Artist Advice Corner: One

Welcome to the first installment of Artist Advice Corner, a new series where we get some of your favourite musicians, artists, writers, and photographers to answer your questions. 

Our first question is my own, and one which was inspired by a conversation I had with my therapist while I was in a creative rut, uninspired creatively, unhappy with the photos I was taking and the words I was writing. She assured me that everyone doing anything creative has these ruts and that they don’t last forever - I just needed to work out what works best for me to get out of them. That stuck with me and I wanted to know how other people got out of those ruts. 

So, our first question for the series is, “How do you get out of a creative rut?” 

Thank you to everyone involved in the first installment. Feel free to email me at josh@monsterchildren.com with your questions about art, life, or anything and we will get them answered! 

Taryn Segal

Photographer, New York City.

By taking a look through all of my work. I have my film photos categorised by month on my phone, I’ll even go back to a couple years ago and study what phases photographically I have gone through, what imagery was repetitive at the time vs now. I always find images I ignored at first glance that I see something new in, or get inspired by older shots I’ve always loved. I put a great deal of thought into the photo sets I post online, pulling from recent street finds but also delving deep into other folders from months previous to construct a theme. I’m a very intentional person and when I feel I’m onto a certain collection for a series but don’t have what I need, all I can do is go out into the world and shoot. I’m always taking mental note of what I already have and what I’ve missed before and if the chance crosses my path again I will always go for it photographically. Also, shooting while listening to a playlist I haven’t in a long time extra helps. 

Francesca Gavin

Founder of Art Present Future, Writer/Editor-in-Chief of EPOCH, London.  

I walk in the city. For me ideas come from being outside, going to see exhibitions, wandering around bookshops, and looking at new releases, having coffee, not pushing it. I’m like Mercury – I’m here to communicate other people’s creative ideas. If it's not in my home or on my laptop, it's out in the world.

Creed McTaggart

Professional Surfer/Musician/Painter, New South Wales. 

If I’m in a creative rut I semi aggressively and thoughtlessly start slapping paint on the canvas. Sometimes I use my fingers or a rag or sometimes just flick chunks of paint on there. I don’t know what I’m doing and I find if I have an idea it never works out the way I imagined it to so I just don’t bother putting that pressure on myself. Painting is simply something that makes me feel better about things and puts me in a mood where I can escape. I don’t paint everyday but if I have the urge and excitement then I’ll paint all day for weeks and become obsessed. I’ll think about it like I need to figure this puzzle out that no one else but me knows how it finishes.

Dutch Interior

Band, Los Angeles.

Jack Nugent: First, I have to forget that I’m in a rut. The rut deepens when I start thinking about it every time I sit down to write a song. The next thing I do is to make creativity a habit. You can write lyrics anywhere, and you can hum a melody anywhere, so a song can pop into your mind anywhere. Quantity begets quality sometimes.

Noah Kurtz: Time heals all ruts. Distracting myself with something completely different then revisiting usually helps.  

Conner Reeves: Creating a healthy habit of turning to play an instrument or writing while in a bored state, as opposed to scrolling or watching tv, can lead to entertaining yourself in ways that are very low pressure, which is usually how I find myself stumbling into good ideas. I only find myself in a rut when I’m intentionally trying to create. I put too much unnecessary pressure on myself that way.

Davis Stewart: I usually kinda brute force it. Allow for things to have a conclusion even if I don't end up standing by it. Then just moving onto the next thing over and over again. 

Shane Barton: I like to watch a movie. If I watch something that resonates with me emotionally and then immediately hop into songwriting mode, I come up with something interesting more often than not. 

Hayden Barton: When I experience a creative block, I tend to feel shame. Even if a small amount, shame can create a shaky feedback loop until you’re not even certain that what you’re trying to produce is worth your own time. When this happens, I save whatever it is I’m working on knowing that I’ll find it again soon. And when I do eventually pick it back up, it’s like a surprising little treat. I think it’s a good thing to leave yourself lots of surprising little treats.