What Does Creative Sustainability Mean?
Creative sustainability means that you, as a creator, can continue making art and creating projects throughout your lifetime.
I came to realise that as artists and creatives, we need to think about our practices as a lifelong commitment and try to approach them in such a way.
As in the case of many artistic and creative souls, I want my art practice to last a lifetime. However, running a sustainable art practice over a lifetime requires not only commitment and patience but many other elements that we can easily forget about.
Since I’m a big believer in the power of art and self-expression, I came up with a list of what helps me build a long-term, sustainable art practice:
- Your art practice will consist of a few “offshoots”. It’s a given (it’s driven by how capitalism works and the nature of creativity that is always searching for new ways to express itself): decide what yours are going to look like and stick to your choices. For example, if part of your practice is education, integrate education into your art practice. Time invested in those creative offshoots would turn you into an expert, and others will pay for your expertise. A mistake I made early in my career was continually shifting my focus whenever I struggled to see immediate results.
- If you have to work other jobs to support yourself, make sure you devote a day or two every week, or an hour every day, towards building up your art practice.
- Before you apply for residency, think carefully about how that residency is going to impact your art practice. Applying for residencies is time-consuming and very competitive. If your time is limited, make sure you really want that residency and put your best idea forward. Preferably, an idea that would help you move your practice forward.
- If you submit projects to festivals (film festivals, art festivals, etc), consider not only the costs of the submission but also travelling to the festival (some festivals cover the travel costs, but the majority of the smaller ones don’t). The whole fun of being accepted to a festival is the ability to attend and take part in all the activities that happen around festivals. Plan and have a budget set aside for festival attendance, marketing and promotion that you will most likely undertake before and during the festival.
- If traditionally run networking events aren’t for you. Don’t force yourself to attend. It will drain your energy, and you won’t be able to network. Find a way to network that suits your personality and doesn’t drain your energy.
- Avoid taking on too much work without asking for help. A lot of us have a range of skills that we could apply to our creative practices. But always take into consideration the amount of time it’s going to take you to complete a task, and ask yourself if it’s worth your time. When I was making my film “Anna & Modern Day Slavery”, at some point, I was doing almost everything on my own. It wasn’t wise, I crashed, and my recovery from that burnout was a very long process.
- All the creative work you do is part of your art practice and the physical manifestation of your connection with your creative self. Treasure that works, and if you have the desire to destroy anything, put it away before you do something, you will come to regret it. (I’ve done it a few times myself.)
- All your artworks and creative projects connect to one another, and every project influences the next one and couldn’t exist without all the projects that came before.
- Be kind to yourself and to your creativity. Don’t take it for granted, and the best way to appreciate your creativity is to create even if you have 15 minutes a day. Use those 15 minutes to create something that didn’t exist before.
- If you struggle with low self-esteem, I suggest making a list of all your skills and a list of projects you have created, completed or are working on. That list will prove to you how amazing you are. Every time you feel low or insecure about your work, look at your accomplishments list.
- Don’t get into a habit of spreading your creative energy too thinly. You are running a marathon, not a sprint and need creative stamina for a long time. (I do tend to do that, so I need to be careful what I commit to.)
- Learn to say no when you don’t want to do something or don’t feel comfortable working with someone. (Mental health is more important than money.)
- If you like working seasonally, honour that instinct. My most creative time is between September to April. I work much better in colder weather than when it’s sunny and hot outside.
- Take time off when you feel tired or overwhelmed. Your creativity will wait and understand your human needs.
- Asking for help isn’t a sign of weakness. You really don’t have to do everything on your own.
- Time away from your art practice is vital for your mental health and for giving your creativity breathing space. Holidays, short breaks and days out are an essential part of running a sustainable art practice that lasts a lifetime.
- Working 24/7 is counterproductive and at some point, will create resistance and disconnection between you, your creativity and your creative self.
- Learn from others and their mistakes; it really saves time. (Time is the only commodity we can’t get more of.)
- Guard your creative integrity and protect your values.
- Invest in learning through workshops and masterclasses. However, becoming overwhelmed in that educational/training space can easily happen. I tend to sign up for too many masterclasses and workshops, which I can’t attend. I suggest either setting up a budget for a year of training or deciding to focus on training in one area of your practice. Also, remember that, most likely, you already know a lot more than you give yourself credit for.
- Set and re-set your understanding of what success means to you. What does success mean to you at this point in time? The definition of success will change over time, so make a habit of updating your own understanding of success when your life changes.
- Don’t be afraid to “fail”. If something doesn’t work out, it’s ok to be upset, sad, or disappointed, but treat it as part of the creative process and learning. Internalising what society commonly refers to as “failure” is so damaging to our mental health and connection without a creative self. Always remember that you are trying to build a long-term, sustainable art practice, and not every project will work out the way you had imagined. When my feature film “Anna & Modern Day Slavery” didn’t pan out the way I wanted, I was devastated, and the pressure to make it work pushed me over the edge. It took me years to recover from that burnout. I made “Anna & Moder Day Slavery” on $12,500; I had zero marketing budget, so the odds of that film “making” in a traditional understanding of an indie film “making” were very slim.
- Haters gonna hate, it’s a given, and the majority of us already know that. As hard as it might be, don’t pay attention to the haters. Often, those people haven’t made anything themselves but are the first to criticise others.
- You need to be financially smart. Educate yourself about investments and finances. I know that the world is currently upside down, but nevertheless, you need to be smart and prepared for the increasingly common realities that will emerge in our world of depleting natural resources. Watch your projects and personal budgets carefully, as it’s easy to get carried away. Charge for your work and expertise to build a financially sustainable practice and to teach others that artists and creatives need to get paid for their work, time and experience. You wouldn’t expect a junior doctor not to be paid for their work. Charge for your work even if you feel you don’t have enough experience.
- Long-term environmental sustainability is very important for me and in my practice. I encourage you to consider the materials you use for your projects. Is there something you could reuse? I re-use everything I can in my practice. When I make a film, I hardly ever buy anything new, such as props or costumes. When I journal, I use old notebooks or diaries; I re-use my kids’ arts and crafts supplies. I also reuse old fabrics for projects that need stitching or sewing.
- We all have our strengths and weaknesses, and we should build that into our own art practices and look at our practices in Another Way, which represents what we want to create and develop through our practice. We also should be proud of the fact that we took the necessary steps to create something that didn’t exist before. The creation came into existence from our desire, imagination and determination.
All the above make up my art practice. However, to run a sustainable art practice, I also need balance, time, and forgiveness, mostly towards chasing perfectionism and for being too harsh on myself.
Do you think of your art practice in the context of creating a sustainable art practice?
Do you think about your art practice in terms of longevity, or are you more of a project-to-project-based creative?
Are you a neurodiverse artist who struggles with long-term thinking/planning and focus, like I do?
I would love to hear from you. Please add your comments, suggestions, and ideas below. I do appreciate your input.
For practical tips on how to kickstart your journey towards cultivating sustainable art and creative practice, check out the Makery.
PS. I’m made by Made by Dyslexia, so expect small typos and big thinking.
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