Sabbatical

[Infidel Castro]

Hello there!

I was speaking with Dragonsreach on the messages page and I mentioned that I hadn\'t painted for 6 months....this followed about 3yrs of painting, 2yrs of which were literally messing about (completed maybe two pieces?!) and then one year for Griffin Miniatures which was a lot more serious and brought my level up quite a bit.

Now before those three years painting I went through about 5yrs without painting. Before those 5yrs in the cold I would paint whenever I possibly could. It was my main hobby (apart from music, reading and occasional football).

The reason I stopped at that point was because I was going out more and more, meeting nice ladies, beering it up with my mates and working full time instead of schooling.

I actually gave all my stuff to a neighbour so he could learn to paint!

Then, after those 5yrs in the wilderness, I decided to start again (due to being ill for a while). I needed something to do, you see.

I enjoyed two years of fooling around with the brush in my spare time, and it felt like a hobby again. Then I took the job with Griffin and enjoyed that as well. That, as I said, was a year of painting. But , by the end, I was getting a bit stir-crazy with being at home all day, painting all the time. It improved my skills a fair bit and that is something I\'m chuffed about. In fact it was something I wanted to do since I was a kid, although I pictured working for Citadel of course!

Now, as things stand, I haven\'t painted for 6 months - unless you count undercoating a mini. And this is the problem! I\'ve got two minis near completion that need, at most, 2 hrs and 4 hrs respectively. I also have another under-way and one coated and ready for business...BUT I CAN\'T DO IT!

Does anyone ever have this kind of problem? It is my MAIN hobby and yet I can\'t get my arse in gear to do it. Please, somebody point me in the right direction!

Oh, and this is probably my first Forum post in 6 months...could there be a link?

As Dragonsreach said, the Painting Neglection Agency will be knocking at my door very soon...cruelty against brushes and everything...

Please, fellow painters, help me out of this terrible place and into the light!

Yours longingly,

Rev

 

[frenchkid]

Yeah I have the same sort of problem, I really do feel like painting and every day I wake up saying \'today I will paint\' but at the end of the day I havent pivked up a brush. I just sit at my desk and pay computer instead of painting . Maybe it has to do with the mini I\'m curently painting, I\'m not feeling inpired. Maybe you should try to buy that mini that really inspires you to paint.

 

[No Such Agency]

I just sit at my desk and [play] computer instead of painting...

Yeah, I do that a lot too, and it bugs me. Also, though I do enjoy the process and results a lot, I don\'t find that it\'s an \"escape\" for me. If I\'m depressed, anxious or upset I often can\'t pick up a brush at all. When I am in a painting mood, I just can\'t sit for hours and paint, either. I\'m always doing something else simultaneously, or just puttering . I honestly don\'t know how people can produce a 6 or even a 7 mini in \"a few hours\", I find that it takes me that long just to block out the base colours on a mini. Strangely, cleanup, priming and basic painting are when I can apply myself the best - probably because I just want to get them over with

 

[silverandblackattack]

Try something simple

To get back into the flow I\'d suggest you paint something simple, maybe an orc or a green slime or Ochre jelly. Once you finished it will give you a sense of satisfaction without being hectic. I miss your posts. They were usually very funny. Perhaps you are such a perfectionist that you are having a hard time living up to your own ideals or you are pressuring yourself to score in the 9 range on this site.

 

[tooshy]

Painters block....

ok so this subject has reared its ugly head again

Rev, I wish I had the answer, especially as I\'m stuck in the same rut as yourself. Whilst at work I keep thinking \"can\'t wait for the weekend and then I can get some painting done...\" and when the weekend arrives......NOTHING.....SQUAT.....ZILCH. Just doesn\'t happen.

I\'ve put it down to lots of things:

1. Too many models laying about, making me panic about how much work I have.
2. Spending too much time on CMON - I surf for hours looking at everyone else\'s models and leaving comments on the forum.
3. Having too much crap on my mind which I really should sort out first: life, love, money etc
4. I\'m scared I just can\'t cut it anymore with all the talent about

However, having said all of that - there is a slight light at the end of the tunnel. I wanted to take part in the Chick Challenge which ended in November and I got really inspired by one of Rackhams Eclipsante figures. So off I went, totally geared up by the challenge. I didn\'t finish her in time BUT I have totally enjoyed painting her and she is now finished, today

Can\'t say how nice it is to see something I\'ve completed after such a \'drought\'.

So Rev....perhaps you should think about entering a comp as it may give you the drive to get started. If you don\'t finish in time, just keep going and finish in your own time - it will be worth the effort

PS I\'d post a pic of the Eclipsante, but I haven\'t got any ftp software at the mo

 

[kittykat23uk]

I, too, currently seem to be having trouble painting for more than an hour or so at a time. I keep getting up, doing other things, even clothes shopping, which I never used to find very interesting at all!!! Meanwhile my pile of minis is stacking up and I keep feeling like I\'m wasting so much time. I think I\'m just really restless right now. Ah well, I\'m sure it\'ll pass!

Regards

Kat

 

[Infidel Castro]

External Influences

Yeh, outside influences make a bit of a difference. I\'m not scared to say I\'m going through a separation with my wife, and that does play on the mind (though not right at the front of it...normally ticking away in the sub-conscious). I started a new job 6 months ago that is \'do-able\' but not interesting. This is tiring in itself, doing a job without much reward. You\'d think that finishing each day I\'d look for escape in painting, but I haven\'t done it. What I HAVE done is play Japanese RPGs on the PlayStation. I completed Breath of Fire III and IV recently. I enjoyed that but as NoSuchAgency says, it doesn\'t quite satisfy in the end. Also watching a lot of films as I\'ve never been to big a watcher before. That HAS been good. The Graduate is all of a sudden my best film of all time (not telling you why!), and American Beauty blew me away. I can talk films for the first time in my life

But the paints are always there ready to roll...teasing me and making me feel like a failure for not picking them up

Tooshy, I reckon you\'re kind of halfway there with the problem of looking at loads of minis and spending more time as a critique. However, I know that if I use the skills I have learnt and apply them to a figure I like (as FrenchKid said), I\'ll end up hitting a nice fat 8 (I think). That would then be the boost I need to continue.

But saying that, I know that painting isn\'t about other people rating your work. I always painted for me, and for some reason \'me\' isn\'t having it right now. All those external influences! I can say that I have been reading some great literature recently though, and that may be one of the reasons. Anyone know Milan Kundera? He is blowing my mind constantly.

Oh, and I wouldn\'t say that clothes shopping is top of my list either!

Also I \'ve missed being in these forums (thanks black!) due to this computer and the server I use counting against me. They\'re so slow! I now type responses in WordPad and paster them into CMON as otherwise I\'m waiting a couple of minutes for the words I type to catch up. That\'s really bad isn\'t it? Anyone else use NTL 56k modem connections?

Good news now: My team on Hattrick is undefeated for 7 matches (won them all). That may mean nothing to many of you, but I know that Tuubje will understand if he reads this

Anyways, the confidence is slowly building, so thanks for words everyone.

Take care.

Rev

 

[tooshy]

The fog is lifting...

Hey Rev, glad to help a little bit. \'Externals\' are a pain in the :moon: huh, but at least when they have gone, the models etc will still be there

I\'ve uploaded my pic to CMON, but I ain\'t gonna post it here - on reflection it didn\'t seem appropriate in your current state of \'painting impotence\' lol She\'s on a separate thread. Maybe she\'ll give you some motivation..... \"Hell I can paint waaaaay better than that..!!\"

 

[Infidel Castro]

Hee hee! Impotent!

Nice one Tooshy! I\'m flacid!

Just saw the post...gonna drift over and have a scan

Rev

 

[Ebonbuddha]

I get that sometimes. Then I get the urge to paint and I can\'t stop. For instance last night my wife and I were out with our friends at a dance club. The whole time I was there I kept thinking about my minis. Everyone thought I was sick, or angry. I hadn\'t touch anything in a week. then suddenly I need to paint like a fish needs water.
lol

Originally posted by reverend
Hello there!

I was speaking with Dragonsreach on the messages page and I mentioned that I hadn\'t painted for 6 months....this followed about 3yrs of painting, 2yrs of which were literally messing about (completed maybe two pieces?!) and then one year for Griffin Miniatures which was a lot more serious and brought my level up quite a bit.

Now before those three years painting I went through about 5yrs without painting. Before those 5yrs in the cold I would paint whenever I possibly could. It was my main hobby (apart from music, reading and occasional football).

The reason I stopped at that point was because I was going out more and more, meeting nice ladies, beering it up with my mates and working full time instead of schooling.

I actually gave all my stuff to a neighbour so he could learn to paint!

Then, after those 5yrs in the wilderness, I decided to start again (due to being ill for a while). I needed something to do, you see.

I enjoyed two years of fooling around with the brush in my spare time, and it felt like a hobby again. Then I took the job with Griffin and enjoyed that as well. That, as I said, was a year of painting. But , by the end, I was getting a bit stir-crazy with being at home all day, painting all the time. It improved my skills a fair bit and that is something I\'m chuffed about. In fact it was something I wanted to do since I was a kid, although I pictured working for Citadel of course!

Now, as things stand, I haven\'t painted for 6 months - unless you count undercoating a mini. And this is the problem! I\'ve got two minis near completion that need, at most, 2 hrs and 4 hrs respectively. I also have another under-way and one coated and ready for business...BUT I CAN\'T DO IT!

Does anyone ever have this kind of problem? It is my MAIN hobby and yet I can\'t get my arse in gear to do it. Please, somebody point me in the right direction!

Oh, and this is probably my first Forum post in 6 months...could there be a link?

As Dragonsreach said, the Painting Neglection Agency will be knocking at my door very soon...cruelty against brushes and everything...

Please, fellow painters, help me out of this terrible place and into the light!

Yours longingly,

Rev

 

[Infidel Castro]

You\'ve got it bad!

I think that it\'s more a case of GO SEE YOUR THERAPIST! *lol*

I\'ll be fair, when I go out I don\'t think about painting at all, unless it\'s when I\'m at work you know?

Still, I share your pain

 

[No Such Agency]

Also, though I do enjoy the process and results a lot, I don\'t find that it\'s an \"escape\" for me.

Hmm, I should have said \"process of painting\". Goofing off surfing the web is just goofing off, I know that. </clarification> I actually find video game playing very satisfying but alas, my computer is too old to run anything more recent than Half-Life or Counterstrike (and I too am on a modem). Though I hear HL2 is coming out, it may be time to upgrade here at the Black Mesa Complex...

Anyone know Milan Kundera? He is blowing my mind constantly.

I\'m impressed - never read Kundera myself but my most literate friend swears by him. I\'m a die-hard SF reader myself - more what you\'d expect at this site. Though I do really like Douglas Coupland. Anyway, maybe the slump is just your mind telling you it needs a different form of creative stimulus, watching movies or reading or whatever. But stick around here for sure

 

[Infidel Castro]

Thanks NSA!

Cheers fell! I think I may just \'stick around\'.

He\'s good is Kundera, very good. But I\'ve got other books pouring out of the shelf at me. After a day at work it seems perfect for relaxation. A cup of Roibos Tea (S. Africa, I love you) and a couple of hours in the old reclining chair (used to be my painting chair as well...insult to injury) and you feel good all over The books are filling me with knowledge and passion!

Rev

 

[Taer]

I haven\'t even wanted to see another mini for a month or two now. :flip::bouncy:

 

[tooshy]

Lets \'perk up\' the Rev

C\'mon (no pun intended) Rev - there\'s a nice fat 8 waiting on CMON for you I know scores aren\'t the be-all and end-all but they sure are nice lol Come back and kick some painting butt and show us what you are made of

Ok, so I just stroked your ego - feeling \'perky\' again now ??? :innocent:

 

[U4-Welcome]

I just lost a whole post where I gave my opinion of Kundera\'s books and my reasons. :flame::flame::flame: Here\'s the new, abridged version : yeah, I read some of his books, didn\'t like them.

:flame:

 

[DennisMech]

Oh the irony.

Just today I got out of a painting rut, and am so happy with what I accomplished I want to paint lots now! Really enjoying playing around with blending through different colors to get interesting end results, I seem to be using dark blue as a base for so much these days.

The problem is definitely a rut in your life. Over the summer, I sometimes get into a worse routine than I do during school time. When I have school, the day is broken up with classes and people and such. I get lazy over the summe,r and don\'t invite people round, so I go weeks only seeing people for half an hour in the evenings during dinner, and never leaving the house. I play lots of video games, but feel empty because there isn\'t any end result I feel proud of. But minis painting doesn\'t give me the escape. I read lots and watch tons of movies. It\'s very depressing.

However, when I go on trips with my family, I\'m bombarded with new experiences, and everyday is different from the last almost completely. It\'s during this time that I start to really yearn for minis painting. Usualy upon return from such trips i go on a mini painting frenzy! This year I\'ve nicely timed (parents have nicely timed) the big trip of the year so that I have a perfect amount of time after I retunr to do some really good stuff on mini painting. My only thing I fear is that everyhting I\'ll be inspired to paint will be confrontation minis.

I just got out a rut today, without having to mix stuff up too much though. What I\'ve found also works is either buying a mini you really love, and forgetting everything else you have, or simply forcing youself to at least do something on a mini. I decided to sit myself down and finally do the flesh on the Dasyatis clone. I began working, and as I worked, I became really pleased with what I was doing. Soon I was painting for hours, and am back in the mini painting mood.

It\'s really up to you to get yourself out of a routine. Try something fun and new, or simply get the engine going, and hopefully it will work. I\'d love to see you around more on the forums.

 

[Coyote]

I find coming to CMON can get me in the painting mood.

Sometimes you have to remember that it\'s your hobby, and the idea is to do it when you want.

I\'m known for flitting from hobby to hobby. I\'ll get really into computer games for a while, and I\'ll spend all my time reading about it or playing it.

Then I\'ll get into painting, and I\'ll want to paint.

Or I want to write, and that\'s all I want to do.

Then again, there may be something that you don\'t like about the miniatures you\'re painting. For example, I started a TFT Barbarian (very cool model by the way, although the face is a little wierd. Just a plug for my friend, anyways) but didn\'t like how I handled the skin, so I haven\'t felt like working on it further.

Lots of things can cause painters block. If you don\'t HAVE to paint though, I say, don\'t worry about it. Worry always makes things worse.

 

[sivousplay]

My remedy for painters block

Pick up a mini like none you\'ve ever tried to paint before ... one that\'s really cool, and kinda scary (based on your skill level), and see what happens. For me, that meant trying a large scale resin piece. Trying to do something new got me over the block and when I was done, I wanted to paint more of those big pieces. After painting several, I found myself wanting to paint some smaller figs again and was quite excited about doing it ... also learned a few things that I started applying to the smaller figs as well.

May not work for you, but it worked out very well for me.

jim

 

[vincegamer]

PYAO

The local club I just joined has a contest going. The PYAO Challenge!
The winner is the person who paints the most minis in 2004. The idea is that we all have too much unpainted stuff lying around. The goal is not to do your best or try flashy new techniques, but just to get as much rank and file done as possible with at least a base, highlight and shade.
Anyway, it\'s like other contests (CMON, CC, VIC etc.) in that it means someone else is asking you \"are you done yet?\" That usually gets me going.
(Of course, I\'ve still got that VA marine to do...)