Art block is one of the most annoying experience among artists. When you want to work but something is blocking your creativity. This phenomenon occurs in specific reasons.

Stuck in a Creative Rut? Here’s Why You Might Have Artist’s Block

Do you ever stare at a blank canvas, yearning to create but feeling utterly paralyzed? Welcome to the frustrating world of artist’s block. This creativity killer plagues artists of all levels, halting progress and leaving you feeling discouraged.

But fear not! Artist’s block is temporary, and understanding the reasons behind it can be the first step to blasting through it. In this blog series, we’ll delve into the top 5 culprits that can stifle your creative flow, from the perils of perfectionism to the comparison trap lurking on social media.

We’ll also explore solutions to help you overcome these roadblocks and reignite your artistic spark. So, grab your favorite medium, settle in, and let’s get you back on the path to creating!

Here Are the Top 5 reasons why you might experiencing Artist Block.

1. Perfectionism

In the previous blog, perfectionism is discussed earlier on how it affects the flow of an artist’s creative juices. Perfectionism do more harm than good. It hinders your ability to work because you will be obsessed in results than the creation process.

If your mind focus in results than the process, perfectionism will appear and art block will haunts you. Art is not all about the result, just enjoy the creative process of creating arts. There’s no requirements that your art “must” be good to please others.

The word drawing is a present tense, not a future tense. So, focus in the present joy of drawing, don’t make it a future tense word!

2. Comparison

Shut down all your social media applications! In this modern day, you can have an easy access to comparison trap by the help of internet. Comparison is a major causes of art block among artist that spends more time in social media to compare their artwork to others.

You should not quit social media right away but you must use it in a  responsible way. Comparing your artwork to others doesn’t have any benefits to you. It’s just a magnet for artist block! 

Not only in social media, the comparison trap can also happen offline. One of the example of it is school. Comparing your artwork that got 99/100 score to your classmate’s work that got 100/100 is a rational way to be a comparison maniac.

Whether the comparison happens offline and online, you must find a way to stop yourself from comparing your arts to others. Everyone has a unique art style. You should embrace your own style. If you don’t embrace your own art due to comparison trap, Art block will comes to you!

3. External problems

While I’m not a doctor, I can give you some general information about this section for your awareness. The block might happen due to external problems in mental health of an artist.

According to Healthline, depression can cause a lost of interest to a thing that you are used to enjoy. If you are experiencing some signs of depression alongside with your artist block, seeking a professional help or a counselor might be helpful.

Remember that depression is not the only mental health condition that can causes art block. Some of mental conditions like ADHD can cause a lost of interest to hobbies. 

4. Lack of Motivation

Motivation is a big factor for you to produce an artwork. Without this thing, nothing will push you to keep going. Doing art without any motivation is just starting a car without a driver. The driver of your creativity is motivation.

If you think your are losing some motivation, think why you start art from the start. Another advice is to find some art reference to Pinterest for you to be inspired. 

Joining art community or forum will also be a good motivation to keep going to your creative endeavor. Discussing arts to other like-minded artist will refresh your mind. Feel free to spend in art communities to seek feedbacks, advice and tips. Be aware of comparison trap, use online communities with responsibility.

5. Procrastination

Procrastination is a common issues that individuals working in the creative fields. Procrastination is a form of escapism from any activities including drawing that an individual will delay or postpone when they should do specific activity. 

This form of laziness can hinder your art experience especially if you are chasing a deadline. 

“Nah, I will do it tomorrow!”

Next day

“Ugh, I promise, this is the last day to do my art!”

Past 7 days, you cannot believe that your tomorrow turns to one week. Now, you are chasing a deadline! Art block may be a byproduct of procrastination trap.

6. Not investing well to your art

Every hobby costs money, art is not an exception for it. Spending money for your art hobby is the best investment!

Not investing money to you art especially for digital artist is such a bad idea that can cause an art block! 

One example of that are a digital artists using a cheap knock-off drawing tablet having a trouble in the accuracy of their stylus pen. Every strokes of their pen to their cheap tablet is so inaccurate that their enjoyment from arts turns into frustation. Frustation turns to creative block.

If you want to improve your digital art experience, consider to invest money for drawing tablets. XPPen Artist Pro 16 Gen 2 Pro is a good tool for you if you are experiencing a digital art block. The convinient of it’s stylus pen is a big improvement for your quality of life!

Conclusion

Remember, artist’s block is a temporary hurdle, not a permanent roadblock. By recognizing the common causes we’ve explored – perfectionism, comparison, external pressures, lack of motivation, and procrastination – you’re already halfway to overcoming them.

The next step? Embrace experimentation! Don’t be afraid to step outside your comfort zone, try new techniques, and let loose. Remember, the journey of creating is just as important as the final product.

So, take a deep breath, pick up your tools, and start creating. You might surprise yourself with what emerges!

Now, you figured out what is the cause of your art block. Check out my article on how to overcome it!