ONLINE CHALLENGES: JUMP STARTING A DAILY CREATIVE PRACTICE

Okay, when you read that heading, you scratched your head and said, “yeah right, a DAILY practice?  You are out of your mind.”  We might be, but we bet we're not.

As a busy professional, it may not be easy to keep up with a creative practice.  At times, you might longingly look at your studio space and feel guilty for neglecting it…after all that is what it is there for right?

How could you possibly fit one more thing in a day that is packed with meetings, appointments, social activities, gym work outs, family, pet duties…the list goes on and on….art will be there when it all “settles” down.  The sad thing is…we both know that it doesn’t tend to settle down (if you are anything like us, it tends to revive up even more!).

One way you might want to explore is online creative challenges.  This keeps your mojo flowing, allows you to experiment with different mediums and that you may not normally focus on in your own art practice.  

For example, Art Everyday Month, a 30 day challenge started by artist Leah Kolidas  occurs every November and encourages you to create something, anything, related to a daily prompt.  HeArt Space facilitated by art therapist, Kate Leppard is another one of our favorites.  It is an ongoing creative challenge with different topics each month to spur your artistic practice.

The additional benefit is that most of these challenges create community….a community of like-minded artists and creatives that are working through the challenge with you.  You may find yourself making many friends and colleagues from across the country  through the process since most of them include a private Facebook group to show your work or even at times vent about your creative process.

There are virtually 30-day or daily practice challenge in just about every creative field, whether it is writing, poetry, culinary arts, etc. you name it.  A google search on any of these topics with “daily challenge” or 30 day challenge will open you to a world of other creatives and can help jump start your practice.  There is nothing like seeing how others are juggling careers, kids, etc. and posting every day of their progress with a challenge.  If they can do it, you can too!

What creative challenges have your tried?  How have they enriched your creative life?