30 Things I Do Instead of Making Art
2 min readJan 28, 2023
- Look at my old art to “inspire myself” (but really feel sorry for myself because I “wasted” the creativity of my youth)
- Think about how I can never finish anything
- Eat a sad quesadilla and burn tongue
- Organize my art supplies until they look too pretty to actually use
- Complain about how capitalism is KILLING my creativity
- Sit in the same spot for hours because I haven’t decided between Project A and Project B
- Look for jobs involving art until I convince myself that I’m destined to go back to work at Starbucks
- Think about all the art I would probably make if I worked at Starbucks again
- Remember that being an artist will probably mean I will never have health insurance
- SELF-SABOTAGE, BABY
- Avoid unpleasant feelings instead of making art about it
- Think about thinking about updating my portfolio
- Spend hours on subreddits where artists criticize other artists’ art in the hopes that it will make me feel better about MY art
- DOWNWARD SPIRAL
- Watch cat videos on Instagram while my cats stare at me from across the room
- Decide to shave my legs but spend the next hour trying to find just the right shower playlist
- Pass on self-care because I haven’t made any ART and I am under the impression that DISCOMFORT results in ART
- Realize that I’m being silly
- Splash cold water on my face, as a treat
- Suddenly think about all the crooked picture frames in my apartment
- Decide to rearrange my entire studio at 7pm because I’m not being creatively stimulated and it must be the fault of my environment
- Burn myself out thinking about work
- Buy more pictures frames online (you know, for all the art I’m making)
- Feel guilty for contributing to capitalism
- Realize how late it is and stress about all the things I could have done that day if I hadn’t been so worried about (not) making art
- Lie awake thinking about how I should be making art right now because EVERY MOMENT MUST COUNT
- Write down ideas for art to make myself feel better
- Get stoned and impress myself with my ideas (as though they will turn into anything tangible)
- Make a list and post it
- Stay up too late than is appropriate for a 30 year-old checking for new likes and not moisturizing
