New Elephant Cartoon-And a "Creative Block" Solution...

Hello there. Hope everything is going well for you. And that you've had a smooth and peaceful week.

If, like me though, you've had things turn out now quite as you'd hoped, and a little trip into Creative Block Land, then am going to share a tool I found that may help, and the story of how it helped me.

Which, believe it or not, is linked to this new elephant cartoon:

There I was, frustrated by project roadblocks, and feeling distinctly un-creative. (Which, thank goodness, is rare for me...but all the scarier therefore, when it strikes).

"What I need," I thought, "is a way of breaking old patterns, and creating new ones..."

And somehow, from that, the almost-magical discovery of the random word generator at, wait for it, randomwordgenerator.com.

At random, the generator presented me with five words. One of which was, "adoption". Which got me to think about those, "adopt an animal and get a cuddly toy and progress report," schemes run by animal charities...

Which led me to wonder what it would be like if a person ended up with more than they'd expected...And hence the cartoon.

Hope this has give you a laugh, and/or, an idea to try next time you need your mind to break free.

Have a lovely weekend. More soon.

Find Joy: An Elephant Fridge Magnet Painting

 Hello there, and hope you're doing well and thriving despite all. Couldn't post this photo before now as it was a present. But this "watercolour elephant in a fridge magnet," has become, not just what was right to send then, but an idea that keeps floating around for me...

The elephant fridge magnet in question (please excuse my bad photography)

'Cos let's face it, if 2020 has proved anything, it's that deciding to find joy can help to keep us sane, healthy and happy. So that's what am planning to do, whatever happens in 2021. You're welcome to join me in this, if you'd like.

And although am not officially posting as a 100 day challenge anymore, will be posting regularly, because have missed it in the last week. Nothing has, or will disappear (I just need more time at weekends, and for projects that take longer to complete).

So there will be more very soon. And in the meantime, I wish you health, happiness, and all the joy you can find, whether you're reading this at New Year, or any other time.

New Inspiring Quote Painting: Be the Change...

This elephant (and the message underneath, which is part of the Gandhi quote, "Be the change you wish to see in the world.") took a while to come into being.

I could see a "rainbow elephant," in my mind and thought this quote, or part of it, might work underneath. But couldn't quite make it work, so left the (originally orange and muddy) elephant be for a couple of weeks.

Am liking this result this result though (even though it took work in three separate digital painting programs to make it happen) and hope you do, too.

If this elephant floats your boat, you can find him on many items, including cards, in my Redbubble shop.

Hope he's given you some colour and inspiration. More soon!

New Computer, New Art, New Possibilities...

I'll admit it. I'm old enough to have been brought up with the idea that, "A bad workman always blames his tools". And it's definitely true that the effectiveness of art (or any kind of creative outcome) is never decided by the tools used. The ideas and work involved do matter more.

Work-in-progress elephant created in Rebelle digital software.

So, when, of late, I'd noticed I hadn't been getting so much out of my digital art programs and apps, my instant assumption was that somehow, I was failing/falling down/not putting in enough effort.

This went on for some weeks. Until my entirely wonderful other half (luckily a computer man) gave me the best of presents: an amazingly fast, totally souped up and incredible, new-to-me computer.

The difference has been phenomenal. Digital art is a joy again. Some programs (like Rebelle, in which the elephant above was created) have never before run as fast or effectively for me as they do now.

Which has led me to reconsider the whole "workman and tools," thing, in a way that might encourage not just me, but other artists and creative people too.  Yes, tools should never be blamed. But occasionally, maybe even those tools also need some help and sprucing up themselves, to help you get the results you want.

P.S. Update: You can see how this elephant turned out in the end here...