Have you ever stopped yourself from adding color to a drawing because you were afraid of ruining it and/or just couldn't decide which combination to go for? How have famous artists used color to give their work impact and the ability to efficiently transmit a particular mood or emotion to their viewers? Have you ever wondered how colors around you affect you in your day-to-day life? It's no secret that artists need to have vast knowledge about the different Elements of Art and how to use them in order to create compositions that are both visually pleasing and effective at transmitting ideas or emotions to their public. Color is one of these elements! When I'm explaining the different Elements of Art (Color, Shape, Line, Texture, etc.), I like segmenting each into its more objective aspects (pertaining to cold technical drawing/painting skills) and its more subjective aspects (relating to how they can affect a viewer's emotions/mood). For me, a great art piece demonstrates both technical knowledge on part of the artist and is able to transmit a message or feeling. This is why I like to get aspiring artists thinking about both of these aspects simultaneously as their journey progresses.
Today I'll be sharing an amazing Color infographic created, and very kindly shared, by Invaluable! Invaluable.com is a renowned online marketplace that sells fine art, as well as antiques and collectibles (links to their website and social media channels can be found at the end of this post).
Their infographic helps us understand the different emotions that each color can transmit, and shares specific examples of famous paintings that effectively used each. Stay tuned because I plan on creating a few blog posts about color mixing, terms all aspiring artists should know about, selecting color schemes, etc. If you're a beginner, are interested in starting to paint using watercolors, and/or you'd like to learn more about the Color Wheel, I highly recommend you check out my Watercolor for the Total Beginner Mini-Course! The third class in this free mini-course is all about Color and I walk you through, what I consider to be, the best way to understand relationships between colors and how to mix them effectively. Let's get into the guest post! You may not realize it, but colors have a large impact on your emotions and actions. Color psychology is the study of how different pigments can cause different behaviors. Dating back to the 15th century, color theory is still implemented in a variety of ways. Individuals, institutions, and businesses carefully pick which colors to incorporate into their brand. Because colors symbolize different feelings, you may be able to understand a lot about a brand simply from analyzing its hues. Marketers also take advantage of human reactions to color by packaging products to draw attention and even evoke emotion. If you’re interested in the psychological science behind color, Invaluable put together the infographic below using art to explain it. 
How Artists Use Color to Evoke Emotion. Infographic by Invaluable. Click on image to read complete their complete blog post.
Visit the blog section Invaluable's website for more great art-related posts! Follow them on social media at: facebook.com/InvaluableOfficial twitter.com/invaluablelive instagram.com/invaluableofficial pinterest.com.mx/invaluable Thanks so much to Invaluable for sharing this great infographic with me and thank YOU for reading! I hope you found this blog post inspiring and helpful. 
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*This post contains affiliate links. I receive small commissions for purchases made through these links at no extra cost to you. These commissions help me keep this site up and running, in order for me to keep providing helpful and inspiring art content. :) Why, hello there! Thanks so much for visiting my little artistic corner of the Internet today! Today's post includes a video in which I'll be sharing the sketching time lapses for Inktober prompts 6-11, as well as how I came up with the ideas behind these quick pen and ink illustrations. It's definitely a challenge to come up with a new original idea every-single-day, but I'm still going strong and am hoping to make it through! I'm also sharing links to the exact sketchbook, drawing pens and ink that I'm using for this year's challenge, so make sure to find those at the end if you're interested in buying some new supplies for yourself. Check out my previous Inktober-related blog post/video titled: 5 Tips to Make it Through Inktober and How I'm Going About it for specific tips to get the most out of this drawing challenge. Also, here are a few past blog posts in which I share a ton of helpful info about pen and ink drawing/shading. They will definitely help you step up your game throughout the rest of this challenge! If you enjoy this video, I highly recommend subscribing to my YouTube channel. I publish a new one every-single-week sharing art tips, drawing/painting tutorials and encouragement for beginner/intermediate artists! :) My Inktober SuppliesHere are the supplies I'm using for all of my Inktober sketches this year. I buy a lot of my art supplies through Amazon myself and, because I really enjoy sketching with pen and ink, I already had them in my arsenal!
That's it for today! I hope that you enjoyed this post/video! I'd love to know in the comments section below which Inktober prompt has been your favorite so far. If you haven't been able to participate, are you planning to next year? Cheers, friends! 
*This post contains affiliate links. I receive small commissions for purchases made through these links at no extra cost to you. These commissions help me keep this site up and running, in order for me to keep providing helpful and inspiring art content. :) Are you an artist looking for a foolproof way to improve your drawing/creative skills in a short period of time? Have you always wanted to participate in #Inktober or other daily drawing challenges but find them a bit intimidating? Are you a beginner looking to make drawing and creativity a part of your daily life? Month-long drawing challenges like Inktober are no joke. Most of us have a lot going on in our lives and committing to producing one drawing a day (and actually sticking with it for the entire month) requires a huge amount of discipline. Even if one starts with the project excited and has proper fun creating those first few sketches, that initial burst of inspiration is probably going to dwindle at some point mid-way. And when that happens, it's going to take sheer determination to keep going! This said, if we are able to stick with it, growth will come inevitably and fast. By the end of the month, our drawing skills will have progressed and our creative abilities will be heightened. This type of experience is also incredibly valuable as it helps us make way towards finding our artistic style and voice. Committing to any sort of series like this one is a great way of pinpointing our strengths and weaknesses, which is essential. In this blog post, I'll be sharing my top five tips to ensure that you are progressing your drawing/creative skills as much as possible with this drawing challenge, but also staying sane along the way. These are all things I'm making sure to do myself throughout this month. I'm also including links to a few very helpful pen and ink drawing blog posts/YouTube videos that will help you step up your inking game. The video included in this post is a compilation of time lapses for my first five Inktober sketches. Make sure to follow me on Instagram to stay up-to-date with my progress throughout the month. I'm sure I'll be missing a few days here and there, but I am planning to make up for them as soon as I'm able to. Check out these helpful pen and ink sketching blog posts/YouTube videos!1. Pen & Ink Sketching: 6 Shading Techniques 2. Guide to Shading Techniques: Hatching, Crosshatching, Scribbling and Others 3. Shading Simple Objects Using Hatching, Crosshatching and Other Drawing Pen Techniques 4. Shading a Hand Using Pen and Ink (Complex Subjects) Inktober Tips1. Be practical about it
As creatives, we have tons of different ideas popping up in our heads non-stop. This is great, but it can definitely hinder us from moving forward and actually finishing things. Think of an idea that you feel could work and that feels practical in terms of time, and just go for it. If you look back constantly, there's a huge possibility that you won't finish drawings on time and they're going to start piling up, which can lead to overwhelm.
Remember that this is a marathon and not a sprint. I like keeping this sort of project practical by giving a bit of my energy each day instead of giving it all right at the beginning and burning out fast. I'm not striving for masterpieces, but for growth. 2. Avoid looking at others' work until after you have finished yours
It's important for me to keep my work as original as possible and I hope this is the case for you as well. I'm sure there will be other artists in the world creating work that is similar to mine in some (or many) aspects. But when this happens, I know that it's due to the fact that those other artists and I are somehow influenced by similar things and not because I'm copying their work.
For challenges like this one, I find it super helpful to stay away from social media until after I have finished my work (or at least my initial sketch). This way, I'm not allowing other artists' ideas to infiltrate my mind. 3. Brainstorm ideas and create sketches
Before going to bed, I'm reading the prompt for the following day and allowing myself to start brainstorming. I start sifting through ideas in my head, setting aside those that might not be practical (no matter how amazing they might sound). I don't actually put pencil/pen to paper until the next day.
I recommend creating at least a couple of quick sketches prior to actually starting with your piece. Doing quick thumbnails is an excellent way of arriving at great compositional arrangements. For several of the drawings above, I was unsure whether I wanted my main subject to be facing forwards or whether I'd be sketching him/her/it in profile or at an angle. It wasn't until I created those sketches and actually saw my ideas come to life that I could make a decision about what would be most appealing. 4. Incorporate some sort of element of coherency (or a theme)
When creating any sort of series like this one, it's useful to think about how you can bring an aspect of consistency to your work. A lot of artists like sticking to a specific theme for Inktober and I think this is very useful, as it limits the broad range of ideas that might lead to indecision and not doing anything at all.
I decided to incorporate coherency in the format/layout of my overall design. However, there are many ways that we can add a sense of consistency to our artwork. Perhaps you want to make sure to incorporate human figures in all your drawings, stick with a specific color scheme (if you're using color), create some sort of frame around your drawing, integrate handwritten lettering, or think of a specific layout like I did. 5. Have fun and don't strive for perfection
Being a perfectionist and expecting too much from yourself with every single thing you do is a surefire way of burning out and not enjoying the creative process. It also keeps you from producing the amount of work you have to create in order to really improve artistically.
Not to mention, this challenge (in my opinion) is a way of improving our personal skills, not about showing off masterpieces and/or comparing them with other peoples'! Stay in your lane and remember that the purpose of this project is to improve your drawing and creative skills, as well as to make art a daily habit. I hope you have fun throughout the month and wish you lots of artistic growth! My Inktober art supplies*Click on images to check out the specific supplies I'm using for Inktober that I've bought through www.consumercrafts.com and www.amazon.com:
If you're a visual/creative person like I am, you're probably well aware of how your surroundings can affect your mood and even your productivity levels. At the same time, it's likely important to you that your home (being the extension of yourself that it is) is able to transmit your personality and uniqueness. I've always been drawn to interior decorating and consider this practice an art in and of itself. Being able to "collect" objects that will look great together and being able to place them in a way that is harmonious for people visiting that space, is no easy feat. Interior decorators have an amazing eye and taste. They're artists, because they are basically creating a live-in composition that has to stay practical. They can tell, instantly, when textures, colors, shapes and styles work together or not. They know the power that a great piece of wall art can have and how the addition of a painting (or a lack thereof) can make or break a room. In her article titled The Importance of Art in the Interior Industry, Anya Cooklin-Lofting explains how art is becoming a fundamental part of modern home decorating. She also shares how most interior designers currently rave about the importance of art as an essential decorative component. Art is able to bring interest, conversation and originality to a space. It might seem that the acquisition of an original art piece is something that only the most affluent can do. However, thanks to Etsy and other online platforms, anyone looking to decorate their home can find very accessible, one-of-a-kind artworks created by artists of all fields. Hope you enjoy this little collection of objects I've put together to complement this small grayscale painting that is currently for sale at my Etsy shop! Stay tuned for many more original paintings to come that will be available for international purchase! Links to all products are included below. Cheers! 
Home decorating finds by Erika Lancaster
1. Petrie 2-Piece Right Arm Chaise Midcentury Sectional Sofa at Crate&Barrel 2. Pebble Double Bulb Floor Vase at DwellStudio 3. Arguto Rug (Designed by Hanne Kortegaard for Linie Design) at Design Within Reach 4. BONGO floor lamp at Structube 5. Small Grayscale Oil Painting by Erika Lancaster at Etsy Sources: Cooklin-Lofting, Anya. "The Importance of Art in the Interior Industry". The Independent. 22 March 2018 https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/design/importance-of-art-interior-design-industry-a8266981.html 
*This post contains affiliate links. I receive small commissions for purchases made through these links at no extra cost to you. These commissions help me keep this site up and running, in order for me to keep providing helpful and inspiring art content. :) Are you confused as to how other artists manage to stay in a productive creative flow and can't help but feel jealous when seeing incredible new artworks others are constantly sharing? Do you want to make a living from your art someday, but doubt whether you'll have the courage, character and determination required to succeed? Does criticism and/or lack of support make you feel so low, that you want to stop creating altogether? If you're set on becoming an artist, and you're constantly feeling any (or all) of these things, it's imperative that you start working on yourself, alongside your artistic skills. This is going to be absolutely essential for you if you ever want to achieve lasting success. Being an artist is tough. Not only are we entrepreneurs (which means we work a lot, wear a ton of different hats and have to be willing to push ourselves out of our comfort zones every-single-day), but we also have to consistently create quality work that people will want to buy. Work that, in most cases, is created by us and us alone. Work that is pretty much a piece, or extension, of ourselves. All of this makes it necessary to stay strong if we're intending to make a living from our passion. In today's blog post/YouTube video, I'll be sharing the top five things that I make sure to do on a weekly basis in order to stay healthy both mentally and physically as an artist. Since I started doing these things consistently a few years ago, not only have I been able to make much faster progress, but I'm also able to enjoy what I do much more and have been able to improve my self-confidence to a degree that I'm able to myself out there in ways I never thought possible. It wasn't always like this though, and I'm getting very personal about my past today, which is something I very rarely do online. I do this with the hope that some of you out there will resonate with my story and really grasp how important prioritizing self-care is if you want to reach your goals. I want to keep creating art until I'm a little old lady, and I hope that you also intend to keep inspiring and awakening others through your art for as long as possible. It is my objective with this blog (and my YouTube channel) to help aspiring artists improve their skills and pursue their passions. However, we cannot give our all at any task if we're unwell mentally and/or physically. Not to mention, many of us artists are inherently sensitive, which is even more of a reason to stay aware of our wellbeing and set systems in place to ensure that we're not exhausting ourselves. Artists have had a bad rap throughout history for living in excess and having erratic personalities. I'll have none of that! Whenever tragedies that artists (from all fields) have partaken in come into my mind, I also remind myself of all the others who have led happy and fulfilling lives. “An empty lantern provides no light. Self-care is the fuel that allows your light to shine brightly.”
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3. Review short term/long term goals (personal, work and interpersonal). All of them are important!
Most people go through life without really giving thought to what they truly want. They settle for what's expected and let life happen to them instead of fighting for their dreams to come true. This is a surefire way of feeling unfulfilled and unhappy.
With introspection comes getting to know yourself, and with getting to know yourself comes discovering what you truly want in life. This alone will bring you a ton of clarity. Once you're there, it's important to give thought to your specific short-term and long-term goals in order to set the necessary steps to get there. No matter where you're currently at, prioritize those goals.
A while back I wrote a blog post titled Time Management for Artists: My Secrets for Staying Consistently Productive, which I highly recommend you check out if you feel like you're wandering aimlessly through life. I provide a free workbook to help you set your personal, work and interpersonal goals, as well as ideas for scheduling your week to ensure you're making progress each and every week.
For me, it was imperative to learn to say no to the things that didn't align with my goals once I had set them. I realized time is the most valuable resource I have and I don't want to waste it on activities or people that aren't going to help me get closer to them. It may sound harsh, but we absorb the negativity and positivity from those around us. As creatives, we should strive to be around people that are positive, have big ideas like we do, and lift us up.
As you work towards your dreams to come true, please don't forget to celebrate each and every small victory that comes your way!
4. Schedule time for organization and adulting. Keep your working area as safe and inspiring as you can.
Unless you're a clean freak, have people that help you with homely chores, or don't have very much going on in life, I'm willing to bet that your home and/or working area tends to get cluttered and messy pretty fast. Most of us are directly or indirectly affected by the environment we're in, which leads to being more stressed and less productive.
It also leads to more accidents, wasting time when we're unable to find things we need, and it can also lead to more serious health problems depending on the type of artwork we create. So make sure you're staying as organized as you can, and always follow safety instructions when using materials that are toxic.
If you paint like I do, always work in well-ventilated areas and use gloves so that potentially harmful substances don't come into contact with your skin. If you can, check out brands of art products that are doing their best to provide non-toxic paints and mediums like Gamblin!
I like scheduling in at least a bit of time each week to take care of cleaning, organizing and other administrative tasks so that things don't pile up (literally and in my head). It may initially seem like a waste of precious time but I assure you you'll be saving time in the long run.
As artists, we do what we love for a living, and keeping our studio organized and inspiring to work in really helps keep things as enjoyable as possible.
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5. Schedule time to disconnect from your work. Make time to socialize and set aside time for activities that relax you.
As artists, we spend a lot of time alone. It's important to make sure we're nurturing the relationships we have with people that are important to us. We can't let the connections we have with amazing people fizzle out OR keep ourselves locked up to the point that we miss opportunities to meet other great humans.
No matter how introverted we may be, we need some degree of connection with others in order to feel happy and fulfilled. Treasure the relationships you have with those amazing people in your life.
Finally, make sure you're doing things that relax you and bring you joy. As an artist, I'm sure creating art was initially something that brought you a great amount of pleasure. However, if it is now work for you, I would suggest looking for activities that allow you to disconnect for a while. I enjoy going to the movies, planning a dinner with friends or reading a good book.
Remember that the best ideas come when we're actually living our lives and not stuck in our studios!
Photo by Zachary Nelson at unsplash.com. Click on image to go to original source.
That's it for today, everyone! I hope you found this blog post helpful and that you start making your mental and physical health a top priority. I promise you that your work, as well as every other aspect of your life will greatly improve if you stick with it.
Welcome back fellow artists and art lovers!
I’m unbelievably excited to be sharing the first segment of my Artists from Around the World interview series with you today!
This is one of the many exciting projects I’ve been working on behind the curtain and I hope these interviews inspire aspiring artists out there to keep making time for their passions, as well as help get amazing new artwork in front of people looking to bring unique, handcrafted goods into their lives.
For me, one of the most amazing things about putting myself out here in the online world, is that I get to connect with others around the world with whom I share similar passions and interests. In the short amount time I’ve been working on this site, my YouTube channel, and sharing my work on social media, I’ve been able to get to know amazingly talented artists and creatives that I would have otherwise never met.
Chrissie Murphy is one of them. She's an Australian-based artist, calligrapher and blogger who’s artistic journey began after having taken up repetitive drawing therapy as a means to recover from Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. Her beautiful and unique artwork is full of personality and brings light through bold pattern, color and highly detailed line work. I absolutely love that she uses lots of different mediums to create her art!
Through her blog, Chrissie shares uplifting articles for other artists, resources and practical tips to help get your creativity in motion. Her spirituality, originality and the love she brings to everything she does, can be felt through her online presence.
Grab a cup of coffee, tea or your beverage of choice, and join me for this interview! :)
Interview with Artist, Blogger and Calligrapher Chrissie Murphy
1. You have a very appealing and unique art style! Can you share a bit about your influences and how you arrived at it?
What a great question! I stumbled into the art world by accident, really. I had been seeing a counsellor for treatment of symptoms associated with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and she suggested I look into being more “mindful”. I did some google searching and stumbled upon “zentangling”, also known as Repetitive Pattern Art, as a mindful relaxation technique. The act of creating the same movements with a pen, over and over and over, is very calming. It’s also a great way to be present as the strokes require your undivided attention. Needless to say, I was hooked. Repetitive Pattern Art turned on something inside me and from that day onwards (30 April 2013), I have been drawing.
Now that I’ve been drawing for a while, I have been influenced by many things. My greatest influence is the Creator Himself because His work is the best there is. I’m inspired so much by being in creation, out there amongst nature, and I’m fascinated at the patterns He uses, the shapes, varieties and colours perceived in nature. I’m also a big lover of ornamental design (particularly the Baroque period), the work of the scribes and illuminators from the 14th to 17th centuries, botanical art from the late 1800’s to 1920’s, as well as commercial product packaging from that same time period. I have a love for all things old and detailed, and I adore the work of the penman of yesteryear.
What a great question! I stumbled into the art world by accident, really. I had been seeing a counsellor for treatment of symptoms associated with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and she suggested I look into being more “mindful”. I did some google searching and stumbled upon “zentangling”, also known as Repetitive Pattern Art, as a mindful relaxation technique. The act of creating the same movements with a pen, over and over and over, is very calming. It’s also a great way to be present as the strokes require your undivided attention. Needless to say, I was hooked. Repetitive Pattern Art turned on something inside me and from that day onwards (30 April 2013), I have been drawing.
Now that I’ve been drawing for a while, I have been influenced by many things. My greatest influence is the Creator Himself because His work is the best there is. I’m inspired so much by being in creation, out there amongst nature, and I’m fascinated at the patterns He uses, the shapes, varieties and colours perceived in nature. I’m also a big lover of ornamental design (particularly the Baroque period), the work of the scribes and illuminators from the 14th to 17th centuries, botanical art from the late 1800’s to 1920’s, as well as commercial product packaging from that same time period. I have a love for all things old and detailed, and I adore the work of the penman of yesteryear.
Artwork by Chrissie Murphy
2. Can you tell us about when that moment was in your life, when you came to the conclusion that art was your passion?
Yes, I think it was about a year after I got into it. It was then that I truly realized that art was here to stay and it was all I wanted to do. I would be using every spare moment to create, and when I wasn’t, I was looking at other work or watching videos/tutorials on how to improve. It became all consuming for a while, and although it doesn’t consume me like it once did, I think that initial hunger has served me well. It was quite intense at the beginning, but after time it has settled into something that just “is”. Art IS part of me, it’s a major part of who I am.
3. When did you first start selling your work and what would you say has been the most challenging aspect when it comes to selling?
I’m going to be really honest here and say that I started selling my work too early. Looking back on things, if I could do things over, I would have held off selling for so much longer. My early work is really terrible and it’s not something that should have been in the marketplace.... period! If you’re someone who’s trying to establish a serious online art business, selling mediocre art does not help your cause. I can see that now, but back then, I couldn’t! I actually thought the work was ok.
Now though, I can see my work is at a much higher standard, and I rely on the feedback of other artists to back up this belief. Remember.... I thought my old work was ok back in the day, so I try to honestly survey my work. An honest survey includes getting feedback from other artists I value, and good artistic friends will tell you when your work stinks! The other aspect that I believe is important when selling art, is that’s it’s instantly recognizable as yours. These two things (work of a high standard, and instant recognizable art) are the things I believe you should have under your belt if you’re going to sell art online.
Having said that, I still believe the most challenging aspect when it comes to selling art, is what to charge for your work. Just try and do a google search on this and the advice out there is mind-blowing. There just isn’t a clear answer and in the long run it comes back to you the artist to make the decision. I don’t have any real advice on how to navigate this area as I find it to be complicated. There doesn’t seem to be a one solution fits all scenario, which is what I’d really love to discover.
4. I love how you incorporate the spiritual/mental/positivity aspects in your blog posts! Would you say developing these aspects is just as important for artists as developing cold artistic skills?
Oh yes!!! Most definitely. I believe knowing these things helps you truly understand who you are as an artist. We are made in the image of the Creator, therefore we are creator’s as well. Understanding these things (which can be a bit deep at times), helps you tap into your very core as a creative.
Art is an expression of what’s within us, and if you want to be good at what you create, you need to really KNOW yourself. You need to know all your good bits, all the bad bits, all the quirky bits and all the bits that are just downright weird. You need to know how you’re put together, how you’re wired, because when you do, it will ooze out of you as you create.
Artwork by Chrissie Murphy
5. Why do you think art is important in today's world?
At the moment, I believe the world is starving for beauty, only many of us don’t realize this. Buildings are a really good example of this principle. In any city, there are old heritage listed buildings, ones that were constructed at the turn of the century like Court Houses, Post Offices, Banks or Churches. These old buildings have ornamental design features like columns, acanthus leaf carvings and scrollwork. Polished wood is prominent, so are high ceilings and architraves, polished brass and there may even be wrought iron gates or heavy wooden carved doors. I think you can imagine the sorts of buildings I’m referring to.
Contrast this to the most recent government building constructed in your town. Construction in recent years has focused on energy efficiency, sustainable building products and overall construction costs. Although we’ve done a great job at delivering high outcomes in these areas, it’s come at a price - The loss of visual beauty.
Buildings are just one example, but I could rattle off a dozen more. Product packaging, print media, handwriting for example, all these things that have changed over the years. They have become more economical or mass produced and in doing so, a lot of visual beauty has been lost. And I think the world is grieving this, they are starving for real beauty. In today’s world, art is more important than ever before, because it can play a vital role in closing the gap that mass production and cost cutting opened. We have a world starving for beauty. As artists in today’s society, we have been given a unique opportunity to feed the world some of the beauty it’s been desperately craving.
Artwork by Chrissie Murphy
6. Do you have any exciting new projects coming up or special ideas you want to make happen in the near future?
Next month I kick off on one of my most favorite times of the year – Inktober. I’ve participated in Inktober for 5 years now and I’m as keen as for Inktober 2018. If you’re not aware of what Inktober is, it’s where you create something with ink every day, for the entire month of October, and you post your work online using the hashtag #Inktober. I will be closing the blog for the month of October to ensure I have plenty of time for drawing each day, and I will also be sharing my work to my social media accounts daily. Inktober is intense, but so worth it. At the moment, it’s where my focus is as I begin preparations.
7. If you could share just one piece of advice to aspiring artists who want to make a living from their creative talents, what would you tell them?
Take your time and don’t rush things. Spend some time really getting to know yourself as an artist and when you do, make sure you put yourself out there. I’m not talking about your art here, but you! I mean you in a selfie or a head shot, a portrait – an image of you. When you show your work online, don’t forget to show yourself as well. More than anything people want to connect with you, to feel like they can relate to you, and they can only do this if they can put a face to you. So don’t be shy friend, get out there and smile. And you know what? When you do, the world will smile with you.
8. Lastly, could you share with us where we can find more of your work online?
I’m online just about everywhere!
My website:
www.chrissiemurphydesigns.com
My Etsy Shop:
www.etsy.com.au/ChrissieMurphyArt
On Instagram:
www.instagram.com/chrissiemurphydesigns
On Facebook:
www.facebook.com/chrissiemurphydesigns
On Pinterest:
www.pinterest.com/chrissiemurphydesigns
I also tweet and tumble, just search for Chrissie Murphy Designs and you’ll find me.
Thanks so much Chrissie, for answering my questions and everything you do!
I'm looking forward to seeing all the amazing artwork I'm sure you'll be putting out there for us and to connecting with you in the future!
There are a couple of things Chrissie mentioned throughout the interview that I feel are incredibly important for aspiring artists to understand, which I would like to go over.
Firstly, Chrissie indicates how important it is to be open to receiving feedback from other artists so that we can use it to improve our work. She mentioned how listening to other knowledgable creatives around her was fundamental in her artistic development, as this allowed her to improve her skills significantly and be able to offer quality artwork for her audience/customers.
We can all really learn from Chrissie's ability to remain open and not take things personally!
As I mentioned in my blog post titled Why Criticism is an Essential Part of an Artist’s Life and How to Handle Criticism Like a Pro, it’s absolutely essential to understand that receiving both positive and negative feedback is going to be a recurrent element in an artist’s life, no matter how talented you are or how long you've been in the field.
If we want to become respectable artists and arrive at a point at which we're actually making a livable income from our skills, we have to not only get used to taking criticism, but learn to use people's feedback (whether positive or negative) as fuel to keep going and not as a reason to stop us from pursuing our passions. It's also essential to know when we're receiving feedback that could actually be beneficial for us and when it's not. *Hint: Listen to people who know about art and know what they're talking about.
One other HUGE thing Chrissie mentioned is the importance of introspection and getting to know oneself as an artist so that we can truly be able to share ourselves and the ideas we feel strongly about through our work. Isn't that what art is supposed to be all about, anyway? It's okay to be inspired by other artists, but it's also incredibly important to make sure that we are putting our own personal message and style out into the world.
I talk about this in my blog post titled 5 Fatal Habits and Practical Advice, which I highly recommend you check out! In it, I talk about how it's just as essential to work on ourselves mentally as it is to work on developing our cold artistic skills in order to become successful as artists.
I’m a huge believer in making time for introspection and acknowledging both our strengths and our weaknesses. This will not only enable us to work on becoming better versions of ourselves, but also to become better artists.
That’s it for today, everyone! Thanks so much for popping by and talk to you soon!
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