The artistic defiance of rest and relaxation

How much do you value rest in your art practice? Is taking time to pause, reflect, rest a regular aspect of how you create? In a world that focuses on producing and more, rest and relaxing is increasingly an act of defiance.

I got thinking about the part rest plays in my art practice over the last week. We took a family trip to Naples (Italy, not Florida - why is it when you Google stuff in Naples, it automatically assumes you mean Naples, Florida? Anyway, I digress) recently and I did no art and took a breather from social media. Not a total break, but I only dipped in and out. It was nice.

Now it was wasn't what you'd call a "relaxing" holiday. We've a four year old and we also like to move about so it was busy, busy, busy. But it's always so nice to get away to new scenery and attempt to release thoughts of things to do. Even if it's fun things like making art.

Overlooking Naples, Italy and enjoying the heat and scenery

Rest and time to reflect are definitely factors in how I create art. For example, sometimes I get a piece to a certain place and only through leaving it aside for a while do I understand where it needs to go next. Or sometimes I just need to reflect and look at a piece for a while before I know the next step.

In a world that loves productivity and doing "stuff" and always being busy, taking time out is a little act of defiance that can be really beneficial.

So how can we make space for rest in our art practices?

Here are some things to consider:

What kind of rest do you need? This may not be an easy question to answer. Sometimes rest is a break from creating. Sometimes it's a break from social media. Other times rest is allowing yourself time to sit in front of a work in progress and figure out where it wants to go next. Sometimes a rest is a literal holiday to get away from it all.

Scheduling is your friend. Especially when it comes to forcing yourself out of a routine. If you are always busy, then mark out time once a week (at least. Maybe it would be once a day for you?!) to just "be".

• Put your phone on do not disturb.

• Grab a cuppa or something.

• Sit in your art space.

• Spend time with a piece that's causing you issues. Or sit with a piece that you love.

• Maybe you need to sit in nature for a while?

Sometimes you need to get away from it all - including your art practice and that rest and relaxation time is also important and shouldn’t be “powered through” if you’re not feeling it.

Rest allows you space to consider. To reconsider. To think. To breathe. It's not always outwardly "productive". It's not meant to be. It doesn't have to be earned. It doesn't have to be a reward. It needs to be part of the practice.

Rest doesn't have to present in a certain way. Maybe it's meditation. Maybe it's time spent doodling. Maybe it's you staring at a piece of art. Maybe it's turning off your social media for a while. Or doing something active.

It should be a time where you have no productivity outcome. That you can switch off. That you allow your brain and creativity time to just be.

Now it's time to practice what I preach and schedule some rest time into my week. I'll let you know how it goes!!