkins? I love them! I would grow my own, but every time I try, the deer come through and eat the blossoms. Haven’t figured out a way to make them stop lol. What do you think of creating when you think pumpkins? 

Owl:

Another fun October character, the Owl. Have you ever seen an owl? Last year we had an owl in our backyard in one of our trees, my kids named them “Luna” a very fitting name for an owl! 

Apple:

What’s your favorite ways to eat an apple? Apple pie, apple cider, candy apple, or just a regular old apple? I love apple picking, and I love the apple aesthetic, but when it comes to eating too many apples, my stomach is none too happy lol. Such is life! But I love me a good apple cider, or apple frost, a local snack from an apple farm that combines apples and vanilla in an ice cream/slushie treat. One of my families favorites! 

That’s it! The “5 things” for the month of October. Hope they help inspire you to create! 

*Note: These prompts do not have to be finished pieces, they could be a sketch, a story, a sculpture, anything! If you feel like sharing, you can use #ohkayyay5things  and tag me on instagram @ohkayyay. I’ll be sharing creations in my stories throughout the month of June! If you don’t want to share over social media, you can email me at ohkayyay@gmail.com or you can keep your beautiful creations all for yourself. I can’t wait to see what you make!* 

Thank you for reading, and have fun creating everyone! 

-Kay

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Bit Bobs & Knick Knacks

An Illustration Blog with Monthly Updates.

Ohkayyay 5 things July Edition

Posted on by kay

Hello everyone and woo hoo July! Wow, can’t believe this year is over half way through now, it’s flying by for me, how is it going for you?  As mentioned in the previous months, “Ohkayyay 5 things” is a loose and free, monthly based prompt challenge with zero pressure! Just some things to get the […]

Hello everyone and woo hoo July! Wow, can’t believe this year is over half way through now, it’s flying by for me, how is it going for you? 

As mentioned in the previous months, “Ohkayyay 5 things” is a loose and free, monthly based prompt challenge with zero pressure! Just some things to get the gears turning if you need any inspiration, all focused around a particular month. See May’s list here, and see June’s list here. 

Here are the “5 things” for July: 

Parade: A major staple to the summer season, parades! Our town does a big one for our local fireman’s carnival, and it’s definitely something my kids look forward to every year. I think parades are also fun to draw because you can make them very dynamic by playing with the characters, levels and color palettes.  

Fireworks: In honor of fourth of July, fireworks! This is another nostalgic one for kids. Staying up late till it’s dark, watching fireworks, holding sparklers. Great opportunity to play with lighting, shapes and patterns.  

Strawberry: My family and I went strawberry picking a couple weeks ago and oh man, strawberries are really cute. Some ideas to think about, whose picking the strawberries? Could the perspective change and could someone be living in the strawberry patch? Could you design a pattern out of strawberry leaves, flowers and fruit?

Picnic: A lovely day for a picnic! This prompt has been one that I’ve been wanting to paint for a while. I hope I have time to tackle it this month.  

Jam: This one could be interpreted in many different ways! I think of the jam you can eat, I mean what else am I going to do with all those extra strawberries? Can’t wait to see what you think of!

That’s it! The “5 things” for the month of July. Hope they help inspire you to create! 

Note: These prompts do not have to be finished pieces, they could be a sketch, a story, a sculpture, anything! If you feel like sharing, you can use #ohkayyay5things  and tag me on instagram @ohkayyay. I’ll be sharing creations in my stories throughout the month of June! If you don’t want to share over social media, you can email me at ohkayyay@gmail.com or you can keep your beautiful creations all for yourself. I can’t wait to see what you make! 

Thank you for reading, and have fun creating everyone! 

-Kay

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Bit Bobs & Knick Knacks

An Illustration Blog with Monthly Updates.

To rent, or not to rent? That is the question. Pros and Cons of having an out of home office space.

Posted on by kay

Hello everyone and happy mid June! I’m chipping away at some projects and I wanted to bring up a bittersweet moment in my art journey. Getting rid of my out of home office space. After almost two years, the space that I had curated, decorated and enjoyed several creative moments in, is now coming to […]

Hello everyone and happy mid June! I’m chipping away at some projects and I wanted to bring up a bittersweet moment in my art journey. Getting rid of my out of home office space. After almost two years, the space that I had curated, decorated and enjoyed several creative moments in, is now coming to a close. Even though this feels sad typing this, I still ask myself, is this necessarily a bad thing?

Let’s jump in! 

So what started this need of a separate work space from home? One guess. 2020. After being home with three kids day in and day out, it was easy for my husband and I to make the decision that we needed a space away from our house (and our children) in order to get anything done. Both of us working remotely helped with this ultimate decision of needing a space, as neither of us had an “office” that we had to report to every single day. After looking for a month or two we finally found the perfect place. It was a good size, the walls were white and the natural light that came in was just right! Plus it was in a great location downtown near a baseball stadium and even a waterfall! Everything seemed so perfect. But then almost two years later, we started to wonder, was the office working for us? Or were we working for the office? 

If you’re considering looking into a studio space, or if you feel like your creative self is missing something, here are my pros and cons to having an out of house space.

Pros:

  1. You have an out of home studio space! How cool is that?! This one is pretty simple. If you have a family and a full house, maybe renting a space away from your screaming three year old is 100% worth it! Plus there is a sense of professionalism that comes with having your own space.
  2. Less distractions: Because you are in a space dedicated to working, you might be able to get more done. I remember most days I would be so excited to leave the house so I could go and have my painting time just for me. I would get so much done because I didn’t have laundry, kids, pets, chores or anything else to distract me.
  3. Getting out of your house can bring a sense of community: Sometimes being in your house can make you feel isolated. Like it’s just you against the world. Yes there are social media communities, but there is still nothing like getting up and physically going somewhere, talking to other people, taking a walk in the local area, really submersing yourself into the community feel and everything it has to offer. 
  4. *this is another one if you have kids* No one touches your stuff: Constantly at my house if I set something down, chances are the next day, it’s not going to be there. At the studio space, when I put something down, it was right where I left it when I came back. IYKYK.
  5. A space for all of your supplies: Printers, paper cutter, mailers, envelopes, stickers, prints, paintings, books, I could go on and on. I have no idea where I am going to put all of this stuff now that the space is no more. If you have any tips on storage, I would love to know! 

Now that we’ve gone over some PROS, which all sound great… here are some CONS:

  1. Money: If you want that extra studio space, you have to pay for it, and that price is not guaranteed to stay the same. By the time we had made the decision to leave our space, our rent had gone up an additional $50 a month due to CAM fees. And if you’re wondering what CAM fees are, they stand for “Common Area Maintenance.” So if your renting a studio space and there is a common area room, your monthly rent could go up. 
  2. Commute time: When looking for a space, think about the time it actually takes to commute. Ours was about 20-25mins away on a good traffic day. Do the math and that’s almost an hour a day spent driving to and from a space. If you can find something closer to home, I definitely recommend it!
  3. Pressure to create: This one may sound weird but if you have anxiety like me I think you’ll understand. While there were those days where I could let loose and create, there were other days when I would go to the office with no ongoing project, sit there and twiddle my thumbs and then feel defeated after a day of not really getting anything done. For me, sometimes, everything is valued at how much it costs. The fact that I was paying for a space, going there to get something done and I wasn’t getting anything done… well that meant that the day was a waste and I lost a value in the investment of the studio. 
  4. Not being able to be available for my kids and my family: And I don’t mean this in a way like, “oh no I can’t make it to Timmy’s soccer game because of work!” I mean this in a way that when my kids were home sick, or needed to be picked up from school, or forgot something at home, or had a doctors appointment that day (any number of things) I would feel tethered down to my house. Then I would feel upset that I couldn’t make it to the office to get things done. It was like a weird power that the space had over me. If I didn’t use the studio then I was failing at my art career and wasting my money.  
  5. Safety: As glamorous as a downtown space sounds, there were some safety concerns. One day someone’s car got broken into, another day someone was mugged. If you have a rented space you’re at the mercy of the location. I would recommend asking other tenets of the space you’re looking in to. If they have had any negative experiences regarding this, it would be nice to know ahead of time. Always good to get more information! 

In the end…

We decided to move on and move out of our office. We have reached out to family members to help, it takes a village! They watch our youngest a few days a week, and we invest in daycare as well. Our youngest is three, very cute and very sweet, but he’s a monster. Even though I’ll miss the space a lot, I think that remembering the moments there is enough in of itself. Maybe in the future we’ll get another space, but for now we are making it work at home! Whether you’re saying goodbye, or moving into a new space, know that your work isn’t validated by where it’s made! You’re still an artist with or without a studio space.

Have you had or are you currently renting/looking into a space? I would love to hear about your experience! Let me know in the comments! 

Thank you so much for reading and have fun creating!

-Kay 

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Bit Bobs & Knick Knacks

An Illustration Blog with Monthly Updates.

Your Art is Not a Number

Posted on by kay

How-To find value in your Art! *without looking at the numbers.* Hello everyone, and happy mid-May! How are you doing? I hope everything is going well so far! May is one of my favorite months for several reasons. Number one, the flowers! I love me a good lilac. Number two, I feel like the time […]

How-To find value in your Art! *without looking at the numbers.*

Hello everyone, and happy mid-May! How are you doing? I hope everything is going well so far! May is one of my favorite months for several reasons. Number one, the flowers! I love me a good lilac. Number two, I feel like the time to be creative is now! There are so many prompts, challenges and things to get you inspired. Last but not least, the May weather. By this point of the year, I have had it with winter and cold weather. Even as I am typing this it is still not that warm outside, but it’s not snowing so I can’t be to picky.

With all of the art challenges coming up and creative inspirations flowing, I can find that now is the best time to create and share your work! Sometimes, there is a negative. You create, get excited, share your work and the result you get from the public is not what you expected. Does this devalue your art? It shouldn’t, but I understand if you feel that. Well that’s what this post is about. So let’s get into the meat and potatoes of it all!

How it starts

Have you ever noticed yourself mindlessly scrolling through social media platforms, whether it’s on your personal page, or whether it’s someone else’s page, and find that while you may be “looking” at the art, you’re actually just looking at the numbers? The following count, how many likes it got, how many views it got, how much money was brought in, how many comments were left and on and on and on? 

While I do find that sometimes numbers are important, what I also find equally as important is… ignoring them. The reason that I find it important to ignore the numbers is that sometimes that’s the only way we find value in our work. In my opinion, this is the fastest way to experience, burnout, self-doubt, depression and an overall creative decline. If you thrive on having creative energy, valuing your work through number comparisons is one of the worst things you can do. 

How can you find value in your work then? Because it is valuable! With the numbers game out there, sometimes it is hard to remember, why am I doing this? Why do I create? More on this in another post, but for now, here are 5 things that you can do when it comes to finding value in your art. 

1: Be mindful while you’re creating. How did you feel WHILE you were making something? Did you feel peace or relief? Did you feel “in the zone?” All those feelings hold impact and if art can give you a sense of joy and peace, than that’s the value right there! Another time to be mindful is when you’re done creating but BEFORE you share your work. There’s nothing like finishing a piece you’ve worked so hard on and taking a moment to reflect and appreciate everything that went into in. Be aware of your feelings. Do not focus on how you feel after you posted it, or showed your work to anyone. Don’t let outside influences negate your personal value in your work.

2: Take a look at the bigger picture. Look at the progress of your work as a whole. Here’s an activity you can try! Take all of your recent work, 5 or more pieces, place them all out in front of you. Then take 5 or more pieces of your older work, say about a year ago, further back if you’d like, and place those next to your more recent works. If you work digitally, print out the pieces! Having them physically in front of you hits differently.

Here are some questions to answer while you’re looking at your art! Did your style change? Did you learn a new medium or skill? What about composition and color? Have things like those come more natural to you in your newer projects? What was the overall personal progress you’ve made?

Sitting down and taking the time to reflect on where you’ve come from and how much you’ve grown visually puts the value of your work right in front of you. And look how much you’ve grown!

3: Take pride in viewing the world through creative eyes. This one sounds kind of weird, and let me know if I’m crazy or not. Ever since I started down this creative journey, I see the world around me differently. An example, when I see a flower, I want to draw it. When I garden and come across a worm, I come up for a story for that worm. I’ll see some moss on a walk and think, wow what a great texture! I’d love to figure out how to recreate that with paint! Does this happen to you? I think there’s value in seeing the world with a bit of whimsy and magic. Having creative ideas like these is not something everyone can do! Take pride in that.

4: Create with no outcome in mind. Create something, and keep it to yourself. If you start a piece knowing that you’re NOT going to share it with anyone, I bet that piece will be one of the best and freest works of art you’ll ever make. I would love to see it, but don’t show it to me!  

5: Be aware of your spark. Recognize that sometimes your creative spark will not be burning super bright. I have another longer post on this idea around burnout and the struggle with being constantly creative. The main thing to take away here, of finding value in your art, is to find value in yourself and recognizing that your creative bucket will not be full every day. Which is 100% normal and completely great. No one can be “on” all the time and if you are what is your secret? Let me know!

Biggest Takeaway

The #1 (get it?) thing I want you to take away from this is, YOUR ART HOLDS VALUE. No matter what others think, or how many likes, comments, shares it got, it is still important and the world still needs it. Please do not let anything stop you from creating, because the value you can get from creating can be so rewarding!

Thank you for reading, and have fun making something!

-Kay

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Bit Bobs & Knick Knacks

An Illustration Blog with Monthly Updates.