You often hear of artists heading off to the coast to get away from it all and give their creativity space and time and to further render their craft.  Each year we drive to the Welsh coast, and I pop my transportable art equipment into my bag ready to grab all that inspiration that is about to descend upon me.  A day or two would go by and with all the organising that went on before the holiday there is not much more to do than make sure kids were  occupied and that the ready prepared meal was defrosting.  By this time I am wondering why I am not using my sketchbook or getting out the watercolours.  Over the years I have made a few nice informal drawings and paintings but the truth be known  my creativity evaporates on holiday. Perhaps it is because I am not a landscape painter or  just because the heart of my creativity is figurative and so the quiet coastal locations we choose just don’t rock my creative boat. But then surely I would still be brimming with ideas?

Writers Block?

More likely then I am suffering from a form of writers block with all that leisure time. Perhaps it is because an example of the theory that when you do nothing in order to focus on being creative it then  hides away in an inaccessible corner of your mind, waiting until you start to hoover or cut the hedge whereupon ideas will pop up effortlessly knowing you have not got a notebook to hand!  This post relates to content in a post that I made in June called Accessing Your Creativity Whilst Watching TV? which describes how the brain prefers to be occupied with undemanding tasks in order to be able to explore different avenues.  So instead of chasing my creativity into a corner by relaxing, I will be encouraging it out with a mundane task or two when I am back at home.  And as for my holiday I have found I can quite happily write for my blog ready to post when I get back.  As for the  rest of the time it is  fresh air,  sea walks and sunshine.

My breakfast last week!