What is Behind Your Art?

Have you ever saw something "really cool" but when you looked again, it was "essentially empty" ? Like an action movie full of explosions, state-of-the art effects, and "cool shit," but with a painfully terrible plot, lines, and acting? Like channel surfing, fast cuts, pulsing eye-catching flickers of spectacle, but you can't remember what it was that you watched a minute ago?

Is your art like this?

Sometimes, people create for mere spectacle. They just want to grab your eye without really committing to stating something. While there is no wrong way to do "art," What is your goal? If "eye-catching" is your goal, then congratulations, you've probably already reached it. If it is something else . . . if you seek questions more than to answer them . . . then congratulations, you've got a whole lifetime to create.

Seal forgot where she got this quote but it has always stuck by her: "What is your goal? Is it to paint better? or to see better?"

Create something worthwile

This guy feels like he hasn't created anything worthwhile

Monkey here:

I have to create. Whether it's making stickers I'll never post up or painting huge acrylics or even just blogging, I have to stay in motion and keep on producing something. The trick is I have to keep making sure that what I'm creating is really creating and not just false ego-building. Bejeweled Blitz (BJB from here out) and other Facebook games are the largest opiates of the masses. I admit, I'm not immune, as I constantly strive for making it to at least the top 3 on my BJB leaderboard. Really though, what does that accomplish?

It makes me feel awesome, when I really haven't done anything to be awesome. Not to trample on the dreams of anyone who makes a living off video games (playing, coding, creating, or otherwise), but honestly I feel like it's just a fake emotional boost that keeps you coming back every week for more (since the leaderboards are wiped clean every Tuesday morning).

Make sure that you're spending your time doing stuff that matters to you. It doesn't have to matter to me, as if you want to be #1 on BJB every week that's your passion. But as I try to wean myself off the addictive teat of facebook video games, I want to make sure that my time and energy are better placed networking, writing decent blog posts, and making art.

As much as we all say we're addicted to BJB, or Farmville, or Mafia Wars, or Call of Duty, or whatever, I don't think a lot of us realize how addicted we really are. By accomplishing something in the game, we are getting really neurotransmitters flowing that make us feel good, and this is reinforcing the action that leads us to that feeling - playing more of these games.

How do you kick the habit? If you try to slowly get off the habit, I recommend kitchen timers so you limit yourself to how much to play. But seriously, going cold turkey seems like the way to go for me. But you have to make sure that you really ditch as many ways of going back as you can.

When I kicked WoW, it literally was me canceling my account and that was that. Do I still miss flying around on my windrider and unleashing flurries of arrows on unsuspecting squishies? Oh most definitely. But if you're like me and can give up entire days to gaming, you have to choose between being great at gaming, and being great at something offline.

I'm not trying to be a downer for any gamers, and for many of you casual gamers out there who can walk away easily, more power to you. But as someone in a field that is so subjective who has to get my art out in front of as many people as possible in order to survive, I honestly don't have the time for that.

Thus, after you read this, I will have deleted BJB from my iphone and removed it from my FB profile, so I can't keep going back. I honestly really, really, really want to change the world, and nobody ever did that while tethered to video games (although feel free to prove me wrong on this one). My goal isn't to be the best WoW PvPer, or the person with the highest BJB score in the world. My goal is to become an internationally-acclaimed artist.

Like I said before, I have to create, and now, I'm choosing to create something that's going to place me one step toward my goal, rather than keeping me nice and docile where I am.

Write that idea down!

If you haven't already, it's useful to keep a notebook of ideas by your bed side and carry it with you everywhere. You never know when a good idea will strike. Most of the time, your mind is most pliable and inventive during "meditative actions" like taking a shower, jogging, or right as you fall asleep. Whatever mind wall or guard that you have up during your active day, is eased and ready to be creative when you quieten your breath. Sometimes it helps to pose a question at night, and by morning write down what comes to mind. Don't think too hard about it. It can be as difficult as "how can I solve my financial problem?" or "what color should I paint that dog?" What you write throughout the day are small clues as to what to explore next. Before our mind fills with life's white noise, before we forget - write it down! sketch it, doodle it, capture it! Then we can always decide to pursue an idea, abandon it, or let it stew for another day. Seal has about 10 of these kinds of books filled up, in the case that she's running on empty, she can refer to her ideation book for inspiration, for answers, or the start of a new question.

Buy our shirts!!

Hi everyone! So we've decided to spread the love and offer our fabulous shirt "You're Not Alone Anymore" to all our lovely bloggy readers. You can pre-order this lovely shirt for $5 off the regular price! Part of the proceeds will also go to a charity (La Casa de las Madres) that provides resources for survivors of domestic violence, so you can rest assured that the shirt purchase is doing good for the world. Go here now! No seriously, now! We'll wait.

...
...
*twiddles fingers*
...
...

Oh, back? Sweet, thanks for ordering! Anyhoo, many apologies for getting this post up so late, by now most of you are probably pretty liquored up and enjoying your Friday nights, but alas, Monkey was getting his teeth drilled, filled, and all that good stuff, so we've had our hands a bit full.

Anyway, we really appreciate everyone who has already bought a shirt - the t-shirt fund is our way of fundraising for Monkey's dental work. Thanks again!

PS - We want to do more shirts, so we'd love to hear suggestions of stuff you want to see. And yes, Monkey is already working on a zombie design. Hooray!

You Gotta Keep Showing Up

Many times in life, you may hit a wall or obstacle, or a huge setback. You'll probably feel like poop, and you'll want to stop working and just wallow in your own self-loathing. However, you can't let yourself fall into that pit for too long, or you'll fall into a circuitous path of feeling bad, so you don't work, which makes you feel bad, etc., etc.

Instead, there are two things that help us get out of the funk. The first is that you have to take action, any action, to get your mind and body moving and going. Don't get us wrong, sometimes you need time to mourn and to cry, but don't let it last too long. Do something, anything. If it's as basic as just drawing angry dinosaur stick figures onto napkins, do it! Write a list of little things that you could do now. Research some new opportunities or techniques online. Go to the library and scope out some inspiration. The key here to to keep on keeping on. No, you won't be as productive as you usually are, and if you keep working it'll probably won't be up to par with your usual work, but keep on working. Keep on moving, and shaking, and you'll find that you'll eventually roll yourself towards something new and positive and full of opportunity and before you know it you'll be back in the saddle again.

Recently, Monkey found out that he's going to need some extensive dental work done over the next few months. With a low, low, yearly maximum from his dental insurance (he does count himself lucky to have it though!), he's recently found himself with a huge financial burden to deal with. When he got home from the dentist, he immediately wanted to start drinking and just play games online. While as tempting as this was, he realized that it wouldn't really solve anything, and so he decided to start looking up submission information for book publishers and various art directors.

Now, Monkey has come up with a plan to rework his portfolio over the next week or so and to submit (scary!!) to some big-name art directors and try to get some freelance illustration work that actually pays industry rates. He is looking into ways to expand his current businesses and to perhaps venture into new territory. All in all, he found that a huge setback (crazy financial burden) has ended up inspiring him to take focused, concrete action towards his goal of being able to totally live off his art.

The second method that we've found to work is that you need to stop thinking about yourself. It's hard, since something crappy has probably just happened to you, but if you can take a step back and think about what you can do for others, you'll find that you'll end up helping yourself in the process.

By focusing on others and what you can do for your friends/family, you also stop thinking about the problem that is bothering you. Recently, Seal was feeling down and instead of letting that sadness swallow her up, she decided to try and give her friends a hand. After attending SIGGRAPH, Seal had seen a lot of animation and game companies who were hiring for artists, so she forwarded all the relevant info to some of her former classmates in her illustration and animation classes. In turn, she was able to catch up with people she hadn't talked to in a while which in turn cheered up Seal and helped her rise out of her gloom. By turning the focus away from herself and to her friends, Seal was able to cheer up faster than if she has constantly tried to figure out a way to help herself.

No matter what is bothering you, or what problems you're having that are stopping you from creating, you have to find a way to keep afloat. We know that it's difficult, and that the realities of life can constantly wound you to the point where you don't even want to get out of bed in the morning, but if you keep on showing up, and you take some time to help out others, you'll find that you'll heal faster and get back into the game quicker even stronger than you were before.

Failure Isn't Fatal

You shouldn't be afraid of failing...you should be afraid of this rhino.

Many times, people see the next step in their journey towards their dreams, but don't take it. Most of these times the reason behind not taking that step is fear of failing. Let us tell you something: nearly 100% of the time, failure is not fatal, so take that risk!

We have found that in many cases, the next step is so close, yet so many turn back because they are afraid of failing. Yes, sometimes there are other reasons for backing down, but most of the time taking the next step is possible, but we invent reasons and excuses why we shouldn't do something.

There is a difference, however, between fear of failing and researched, factual-based decision making, but most of the time it is actually our fear doing the convincing, not scientific research papers. For example, you have a decent enough reason to not submit to galleries that specifically show abstract paintings if you work exclusively in a style akin to classical realism. You do NOT have reason enough to skip submitting your work to a high-end gallery that does show work that is sort of similar to yours.

A tangent of that idea is that doing something without research and regard to anything or anyone is different from taking fearless, researched action towards your goals. If you want to be a fine art photographer, it makes little sense to just send your portfolio to every single art director in the world, as some won't even be into photography.

Back to the main point of this: failure is not fatal. We often think that it will be the end of the world in the worst case scenario. Most often, unless you're a superhero who actually defends the planet from an evil menace, everything will be okay if you mess up here and there. Failure needs to shake it's negative stigma and be seen as a necessary building block to figuring out what does work. Besides, what is really the worst that could happen from failing? By actually speaking your fears out loud, you'll realize that often the fears are ungrounded, completely irrational, and very possibly absurd.

Afraid of submitting your portfolio to art directors? What's the worst that can happen? You just never hear from them? If your work isn't up to par, they're not going to even comment - they're too busy. No one is going to tell you that they hate your work or that you shouldn't be an artist - you just won't hear back. And really, is that the end of the world? Hardly. Poop poop.

Monkey + Seal isn't advocating to act brashly. We aren't advising you to jump blindly into the fray, throwing caution to the wind. We are advising that you really stop and think (and vocalize) about your fears, and evaluate them at face value. Really, if you fail, what's the absolute worst that could happen? Don't let irrational fear hold you back. Breathe deep and go for it!

PS - if you aren't sure if your fears are justified or irrational, ask a friend (and yes, that includes us)!

How to get motivated

Zombies are motivated for brains like you should be motivated towards your passion in life. Learn from them.

Monkey here:

Today I'm going to talk about drive and motivation. Now some tough-ass type of coaches, gurus, advisers, and other sorts of people might tell you that you either have it or you don't, but that's not really the full story.

Often times, we have the drive, but we just haven't found the endeavor worthy of that drive. Because our society often promotes certain fields and not others (math and hard science over philosophy, art, and social sciences), often times we label others (and get labeled ourselves) as "unmotivated," "lazy," "unfocused." I find that when it comes to calculus, physics, and drawing subject matters that don't interest me, I am unfocused (hello Bejeweled Blitz!), unmotivated ("hmm, maybe I'll scrub the toilet instead of working on this commission") and just plain lazy ("zzzzzzzzzzzzzz"). On the flip side, give me a day off and tell me to draw monsters and octopi and zombies all day? I'll be glued to my Wacom tablet an easy 8-12 hours no sweat.

So to all those people who tell others that they should be focusing on their work more, go shove it. And yes, all you artists out there with unsupportive parents - I really am telling your parents to shove it.

If you've ever heard "you should focus on XYZ" instead of art, where XYZ is something that you have no interest in, then you should make a deal with that person who just told you that. Pick something that they have absolutely no interest in, and tell them if they focus on that, you'll focus on XYZ. After all, fair's fair.

The point of all this is that just because someone is not interested in a certain field (like their current job) doesn't mean that they aren't driven - it's just hard to push yourself to do something that you essentially hate. The "trick" is that you have to figure out what you are passionate about and go after that. You have to be specific and not generalize. If you are passionate about art, are you passionate about studying 14th century oil paintings, or are you interested in wheatpasting posters around town? Two very different fields, but both would fall into the general category of "art."

Once you find what you love to do, you'll find that life gets a lot more fun, and "work" doesn't seem so much like work. Maybe you won't be able to land that dream job right away, but once you know the concrete details of your dream job, you'll then be able to start taking concrete actions in order to wean yourself off your current job and move to what you really want to do.

The next step is to take a lesson from zombies and learn to be relentless in your passion. It may hurt, it may take a long time, but in the end, when you're truly delving deep into what you love to do, that's when it's going to be all worth it.

What are you passionate about?