About a million years ago (in 2011), long before I hitched my star to Western art, I decided to join a local hot yoga studio. I was in the thick of my career and nearing burn-out, my mind was exhausted, I was physically drained and emotionally spent. Yoga was experiencing a renaissance in the Western world (thank you, Lululemon!) and I was desperate to find a way to get out of the world and back into my body. So, I took up hot yoga and the experience was transformative.
Fast forward a year and there I was, enrolling in an intensive, 12-month yoga teacher’s training program, my head full of visions of bringing my newfound passion and yogic ‘wisdom’ to others. Long workdays were followed by long nights and Saturdays spent studying and practicing yoga.
One year later: graduation! And SNAP! I had consumed so much yoga by the time the program ended, I was drowning in it…literally sick to death of it. Couldn’t see myself ever practicing it again. So, I graduated and then quit. Literally just rolled up my mat, put my shoes on and walked away.
So, what does this have to do with art?
Start where you are.
Everything in life has the potential to leave an impression, like a fingerprint on glass or a well-worn path. None of us are ever just one thing. We are, at all times, the sum total of all the things, people and places we’ve seen, tasted, and experienced. A moveable feast of complex memories, feelings, and emotions. Each and every minute of the day, whether waking or sleeping, our state-of-mind and our physical state of being carry the freight of all of our yesterdays and the list of worries for tomorrow.
Start where you are.
Like yoga, mindfulness in life is mindfulness in the art studio. Yoga is more than the practice of bending bodies, balancing on one foot, and prayerful gestures. It teaches practitioners the art of something much more basic and fundamental to life: how to breathe.
Ask yourself: When was the last time you paid attention to your breath? When was the last time you fully emptied your lungs (hard to do), paused for five seconds, and then slowly – slowly! - began filling them again. Try doing this without noticing the miraculous flow of air into (and out of) your body, or the expansion of your lungs as they move your diaphragm down toward your solar plexus.
Start where you are.
When you learn to pay attention to your breath, something amazing happens: neurons start firing and your body comes alive with sensation. The mind begins the work of checking-in with organs and limbs and thought and emotion and in that moment – in that very moment – the truth of how you’re feeling is made clear. And no two moments are ever the same. Because we are never, ever the same. As the saying goes, “if you don’t like how you’re feeling, wait for five minutes.” Which brings me to this:
Start where you are.
In yoga, each time you step onto the mat is a new beginning. You literally start where you are. Maybe you’re more tired today than yesterday. Or, you have more energy than when you last practiced two days ago. Or perhaps something wonderful happened and you’re feeling light and joyful. Or you were passed over for that promotion and you’re questioning your career choices.
Life moves at the speed of life, and we are all swept away by its momentum.
The same is true for your art practice. Each and every time you sit down to paint (or draw or write or…) you are coming to your art - stepping onto the mat - as never before. You’re another day older and even the usual thoughts and ideas are subtly changed, maybe it’s raining outside, and your mood is different, or your body’s feeling slightly – or dramatically – different.
In my art practice, paying attention to breath is how I like to begin my day in the studio. It invites me back into myself with a simple but important question: how am I today? What am I bringing to my art practice? Is it joy and optimism, or is it fatigue and quiet contemplation? If I’m exhausted or feeling low, I may decide to step away and practice self-care. But if I’m alert and energized, I may crank up the stereo and get to work!
Start where you are.
I throw my heart down into my paintings and strive to bring my best self to my art practice. Where thought goes energy flows. And energy flows from hand to brush, and from paint to canvas, which connects me to, carries and shapes the soul of each of my paintings. Because my passion is to bring feelings of hope and shared experience to my work, it’s imperative that I paint on days when my energy is flowing in the right direction.
Start where you are.
Artmaking is a practice, and successful practices need roadmaps. As the saying goes, ‘If you don’t know where you’re going, all roads will get you there.’ In art, as in life, knowing where you’re going is as important as knowing where you are.
If you ‘start where you are’, allowing yourself the grace and compassion to accept the “you” who showed up to your art practice, you’ll find that your practice becomes more than an expression of an idea or an inspiration. Your practice will become the reflection of a life that is extraordinarily human, and being human is the highest, most inspired form of art in the world.
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Lisa Butters is a visual artist whose paintings are inspired by a life lived and loved in the American West. Her passion is translating the beauty of the American West into western fine art paintings. Her original western artwork reflects the world as she sees it, embodying her hopes and dreams for the future while capturing moments in time meant to be shared.