Last month, for Lent, I challenged myself to post my art on Instagram for 40 days. The decision came after an experience I had while attending a Catholic conference that a friend invited me to, where the speaker spoke about how the simple fact that we were born meant that we are automatically loved and chosen. This happened one day after an experience with a friend who was helping me through some limiting beliefs, and the words God, womb, and love were spoken. This moment, however, wouldn’t have occurred if I hadn’t started studying and writing about Mexican history (Unpopular History of Mexico) and learned about Catholicism, all of which has felt like a return home. I know Catholicism is far from perfect, but in reality, it’s not about the religion itself. It is about having a place to physically feel what I know within, that there is something grander than me.
Another place that does this for me, that makes me feel small, but in a good way, is the art space. Does it do the same for you?
I’ve been listening to We Need Your Art by Amie McNee, and it turns out that this is a pretty normal feeling for creatives. Well, I think all people are creative, but for those of us for whom it goes deeper, like a soul thing, like a way of life, it can feel vulnerable, tender, exposing. This can make it feel scary to share our art. The problem with that fear (or one of the problems, at least) is that it keeps us from expressing our creative side.
I realized, however, that being part of an art community or group can help give us the courage to do so. It’s well known that Instagram is art-focused, but if you’re anything like me, and hate entering spaces where people are already gathered (even virtual ones), even sharing here can be a challenge. And that’s where attaching it to something grander, even grander than art, can be so helpful.
This whole thing about sharing art may sound trivial to those who don’t consider themselves artistic or creative (again, I think everyone is creative, but you know what I mean), but to those of us who know in our hearts that art is what helps us through, expressing our creativity is a HUGE deal. Which means that NOT expressing it can affect us mentally, emotionally, and even physically. That’s why challenges are good–I just learned that!
If you have been afraid of sharing your art and creativity, try making a challenge for yourself. I’ve been hearing a lot about artists who post anonymously, which is a good idea if you’d like to try. I think I might do that because even though I am posting again now after a one-week break following the challenge, I still find myself holding back. Posting anonymously would probably then make us and our thoughts the challenge. Hm, sounds like a good way to find out what it is we need to overcome.
This is what I learned from doing the challenge:
- It’s about an emotion that needs to be navigated, in this case, the fear of embarrassment.
- Day by day, it gets easier, then hard again, but not as much, and then a little easier again.
- The best outcome is that you feel proud of yourself
- You find encouraging people along the way, which feels so nice.
- It helps create new ideas.
- You learn about yourself and your art and how the two can work together for you.
- Bonus: It can help with finishing what you start, which means some of those unfinished projects staring back at you can finally be seen through to completion 🙂
I just finished the first week of this new session, in which I posted pictures of things I find on my daily walks. Doing this has added creativity to my walks, which is so nice because it makes my days have a new energy and focus.
This coming week starts the next part of this project, which I’m so excited about because it’s something I’ve always wanted to do and that I hope will add creativity to the lives of others! But I’ll hold back on sharing until next week. In the meantime, I’ll leave you with some of the very pretty pictures I’ve taken during my walks so far. There are more on Instagram!
See you next week!
