‘Overwhelmed by images’

Ahem…to see some truly beautiful and sophisticated fractals, please go to www.fractorama.com where my son and daughter-in-law have created lovely fractal art. He wrote the program, and she tweaks and frames. She is also a talented artist in her own right.

This is helpful advice, going online with a specific agenda to research, and to take it further, looking at every picture with a questioning approach like ‘why do I like/not like it?’ ‘how would I have done it different/better?’, ‘if it was entered in a juried exhibiton, would it make it through the selection process, why/why not?’ etc

I found it so refreshing to read this letter. I too find looking at too many images online, other artist’s works, etc. dilutes my own work and takes me away from my own path. It disturbs my carefully crafted very personal style that has taken me years to develop and it works against me, confuses me and stresses me out.

Painting is hard. The internet is easy.

Nancy, I have the same struggle. Being visual learners; what better format than the screen first thing in the morning. Being in OOB, surrounded by inspiration, maybe coffee on the deck — not turning on the computer until later in the day when the painting light is less ideal. Possibly a quick walk to break the morning “routine”? Can’t tell you how many times my well-meaning husband has suggested, “why don’t you paint,” instead of staring at the flat source of my addiction. As winter comes on, possibly a change of painting location — feng shui — can help to shake up the mundane. Best regards — fantastic paintings!

Overwhelmed! Most of us have visual drive rather strong!!! – it is easy to be overloaded and eventually blocked by too much information. Tossing tv, limiting internet browsing and choosing memorable visual feasts ( nature hike, neighborhood festival, visit in local gallery) strengthen desire to paint after some time to process. We can produce something what is ours and coming from the soul, heart, mind. Huge amounts of images makes brain sad and slow – as too much cake for the body!

Nancy, I too have been overwhelmed by all the data available on the internet, as wonderful as it is. I think it acutally clogs my brain and I go on “overload”. Recently I took myself off of Facebook, wrote a mass email saying I was taking a hiatus from my computer…

Hard to believe the hand-wringing about this.

Hi, my name is Joan and I am a procrastinator. Thanks Thierry and Robert for the reminder of how to deal with this issue. Thanks to Nancy for getting her issue out to us. It’s helpful to know I’m not alone. It’s helpful to be reminded to be in the moment. I used to think that cleanup and reorganization of my studio was procrastinating but, compared to wandering the net it is a useful tool for focus and finding sketches and Ideas set aside and forgotten is my reward.

most days i wake up in the morning and reach for my laptop before i brush my teeth and it’s the last thing i put down before i turn out the light at night. most days i lose my struggle to leave the computer and go to paint and i agree with brigitte’s comment above it’s probably because “painting is hard” and “the internet is easy”. and when you’re an addict it isnt easy to follow the good advise you get!

Brigitte is right, Internet is certainly easier than fixing that light spot, or crooked fence, or whatever today’s demon is. But focused searches do produce results beyond our dreams a few years ago. When you want to see some straight fences, or blue fences, or whatever, they’re out there aplenty. That’s comforting.

I understand how alluring the internet can be. I used to hate the computer and now I love searching for hours on end looking at artwork, finding information any excuse to keep searching for more….. more…… more…..

Rather interesting to think that artists have a problem seeing too much on the Internet to go back to their studios to create their art on the easel. My computer is my studio for the last 17 years and the screen is my easel. I would say I might have a problem to get back to my easel and my brushes after creating original works with virtual tools for sure, because I do have never ending choices to create my art. Sharing art on the internet should be a good thing for any artist. The way the market is today, thinking that it is easy to sell reproductions of original art, it is better to create only originals for sale or limit the numbers of original prints created.

Where is Dr. Phil when you need him?

Are you speaking directly to me?! As a photographer and painter, some of my work definitely involves being on the computer, but lately I’ve realized that I don’t spend enough time getting my hands messy in the studio – fear, confusion, wondering what my next painting should be, what my direction is… all those doubts are being supported by my internet habit. Thanks for the kick in the pants – gotta sign off; can’t fritter away the rest of the morning cruising the net and answering email ;-) !

I smiled since I celebrated my 40th year on AA this summer! I spend very little time on the computer and in no way will I become one of its victims.

As much as we enjoy having lots of people read our blogs and look at our sites, it’s not helpful if artists are wasting precious time on the web. The title of the blog I wrote this morning is “Decisive Internet Browsing”. I wrote it as much for myself as for others.

With fine compositions like those Nancy, you need not look anywhere for inspiration.

I joined Facebook and quit within six months. I noticed that a lot of people wrote absolutely crazy things on line that got to my message board. I frankly noticed how much time others were spending on line. Then I noticed how much time I was spending on line. Funny how discovery turns to self discovery! And here I am doing it again. I am writing instead of painting. You see how easy it is to fall back in?

Looking at Nancy’s work, I can see she is really about ‘the mind’? maybe she needs to get out of head, and into her easel? Well, I certainly don’t mean for her to LITERALLY “be out of her mind”, but perhaps she shouldn’t THINK so much?

Sometimes if I get in a simple blank space and turn off everything, unplug even the microwave etc. : I clear my mind and try to think of nothing….when I achieve the nothing and know it, I have opened my mind for new and original creations. The internet is “programmed” to do just the thing that is bothering you. Most people that live on it….never create anything original. It is wicked soup! Turn it off.

It took a long while for the novelty of the internet to wear off but it finally has. After hours online I feel no more enlightened or educated than when I started. I feel as if I’d eaten a half-gallon of ice cream at one sitting; sluggish, ashamed, and still not satisfied. It is not that the information is false or worthless, but that I only rarely have real use for it.

Perhaps Ms. Scott is suffering a milder form of Stendhal Syndrome, which causes rapid heartbeat, dizziness, fainting, and confusion a when an individual is exposed to too much art at once. I heard about this when visiting the Louvre. My reaction was: You can have too much art?

I like the paintings of Nancy Bell Scott.

Nancy’s work is excellent. Just cut down on the schmoozing and do more collaging.

“those who will not start, will never finish”

I actually have a theory about the internet and those of us who use it. Like the saying about people who live in big, culturally rich cities who only hang out in their own neighbourhoods (“I go up 5 blocks, I go down 5 blocks”), most people visit no more than 5 sites daily, and they’re the same 5 sites every day. Just make sure they’re yogurt and flax seeds and not a McDonald’s happy meal.

Robert’s insights, and most of the comments appearing here so far, interest me greatly and will be very useful in the days and years to come. My too-long original email to Robert was in response to his letter on “choking,” and included the fact that I’ve been working at my art for over 25 years as an adult with very little “choking” until the myriad art images on the Web began to attract my curiosity about five years ago.

Nancy, I agree with you that this is a valid discussion. We are artists and this topic has been an issue for as long as people have been artists. Thank you for your thoughtful and insightful response on this.

Nancy seems confused.

The Internet, though beneficial, is a huge seducer of your energy,your time,your mobility,creativity and your attitudes. Not to mention it sucks up your studio time. Every minute on the computer keeps a paint brush from your hand. Of course if your painting with the computer, then that’s a different story. For me studio time is essential. Computers only enter my day when I’m finished working and need to upload new images to my site or talk here with other painters and share thoughts. The big benefits for me is I can visit museums around the world and see artwork I can’t ordinarily see. I can look up artists new to me and view their work. I am careful when I paint not to copy what I’ve seen on other sites. I question my motives when choosing a new subject and make sure the images I come up with are my own thoughts and feelings on a given subject. Too often artists just re-paint what they’ve seen. Use the Internet to inspire you to see things in a new light. See the possibilities of what can be done. I’ve said this before but I go to the masters for inspiration. They get my creative juices going time and again.

Omigosh, this one made me laugh, Robert! Yes, the Internet is a HUGE time-sink, and of course can rob us not only of studio/creative time but the urge itself. Because of that and many other (more serious and unfortunately unavoidable) distractions, my husband and I built a tiny studio in the lot we own next to our house for my escape. It’s a 10 x 10 shed, but it has a slant-top drawing board desk, studio lighting, coffee and a comfortable chair. And lots of windows! NO phone, NO Internet, and so far no computer, though I may take the netbook if I need to. Still no Internet connection though! kate@cathyjohnson.info

I’d like to share the trick I used to put down the internet “crack pipe”. I would completely power down my laptop then tuck it away in a drawer under other items. That took away the instant accessibility and made it a chore to actually go online. Now of course a person could not do that with a desktop computer, but perhaps if you powered down the CPU, unplugged the keyboard and then hid the keyboard somewhere. I would suggest the back of a closet, in the basement or even the garage. Then you could retrieve in the evenings after you have finished your work. This method worked like a charm for me. –

Nancy has lovely artwork anyway whatever the influence. Yes we all love to surf the net and keep current with what is out there. I keep a favourite image on my desktop which I change frequently and this is always a piece I like from cyberspace. Also in my word processor I have a page called links and here I keep the web addresses of favourite artwork and every now and then I go back to view and rekindle the interest.

Dear Robert, I have been a prime example of someone looking through magazines, the internet, whatever, trying to get an inspiration but not finding it there……..finally I find myself going up to my art room, finding a photo I have taken, mostly from my garden and when out for walks, or an idea in my mind and………putting it together as best I can….time flies, am enjoying the process so much, doesn’t always work out, but every painting I do I feel I learn something…… that to me is progress. I think for me I just have to paint!!..thank you for your letters, I read them religiously.

An art teacher of mine, in college, once said, “99% of everything is crap.” This is especially true in art. I would tell Nancy, to find her center, and look at everything. I am always looking. Once in a while, I see a new combination of colors, or a strong metaphor. It helps me to know that there are still new ideas waiting to be actualized.

Thanks so much for your weekly letters which are most informative and inspirational! I look forward to reading each one and am keeping them in a folder for future reference. You are most generous in giving your time and thoughts to many of us who need a push and are eager to learn and understand the ability to be artful! Keep up the good work!

I can understand how Nancy feels, but studio time has to be respected before going online. Sometimes I just use the computer to pipe music into the studio without even checking my e-mail. The best thing for a block (for me) is to go out and buy a big bunch of flowers and throw them in a vase with the minimum of fussing or “setting up,” (another procrastinating activity) and begin painting immediately. Flowers will wilt and change, so time is of the essence, especially if using natural light. Interaction with real life forces you out of the thinking mode into the doing mode. Likewise, going outside to paint as long as you don’t spend all morning moving the easel around the backyard looking for the “perfect” vantage point! The artist’s own personal creative reaction to LIFE is always going to be unique, and the deadline technique you have discussed in previous letters can get one brushing away applying paint to canvas. Remember, you don’t have to paint for twelve hours every day for the rest of your life, you just need to pick up the brush RIGHT NOW.

Interesting that you would cite some principles gleaned from A.A., Robert. There is even a 12-step group for artists/musicians/writers: ARTS Anonymous. (You might laugh as I did when I first heard of it. ;-> ) They have groups spotted all around the world, for dealing with the various forms of powerlessness that artistic temperaments can encounter—including the ones under current discussion. ( www.artsanonymous.org ) if anyone is curious. Eugene OR

Thank you very much, Dayle, for telling the story of your involvement in art and for your appreciation. Enjoying what you are doing, and still growing, do indeed count, in big ways. Our incompletes can be invaluable, as they end up posing new questions to address and explore. Some of them spend a long time on my studio wall, as motivating question marks. It’s good to hear that Robert’s advice to focus on more specific Internet research, and only as needed, had already become a wise course for you. I believe it, and today began to track my art computer vs. art studio time. I will be making the necessary amends and am looking forward to a new (or old?) freedom!

Wow, many more comments since I began to (apparently slowly!) type my latest above. I appreciate every insight and idea, and am absorbing them. Thank you all, very much.

I’m joining NJA today. I’ve needed it for sometime and am just recognizing what a disease it has become.

I agree with Thierry. Nancy, you sound confused and ungrateful.

On the internet you don’t have to think, it’s a no brainer.

I think Nancy is Dr. Phil material.

Elisabeth and Thierry, obviously I am confused. Why else would I have written to Robert about this issue? It’s nice that Robert and most commenters have managed to be blunt, tell it like it is, and offer solutions without the “wailing wall” and “Dr. Phil” remarks, which seem snide, silly, and unconstructive. I’m sorry if I offended anyone.

Judgmental comments about Nancy’s experience which she shared in this forum seem totally inappropriate. My art school training was that critiques were to be constructive. You have no reason to be sorry Nancy. Robert, you might consider the remarks made by Thierry, Elisabeth and Paula S to be “unsuitable material”. They certainly added nothing constructive to the debate.

I have also been sitting on the internet now for four years staring at other people’s work but at first I was daunted looking at some of the good work, however over the years as I have improved I am starting to recognize some of the bad art I see and there seems to be more bad than good…. THIS makes me feel better about myself. As for the really good art I see, this urges me on to improve all the time. I am more critical of my work and in a way force myself to attempt to do better all the time – it raises my standards so to speak – it is almost as if I have to work harder to be as good as the good artists I see on the internet. In a nutshell, looking at art on the internet is a very positive thing for me.

If her paintings are the result of her web activity then she is producing some interesting stuff. There is a period of acquiring visual information and a period of digesting visual information – the digesting part sometimes takes time. Eventually it will flow – no idea before its time.

I do a great deal of trolling for images on the internet. Looking critically at images is largely how I’ve learned. Since our computer is on from the time anyone arrives home in the evening, we previously saw a lot of preposterous screen savers. In order to put the screen saver function to work, I cobble together images of paintings from the net, and play them as screen savers. So far I have 33 files of approximately 90-130 images each. These are a lot more fun than watching the packaged savers that come with the operating system, and, one hopes, somewhat edifying. We are in a mediated age, and are surrounded by images of all sorts. I believe that some of this means that eventually even the hand rendered art that most of us love will be to some extent devalued, or at least not valued as widely. Such is life. I’m willing to become an anachronism, the eccentric old dude with his easel out near the channel while the sails are coming in. I can tell you that some denizens of the park already view me as an element of the scenery. In any case, I’ll go out loving the images. Too much availability means I will just have to use some self control. It’s harder than passing up the chocolate covered strawberries!

lekka cuckoo!

I find I have to time how long I am on the computer, be that answering emails to both art enquiries and friends. Time flies by while on the internet so it is important to give yourself a time limit. I can see photos of Orkney and moorlands and visit art blogs where I can learn a great deal about art techniques so the internet can be a great thing yet it can take away time spent painting. Make a decision on how long you have to look at the internet then boldly switch off the computer when your time is up.

With regard to the “cuckoo’ flick, I would rather have a cuckoo like you than any “captain” of industry. Enjoyed the flick very much, and, of course, watching you paint.

AA has another group, called alanon. The family and friends of addicts also have the disease. It is a progressive FAMILY disease, and also a spiritual disease. Family members are addicted to PEOPLE, PLACES and THINGS. For every person in AA, they say there are 4 that should be in alanon. Unfortunately the opposite is true. Since it’s not illegal to be an internet addict and drive your car, we don’t get in trouble when we are addicted to other things. In our culture, very few of us aren’t addicted….How free do you want to be?

What is the cuckoo palette? I think Cad Yellow Medium, Alizarin, Raw Umber, Ultramarine Blue, Black and White? You got a lot out of a little!

If you use the moving images on TV (or videos or internet input) as subject matter, it is very good drawing practice. The talking heads work beautifully as quick studies– different poses and expressions.

I agree with Joan. There is more and more of unsuitable material in comments on this web site. It might be that most are by one person who doesn’t really have anything to say, but attracts attention by lashing out at random people. BTW, the wailing wall is an object of a sacred custom in Jewish religion, so reference to it, in the context used on this site, is in poor taste to say the least.

I love your cuckoo flick! That little red car is adorable, and such a great art tool, all fitted out as a portable easel. You could have helped the captain of industry think creatively…. no wonder he had faith in your abilities. Your painting was beautiful, contemporary and fresh.

The internet has merely helped Huxley’s slaver to pleasure become more a reality. I, myself am a victim! The trick however is to know when it has become a liability to yourself and your work and not a benefit.

Cute vid Robert…just love your car and dog too! oh and the painting was great (even though I love your abstract paintings best).

Thanks for this forum, Robert. Have appreciated all the comments. Light and shadow remain important, as always. Best to us all . . .