Making time for art is an act of self care, at least for me.
It always feels selfish when I want to spend time by myself, working on something creative.
I think that’s because as a woman, we are force fed the idea that all we need to relax is a bubble bath and a glass of wine. While that might be true for a lot of people, I find it difficult to relax when I know I haven’t made the effort to connect with my creativity. There are so many paintings in my head or chapters of books I haven’t written because it feels uncomfortable for me to admit that those rare moments of creative flow feel better than any face mask or pedicure.
And yet I don’t commit the time to it.
Last week I watched an entire season of Below Deck. It gave me something to discuss with my friends who all watched and recommended the series to me but did it give me fulfilment? That’s a hard no. Roughly 12.5 hours of my time where I could have been enriching my own life, spent watching rich people moan on a yacht.
I think this is why a lot of creatives end up feeling isolated. It’s not the fault of anyone else but I think we struggle to advocate for our own time. Personally, I find it hard to justify spending time on painting or writing when I feel like I should be doing something else, i.e, catching up on household chores.
The thing is though, I’m lucky to have friends and family who are supportive. Literally the only person who isn’t making time for art – is me. It can be a tough pill to swallow when you realise you can’t ‘do it all’. Sometimes the choice will come down to letting the washings pile up so you can finally finish that painting.
I would be interested in hearing other peoples opinions. How do you make time for art or your creative hobby? Do you find it as difficult as I do?
Most importantly though, what steps are you taking to make creativity more of a priority?
I don’t plan on writing this post only to have it followed up by innaction. My intention is to be mindful of what I’m doing in the evenings. If I want to encourage my kids to spend more time on their creative hobbies I need to model that behaviour. Lastly, I hope that making time for art will, at the very least, make the long winter nights more enjoyable.