Are you struggling with identifying your painting style? (Part 2)

In my recent post I started to discuss the frustration many new creatives can experience because they feel they have not found their own painting style yet or don’t know how to identify a style. And they can be rather confused and overwhelmed with all the different styles of painting that seem to exist.  Here's the link to that earlier post.

Now I want to talk about some tips of how to navigate this journey and get a bit more focus as you try to explore, discover, and eventually establish your own style of art making. 

Here are my 7 Tips: 

1 - It's perfectly fine to try many different things for a while - don't force yourself but only observe

One of the key things is to just paint a lot without rigid expectations nor clarity on what it is you love most. Try different things. This way you can slowly discover your feelings and preferences. So, relax and don't put pressure on yourself. Pressure will not help. Forcing yourself to pick something does not work. Creatives are not supposed to find their style in a certain timeframe. For some it can be a few months, for some it can be a few years.  The key is: Keep creating and practicing. Follow what brings you joy. And what's important as you try different styles / techniques is not just being happy by how your painting looks once it's “completed”, but also tune into how you feel "during" the creation process. How you feel during the creative process is the compass. There are subconscious feelings, perhaps memories, or longings, that you may not be aware of yet (and perhaps never consciously will), but just be open and pay attention to what comes up inside. Be a little more aware of how YOU feel vs how the finished artwork looks at the end. Which approach gives you more of the emotions that feel good to you as you create? Give yourself time to explore this aspect (more on mindset later). And multiple different styles feeling good is perfectly fine too, in such case pay attention to the commonalities between those styles or techniques that moves you. As you can see, identifying your style requires a lot of experimenting first.

2 - Work in a series (themes) approach over certain time periods

What helps is if you can group the artworks you create into a theme based series of few pieces over a timeline (this can be a week, a month, many months - you chose). Then create another series over a new period of time. This will give you structure and focus.

Let's say you like acrylics and water color. And you also really like abstracted florals, but then you're also drawn to abstracts that do not represent anything.  So an example of what you could do is this:

• Commit to creating 5 different "floral" abstract paintings with acrylic over a period of time.

• And then create 5 "floral" abstract paintings with water color over the next period.

• After that you can create 5 non-representational abstracts in acrylic.

• Then do 5 non-representational abstracts in water color.

This phased (series style) will allow you to have a longer focus to study a certain style and medium without switching to another style too quickly. This will be beneficial for your self-discovery. Because we learn and discover best through a lot of repetition with "focused attention". Repetition on ONE thing for a period is the key to mastery.  And before mastery, it will also help you actually find what you enjoy more, and shed more light into what you really don’t like that much after all.  And this approach will free you from the constant pressure of feeling you have to commit to a style “today”. You don't have to. and should not without exploring. Give yourself time. Keep experimenting with different styles, but instead of switching from one thing to the other with every painting, allow yourself to get a little more intimate through a series (or theme) before you switch things drastically. Over time, you will likely find that you enjoy one type of art making more than the other and you will very naturally want to continue with that approach and build a consistent portfolio as such (i.e. you find you love creating large floral abstracts on canvas). In some other cases an artist may, after a certain time of exploration, feel that they remain very drawn to practicing in two styles (or three), and in that case, they could continue to master both, and build two distinct portfolios/series. They key with creating multiple portfolios is that each portfolio shows consistency within itself.

3 - Remember, your style can (and probably will) evolve and change over time

Always remember this; As an artist, let's say you settle on a style today and paint in that style or medium for a few years - this doesn't mean that your style will remain stuck and not evolve. On the contrary, over an extended time your creative style should evolve. It will just naturally always change bit by bit. Sometimes artists change their artistic direction quite significantly after a number of years. Or they bring in a second style or medium as part of a second portfolio/series. It can be your technique, tools, moods, or color choices, compositions, or themes that evolve or shift. So, there’s no need to think or worry that you have to be stuck in one style for life. You don't have to. And you should not have to. You can always chose to follow what gives you most joy in a way that still carries your personal creative touch.

4 - You can create your own unique style by merging various aspects of multiple styles/techniques

Let me try to explain this… It's easiest if I pick some examples. Let's say you like the random blends and effects that happen with a pouring technique, but you also love painting abstract with brushes as that makes you feel more in control of your composition. You can develop a style over time where you do some brushwork to develop an abstract underpainting, and then you can add some interesting details via pouring in only some parts of the painting (and.. no - I haven't tried this one but just using as an example to make my point). Obviously the chosen aspects of the two styles need to come together in a way where the painting looks like one painting (one combined style) and not like two styles were accidentally squished together.  And this requires your sense of practice, mastery, and aesthetics you develop over time (this doesn't happen overnight). But I hope you get the idea here. Many artists (as they evolve) integrate multiple techniques and molding them all into something new, in a way that is distinct and pleasant to the eye. There are ways where you can merge certain aspects of different styles and yet create your own signature marks. And this can make an artist’s style quite unique, interesting, and help it stand out from others. A lot of such combinations of techniques will happen over a long time as an artist continues to explore and push their boundaries.

I as an example, love using big brushes and creating beautiful brushstrokes and blends, but I also love using a wedge (or similar tools) and spreading paint or glazes with it or creating interesting details. I can do this combination by creating multiple layers that look pleasant and integrated on top of each other. So my style often integrates two (or more) different ways / tools -  so I get to enjoy both worlds that I love very much (as I feel so happy using booth and I don't have to chose just one thing).  This may change over time, as I always try to experiment a little and discover some fresh bits and pieces over time - but that would relate to point #3.

Here's a different example where it's not about technique but "mood";  Say you adore certain styles of art that you are seeing out there.  Try to observe the things you like that are NOT about the technique. Is there a certain color palette you seem to love? Is there a certain way the light and dark colors are interacting? Is there a sense of boldness, or calmness, richness, or playfulness, minimalism, or messiness in those paintings?... What about the colors, what combinations of colors are you more drawn to? Look at the things you enjoy about the artworks you see that are not even about the technique. Often it is NOT so much the technique but the theme or feeling we like in what we see, and this can help you discover what you love. And then you can pull some of that inspiration and that feeling into your own work, while still having your own very different technique and style that still looks distinct.

5 - Spend more time nurturing yourself and your creativity, rather than looking at others' (art) photos on social media for hours

I'm not saying skip consuming social media altogether. There's so much inspiration and support there - I know first hand. And I'm personally grateful for the inspiration out there as I see such an abundance of creative work being shared every day - this can be such a great inspiration for me too, especially when in a creative rut. But limit your time of browsing each day or each week. Just get whatever minimum dose of visual inspiration you feel you need and then give yourself more quiet time to create.  And take some breaks, switch things up, and go for a walk instead of browsing social media. Listen to inspirational books (doesn't have to be about art), or podcasts, or get some other dose of "non-visual" inspiration into your day. Having a calm and healthy mind can do wonders in boosting your own creativity and finding your way! (and that is not just in art but in life)

6 - Don't compare yourself to others (this connects to the previous point)

Take in the ideas and inspiration you see out there, but don't aspire to do things exactly like someone else. Instead use that inspiration to create your own unique touch. This will not happen on day one, but remember this over time:  that you want to grow into a style that has your own unique hand gestures, unique strokes and mark makings, and your unique touch, or your personal moods, colors, feelings that the paintings emit.  If you always compare yourself to others, you will never be happy with your own work (it's how the brain works - constantly criticizing ourselves if we let it to).  Think about this, you may be comparing yourself to someone who is a few (or many) years ahead of you and they may have put in hundreds or thousands more hours into practice.  Who knows what struggles they went through at the beginning.   We just don’t know. Or, you could be comparing yourself to someone who paints to express a certain feeling or emotion (say for example chaos and conflict), and yet perhaps that is not the main emotion you wish you express in your work (perhaps you want to express a sense of calmness and joy through your work). Or visa versa.  You both might even use somewhat similar techniques, but can you see how that different emotion would show up differently too and there's just no point in making a comparison.

A healthier way of comparison is this:  Compare yourself against your "own" work a year or two ago, you will see the progress you made, or perhaps the changes in direction you created in your work.  Swim in your own lane, don't get distracted by others - not by their style, nor what point they have reached. This will help you to get more focused on your own growth and journey, and you will love and own what you do so much more.

7 - Remember it's less about the technical style but more about your personality and what gives you more joy

Think about how YOU want to shop up in your art. Use the  different techniques you learn or explore as an inspiration and a  "vehicle" in your journey, as a tool for you to enjoy the process, but don’t let actual techniques undermine how you want to show up through your work. In the end, it’s not just about the technical skills or methods… if you focus too much on the skill alone or the type of materials or techniques, you will miss out on your authenticity and power to express something you truly enjoy or care about.  Methods can change over time...It's more important that you think about what inspires you – you want to explore the things you have a personal connection with. There could be visual clues, like various aspects of nature, places, travels, memories, maybe colors in a certain type of photography that you admire. Do you see a theme in the colors that excites you in these visual clues? What is the energy in this visual clues? How could that translate to mood or colors in art?   Or there can be emotional clues like joyfulness or tranquility, softness or strength, or excitement, curiosity, power, humour, love, conflict etc. that you want to express via art… how do you think this may translate into your art in terms of colors, lightness, darkness, busy-ness vs calmness in colors or shapes etc ?  And there doesn't have to be just ONE thing you care about, there can be a theme of a few things that you can explore in phases in your art journey.

As you get more clear on the things that really appeal to you in life, you can put yourself on a discovery to collect a lot more inspiration for yourself, regardless of the technical style you chose to work with.

But remember, you can not just think your way to find all your answers, the key is to create, create, create and observe - your clarity will emerge along the way. Most importantly, enjoy the process. In the end that’s what matters most.

What has been your experience so far? Share your discoveries or struggles with your creative journey below.

• Victoria
  July 28, 2019
  
  Thanks a lot, very useful tips! The first example is directly about me! I’ll take your advice and will try series.
  
  

  • Deniz Altug
    July 28, 2019
    
    Thanks for the comment Victoria! Happy painting 

• Marilyn Bonnett
  August 29, 2019
  
  Good teachings from you, thank you. After years of painting, the traditional does not excite me anymore. Ready to try loser styles.
  Thanks
  Marilyn Bonnett
  
  

  • Deniz Altug
    August 29, 2019
    
    Thanks for the feedback Marilyn! It’s true that we all do need to change things at times to keep our excitement going and evolve at the same time. All the best!
    
    
    

• Claudette Coburn
  August 29, 2019
  
  Your art is absolutely stunning. I have seen it at Petroff Galleries and The Artist Project.
  
  

  • Deniz Altug
    August 29, 2019
    
    Thanks a lot Claudette for the kind comment and for stopping by – both at the art displays and on my blog