Rome Wasn’t Built In a Day
This past summer I traveled to a total of 7 countries
Barcelona, Spain
Nice, France
Paris, France
Basel, Switzerland
Guadalajara, Mexico
Milan, Italy
Rome, Italy
Lisbon, Portugal
London, United Kingdom
When I got back from my trip a lot of people asked me if I was inspired by my time away and if it made me want to create more.
Inspired is an understatement and yes I want to create more… more intentionally!
I haven’t created my best work yet, not even close, and as demands from social media encourage us to work faster and pump out content, I feel like I am getting farther and farther away from the possibility of creating a timeless masterpiece. Ideas need time to develop, They need to be watered and nourished. There should be time and space to sit with ourselves and learn and study and explore. Are you taking the time to do so?
As I scroll through my feeds on the various apps, I feel like I keep seeing the same things over and over. The saying goes, there is nothing new under the sun, so is this feeling of conformity a result of social media and trying to do what works or is it just the fact that we are exposed to so much it feels like the same? I am sure it is a blend of both, a cycle where we are constantly being inspired and inspiring others to try certain things.
I take the good with the bad so on the plus side, for those of us that lack initiative or inspiration, those of us that struggle to get things done if we are without deadlines, this push to “create content” is a great incentive to create something everyday. My greatest worry though, is that we aren’t saving space for ourselves to get lost in the creative process and because of that we are robbing the world of our best work.
As I walk through museums, my favorite thing to do is look at the dates the works were created. It always blows my mind how much the artworks on display have endured. My tattoo “Ars Longa Vita Brevis” celebrates this. It means Art is lasting, life is brief. Our legacies can live on through art. But as I look around me at the art we are making today, in a rush to satisfy this age of overconsumption and instant gratification, I can’t help but wonder what there will be to say of our work in years to come and what will be considered a priceless masterpiece. I am pretty confident whatever our generations Mona Lisa turns out to be, it will have been a labor of love and not an IG Reel.
When I started to realize the lifespan of art that is shared on social media it started to make me kind of sad. I noticed I had fallen into the cycle of creating and pumping out works on a consistent basis to maintain my engagement, just for that piece to be old news in less than a day. It made me wonder if anyone else loved the work as much as me, and if not why am I in such a rush to satisfy the insatiable?
Part of the reason why I deal with so much stealing and copying with my work is because of these very things I had mentioned. People are afraid to fail, they don’t have time to fail, so if they see that something is profitable and working, they copy it instead of going through the process of discovering their own unique style. And it’s a shame, because when we do that we rob the world of our unique magic.
As I look up almost breaking my neck in the Vatican museum and the various buildings I visited, seeing the intricately carved marble and paintings, it is no wonder why some of these buildings took a hundred years to complete. In the age of maximizing profit we need things up and running and sold as quickly as possible so that we may continue to make money. Where is the heart in these new structures? Where is the art?
I like knowing the history so that I remember I have a choice. I can adapt to the current age we are in while still being true to the type of artist I want to be and I encourage all of you to do the same.
I was always inspired by writers that would take years off to study a character, maybe work as a barista or move to the mountains and put everything on hold to make sure they knew everything possible about a specific character. I am committed to finding the balance of creating some passive income for myself so that I can have the luxury to lose myself in projects, because yes it is a luxury.
If you are like me and feeling the pressure to produce, produce, produce remember Rome wasn’t built in a day and thousands of years later it still stands.
Tips
Slowing down guilt free requires reminding yourself of what you’re missing out on by rushing the process. GREATNESS
Do not feel obligated to share everything! There will be certain projects you share and progress you keep your audience updated on, but there is nothing wrong with keeping something just for you until you’re ready to share.
Rest is necessary. Your brain can’t work its magic in a stressed and rushed state.
Moments of stillness are great opportunities to load up on inspiration. Read, study, take walks.
Remember, you are an artist whether or not you post about it.