“A messy environment offers disruptions that seem to act as a catalyst for new ideas and creations. If you think about it, we try to avoid these same disruptions when we focus on being more ‘organized.’ But, if you sometimes embrace a little mess, you may be opening yourself up to more creative serendipity.”
Or put another way:
Here’s an erudite excuse not to tidy your studio today.
Nor tomorrow. Nor next week.
And for never, ever, ever, having my paints sorted by colour, hanging each tube by a large bulldog clip onto a pegboard, in sequence.
Well, okay, that’s never really been an aspiration because I know I will never achieve it, but I do find the photos I’ve seen of this intriguing and compelling. If your studio is this organized, do leave a comment and let us know if it stays this organized all the time or not!
How can one have a tidy studio. I try to keep my tubes and brushes a bit tidy, but as soon as I start painting they soon get into the usual mess.
Another thing is the proliferation of paint tube caps. I always seem to have more of these than tubes of paint.
I think tube caps are like dust bunnies — they breed in dark corners 🙂
Being messy myself the only thing I can say in favour of having a bit of a tidy up is the joy of finding something you had forgotten you had which then can lead to further inspiration for creativity!
Definitely! That’s how I rediscovered a tube of gold and of bronze, which have since been used as backgrounds for small sheep paintings 🙂
Marion… what a perfect post for American artists celebrating Labor Day today! I plan to allow my artistic mess inspire me today rather than tidy it up! Know I always enjoy and appreciate your posts and highlights of renowned artists. Keep your brushes full and canvases full of life’s joy!
Laurie C, Augusta, GA
I hadn’t remembered it was US Labor Day — now there’s serendipity!
And thank you!
I had cleaned up my little studio before we left for a month of holiday. It almost scares me now to make it messy again – which means, I hesitate to start the next project. Being tidy can be counter-productive!!!
This reminds me of a productivity tip I once read — leave your workspace with a project already slightly started so when you get back to it you are already a step along, and thus it’s easier to get working.