Imma add ‘take photos’ to that suggestion list.
Yes!! This so much!! Even if all you have is a cell phone camera, take photos!
I do all of them except dance. I do them poorly, but that’s part of the fun :)
Love this. You don’t have to be good at something to do it as a hobby
Exactly :)
Correct. You need a little expression in your life. I’m dealing with two toddlers so my creative side has fallen behind and it’s definitely leading to depression (that and not taking long walks like I used to)
The thought that crossed my mind on this post was for people who might not be able to exercise a creative outlet at this point in their lives, perhaps because of various stressors in life - say, for instance, financial insecurity.
Then I went into the comments and read yours.
I’m very sorry that you’re facing these challenges and I want you to know we’re all rooting for you and hoping you can apply more expression in your life soon. And take longer walks. Sending happy thoughts and well-wishes your way.
Thanks. Last time this happened when I moved, I turned to digital work and creative writing, so maybe I need to go back to that. In any case, I mostly just wanted to warn others how easy it for creativity to fall when you’re low on time and energy (and sleep)… typical caregiver problems.
Sing to your children!
Similar situation for me too. The walks make a huge difference! I hope you can get back to it soon.
Not sure if this is your speed, but poetry might be a good choice - you wouldn’t be the first writer to produce short form poems because you don’t necessarily have the time for longer compositions.
They don’t need to be good - you can work on that part later, as you have time - they just need to exist.
I just did start drawing again. I put up some of my stupid little drawings on https://icecreamonahotdog.com/
Don’t forget read.
Just gotta find a night where I’m not overwhelmed and burnt out…
One day…
And that day will be tomorrow… is what I said yesterday
It only takes five minutes a day (Mileage may vary. Some restrictions apply. In the event sudden death, please consult physician to see if Shittyinternetadvice is right for you.)
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anything but doom scrolling I felt this. I’ve had times where I’ve been able to quit, for up to a few months, but since I don’t feel significantly better, I just fall back into it.
It’s helping! I’m not someone that really does art so it’s been fun making silly stuff for myself. It’s nice change of pace getting to approach it without any expectations.
I never sang or danced unless I’m drunk and/or high as fuck.
That’s ok, same here.
I do all of these except singing and dancing. I don’t even care if I’m good at it or not. I just do it for fun. It takes my mind away from stresses.
Keep it up and you will get good at it eventually
I have a stock of art supplies gathering dust. I feel bad for not using them, but also I feel like using them is a waste of material bc anything I do will suck.
I get the concept of ‘keep sucking until you don’t’, but I don’t have the mind and emotional energy for that.
The real question is: does the act of using the art supplies bring you joy? If so, then you are not wasting them, because their purpose is to bring you joy, not to result in something amazing.
You clearly are not interested in dedicating a huge amount of energy into becoming a grand master, and that’s okay! So instead, try playing around, and seeing for yourself what works and what doesn’t. When you run into something that you can’t quite figure out, like “Hmm, I would really like to make this face look a bit more realistic, but I am stuck on how to do so,” then at that point you can seek out a learning resource and it will not feel forced because you are answering a question of interest.
And of course, if using your art supplies does not bring you joy, then that is okay too! There is absolutely no shame in coming to the realization that you thought you would like doing something, and it turned out you did not.
I played the trumped for about a decade, starting in elementary school, and got pretty good but not great at it. At some point, I realized that I actually did not enjoy it that much despite all of the time I had invested, so I stopped. Instead, I started social dancing, which was really fun to practice and was not nearly as stressful to do because it is not a big of a deal if you make a mistake, and I am much happier as a result!
So if you intrinsically enjoy using your art supplies because they simply are fun to play with, then do that and don’t worry about whether you are creating masterpieces or not. And if you do not enjoy using them but are keeping them around anyway because you feel like you “should” be using them, then free yourself by admitting that they are not for you and consider giving them away in order to lighten a burden on yourself.
This is very insightful, thank you!
I don’t have a definitive answer, though it certainly helps to broaden the perspective.
I’m the opposite. I used to just paint without worries or doubts, each artwork taking me less than an hour. Just pure, raw inspiration.
But then I learned a lot more about drawing and painting and catch myself doubting every action and each piece takes me hours and while the results might be technically better, nobody finds them interesting anymore.
Since I’m not particularly creative I’ve thought of picturing everyday objects in all its ordinary glory so that I don’t feel the need to represent them accurately.
I don’t know if that makes sense to you or of it even helps, I’m not particularly qualified on the subject.
Ps. If you feel like posting your artwork, there is a neat community !artshare@lemmy.world
I don’t have that file path
No better time to start than
date
I CAN do all of these, I just suck at them all. That’s all. No reason to NOT do them. Because I do sing sometimes when I’m bored, even if it means cracking my voice when I just can’t quite reach that note.
My vocal range is terrible.
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I can’t do any of those things
If you can walk, you can dance
If you can talk, you can sing
What about drawing?
Just doodle, scribble, throw paint at something…doesn’t matter. even a 2 year old can do it.
I can personally prove both of these are incorrect.
I’m fine at the “I get on with something quietly on my own and nobody bothers me or looks at me, but you can see it when it’s finished” arts, but never the performative ones.
You don’t need an audience to sing or dance.
If I could hear myself, or be aware of the physical position of my limbs, that would be too much audience.
You’d think that, but you can. The only question is how much skill you’d have the first time you do them. It probably won’t be much, and there’s no telling how much skill you can develop, but you don’t have to be good at something to take joy in it.
Mind you, my singing only brings me joy. Everyone else gets headaches. But still!
Prove it.
