Battling the Creative Block

[davezak]

i hear ya.

need to be exposed to other people or places.
having a good conversation can ignite something.

try a new type of music

experiment with a new art-form.

draw with your wrong hand. da vinci got bored so would write backwards.

surround yourself with a creative environment. rearrange your work area!

take a break!
nature walks!? too nerdy?

deny yourself media.

nice to always have a to-do list with future projects. maybe think about how you can market yourself.

im also trapped in the routine. :sad:

[Kuroyume0161]

What davezak said. :)

Especially, if you are considering ideas for a particular project but stuck, let it go for a few days (or even weeks). Amazingly, the ideas will spring forth like a gusher when least expected.

With nearly twenty years being a 'traditional' artist, I've been through the drought/flood of ideas so often that I have learned to back off during drought and to list the ideas in some sketch form during floods.

Good luck,

Robert

[tonare]

I like to search the 3d and 2d galleries here on cgtalk and over at 3dtotal to get ideas. I'll type in random things like conceptart, or matte paintings into google as well, and this helps a 1000% for me, but everyones different.

[edux]

What davezak said. :)

Especially, if you are considering ideas for a particular project but stuck, let it go for a few days (or even weeks). Amazingly, the ideas will spring forth like a gusher when least expected.



I totaly agree

[Newstream]

Getting layed works wonders too. ;)

[plotz]

I like to sit down and do life drawing. Either go to an open studio session and draw the figure or just pick some random objects around the house and really work on getting the proportions and shading right. This seems to really help me when I get back to 3D work.

I also try and force myself to do something in my home life that's mundane but satisfying. Clean the house...fix something around the house. Re-arrange the garage...stuff like that.

Hanging with my non-3D using friends and staying away from the 3D boards/mags/books for a few days also helps.

I try not to veg out watching TV or playing video games.

[warrens0221]

Do yourself a favor, set aside an hour or so and watch these:


http://www.newstoday.com/cinema/cinema.php?id=28

http://www.newstoday.com/cinema/film.php?id=17

Then look through the rest of this site:
http://www.belief.com/home/index.php?theme=industrial

[boxy]

go out with your digital camera. use it like a sketchbook not an instrument for gathering textures. Capturing moments of unreal reality on 'film' is absolutely the most inspiring thing ever :)
Cheers
Boxy

[Erik Heyninck]

The problem is a double bind: by pressing and applying force, you get tense and the flow of inspiration becomes even more difficult.
The most important thing is trying to relax and have confidence. Not easy though. Use your imagination to see yourself back at work with loads of good ideas and success. Know that this will come because it will. It's unavoidable. Don't resist doubt and negative thoughts, but make fun of them and replace them with relaxed positivity.

A good method (I find) is get a sketchbook, a new one, rather beautiful, and fill it with loose ends, doodles, ideas, words, sketches,...lots of things that are not necessary, but free. Even from projects. No tension. That helps making the flow back fluent.

Try staring at something without blinking. You're eyes will get tired. Same goes for life. Fixing too intense and too long on one thing causes tiredness of the mind. So perhaps it's a message of your life to open up to other things also.

Like Dylan wrote: "there's no one to beat you, no one to defeat you, except your own thoughts feeling bad."

[davezak]

good words of wisdom! good thread

[Neil V]

LOL! Gotta agree on that one!

I keep a 'little black book' of ideas. It's amazing how soon it fills up and I refer to it ever now and again in case this sort of thing happens. I am of course referring to 3D and not getting laid! ;o)

Neil V

Getting layed works wonders too. ;)

[Robert Glotzbach]

If the weather allows go outside in the evening and watch the stars for an hour.
That’s how we loose our illnesses.

Robert

[ZxY]

If all else fails, read and enact 'The Artist's Way' by Julia Cameron.

I haven't been the same since...

[unseenthings]

And sometimes you've just got to suck it up and *do* something. You'd be surprised what forcing yourself to go through a tutorial or draw/model "item x" or whatever can do. Sometimes that's the best way to get past the block... just start doing something... then more ideas come... no one says you have to finish the tutorial the way it's written if you get a better idea along the way.

[ThePriest]

In the past I could sit on the first stages of a project for days, the initial idea deliberately hiding in a dark place in my mind, unwilling to come out. Procrastination getting the better of me, posting on forums, pausing to play video games, over smoking and indulging in the wrong kind of food.

Although I sometimes still break my own rules, I try to follow some really basic rules that get me in the right frame of mind. These are completely obvious, but honestly having them written down, helps immensely.

Morning:

Basic cardio for 10 - 20 minutes
Tea instead of Coffee (Was a killer for me)
A light low sugar breakfast/snack

Every 2 hours:
Stretch
Wrist exercises
Taking a walk if there's time

Other:
Lots of water
Fresh Air
Create a positive atmosphere
Music, lighting, and even a fragrant scent can help mental clarity


I find the more tranquil the environment the easier it is to
concentrate. But more than anything, physical activty
has been key to my productivity, sitting here like a couch potato
trying to come up with an idea simply wasn't cutting it.

One more thing that really helps me, is just going at the work, full force
with no idea what you're doing, let loose and design away.
I believe that creativty isn't something that always comes from deep thought
it's just something we're able to call upon at will and exercise freely.

:bounce:

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