22 creative goals for 2022
At the end of the year I logged off of all my social media, desperate at one of the most challenging (but ultimately good) years in recent memory. It was refreshing, and gave me time to sit with myself and reflect on these last two pandemic years, and how I want to move forward from here.
Continue to develop my watercolor + gouache style. Since starting to use the Himi jelly gouache I really feel like I’ve found what I want my main painting style to be like. Creating like this is delightful and I can’t wait to work through the paintings I have in mind.
Explore plein air painting at least once a month. I have been super inspired by artist Sandi Hester’s Youtube channel and ADORE all of her plein aire paintings (and still life’s and painting-from-a-sketch-paintings and just her overall vibes) and want to develop that skill as it’s something that will really improve my slighty-fantastical landscape paintings.
Set aside time to work on portrait and figure drawings. This is one of those thoughts I have, year after year. I have an old sketchbook in mind so this is it!
Get comfortable working through challenging parts of paintings, no more setting them aside for days (or weeks, or months). Do you ever hit the teeny-tiniest roadblock and it’s literally an ant hill in the road but puts such a weight in your mind you set whatever you were working on aside and forget about it to avoid figuring out the challenge? Me. All the time. It really hampers my ability to finish paintings, which leads to a back-log of ideas and before I know it I’m totally stuck and can’t finish anything because there are Too Many Things. This is the year I find ways around that.
Find what social media presence works for me- I’m looking to explore micro-vlogging via instagram with larger compilations for youtube, with occasional time lapses and whatnot there as well
Experiment with oil pastels, Neocolors, and color pencils. I’ve seen artists use these in conjunction with paintings and what those gorgeous gorgeous textures and layers for myself.
Reopen my Etsy shop for embroidery and leather worked bits, postcards and stickers. I like to carve lino, make small embroideries and sew little leather bits, so I have a box of Lovely Little Things sitting on my bookshelf that could use better homes.
Open pet portrait commissions. This! I am so excited. Christmas gifts this year were almost all pet portraits for my family and I even have my first portrait for a friend.
Have a mini-self-directed residency (think long weekend at Flathead Lake).
Paint clouds that look like clouds
Finish all of my half-filled sketchbooks
Sell an original painting
Learn layout so I can finish Watchtower and confidently design more games
Complete a 100 Day Challenge. I have too many ideas for this! Oh dear haha
Improve “have idea for a project” to “really start project” pipeline
Publish 20 episodes of Letters to Georgia
Get caught up on the Book of Willa
Start a Project Support Group with some of my artistic friends
Make more artistic friends
Write some poetry. I have written poetry on and off for most of my life but haven’t touched it in over a year.
Collaborations. I have some in the works with a dear friend in Wisconsin, so it’s definitely time to act on those plans and make something wonderful.
Don’t let it turn into a drag. I don’t like strict goals because having something set with a designated success or failure is stressful and makes anything I want to do turn into a thing I have to do and removes all the fun. I want these guidelines to be loosy-goosy, so I have some room to play and experiment.
Some of these didn’t get much/any elaboration, but that just how it goes sometimes. I am gearing up at the moment for a week-long trip to western Washington, squeezing in naps and painting whenever i have the chance. There’s a lot going on this coming year and I am quite excited about them all.
Until next time, Sabrina
