The energy of Joy makes art making fun
The energy of Joy makes art making fun
Plus: my new 'Joy' series of paintings on paper is released today!
Hello friends,
This week’s article is about the vibration of Joy, specifically having it as a conscious vibration for creativity, making art, and living life. I’ve been playing with this energy a lot in the last few weeks, and finding that it gives me a lot more energy for play.
Read on for my latest article.
Find me online:
My new ‘Joy’ series of paintings on paper is now available! Find it here.
Visit my art website: KrisCahillArt.com.
Fine art prints of my work: Fine Art America shop
Thank you for being here, I always appreciate you for showing up.
Love, Kris
Notes on painting with Joy
Joy is an energy, an emotion, and a vibration that makes life a whole lot easier and more fun.
You can feel it when you’re around others who have it, as they can feel it when you’re the joyful one. You might engage in an activity that inspires you to be in your joy, or go someplace that helps you have it. Like any other feeling, it can be fleeting, temporary, or missing altogether, until suddenly it’s here again.
People and places that can never have joy for themselves, or who judge those who do, are difficult to be around. One person who is committed to being miserable can spread that unhappy vibe to everyone around who will allow it. Some people seem to believe it’s not safe to be joyful, after all, the world isn’t perfect so can we actually have joy? Everything’s falling apart, how dare we feel happy?
In my opinion, this is exactly the right time to seek out the joyful. Shake it out and put it on. Whatever helps you to have it, do that thing.
One person choosing to have joy can walk into any space and bring so much healing. One person who decides to have joy, despite the realities of fear and unkindness, can create a sense of possibility for joy, even when everything feels dark.
Consciously choosing the vibration of energy we want to have and feel, sets us free.
Joy is a happy energy to match to while painting or creating anything, really. Painting often helps me find my own joy, especially if I allow myself to simply play, experiment, and allow for new discoveries. As I’ve mentioned in previous newsletters, Louise Fletcher’s ‘Find Your Joy’ Taster Course last month helped me start to see my own painting practice in a new light. I started to see how much weight I’d been putting on my art practice, and how I needed to allow for more play and fun in that space.
This has really been working for me, and phew, what a relief that is. I remember the joy and fun I had starting as a young child, while I was creating or making something. The whole point was the process of doing the work I felt like doing, making the thing that was fun for me.
I made drawings, paintings, paper dolls, clothes for my Barbie dolls, costumes, fashion, pillows and soft sculptures, embroidery, crochet, sewing and painting, sewing beads on things, glueing glitter, making patchwork jeans and quilts and jackets, inventing new ways of doing things, and as I write out this list I just remember how much fun I had. It felt so easy.
It was only when I put pressure on myself for something to turn out a certain way, or be ‘good’ according to whatever criteria I felt I needed at the time, or when I needed approval from others, that I lost sight of the feeling of joy.
Whenever I need others to like my work, I lose the sense of joy.
On the other hand, when people choose to buy and own my work, hang it in their homes, that’s really nice and feels pretty good too. Still, no matter what, I will continue making the work I make, and continue to grow and evolve as an artist, because I like doing this, and I choose it.
As I’ve been practicing working from this energy, while also experimenting with my painting style, my new series of Joy Paintings showed up in a few recent painting sessions. This series was inspired by an exercise in the ‘Find Your Joy’ Taster Course, in which I allowed myself to be more free in my painting style than I sometimes am. I also limited my palette a bit, which freed me up in many ways. See them all here.
Inspiration for Joy and other emotions
The films ‘Inside Out’ and ‘Inside Out 2’ might be intended for a younger audience, but are absolutely appropriate for us older people too! I saw ‘Inside Out 2’ this summer, and loved it. Super fun, emotional, and healing. Find it here.
Jon Batiste knows how to bring the Joy! This video is one of my favorites ever.
‘Life Is Beautiful’ is a wonderful film.
Thank you for reading, and for showing up here. May you have a week filled with joy and freedom.
Love, Kris