Structuring Summer Calm
Tips for Structuring Your Creative Art Practice in Summer
Structuring Summer Calm
Jul 27
This week in the vein of the monthly theme of ‘courage’, I’ll be sharing a project I’ve been quietly working on for years. Art begins with attention. To me it also begins with alignment to appreciation. Underneath an art practice is a deeper routine that I deploy every day. It involves a pencil or pen and paper and is a simple practice I do to better own my attention. I begin with a contour drawing usually from my garden and then a few minutes journaling (this is where I get my BEST ideas!) and then writing down a few things I am grateful for. This puts me squarely in the resonance of calm appreciation to begin my day. If you’d like to experience that…I made a free introductory lesson with some downloadable pages to check out.
Summer can be an exuberant time in the garden and life. There’s so much light and an abundance of opportunities in every moment of summer. And it can be challenging to prioritize our creative practice while accommodating the schedules of others. This is true in any ‘season’ but seems more obvious to me in summer. Summer takes a certain kind of extra discipline to schedule and commit to our creative practice.
Here are some tips:
Acknowledge the ‘season’ you’re in. Maybe in the actual summer season you’ve got extra help that makes it possible to make more art. Maybe you’ve got boundless energy or maybe you’re drained. Either way, in honoring where you’re at, I’ve found it makes space to better commit and allocate time to one’s art practice. In especially busy seasons, I try to lower the bar and set aside 15-20 minutes first thing in the day.
Commit. There’s a power to committing to 20 minutes a day. It’s a commitment to hear what’s in your heart and prioritize that relationship. Commit to making art. “To practice any art, no matter how well or badly, is a way to make your should grow, for heaven’s sake. So do it.” Kurt Vonnegut.
Be Prepared. Use time and attention to be thinking about paintings. Rehearse mentally so that when the actual time presents itself you’re ready! Prepare your materials in advance. Just like a chef doesn’t want to run around chasing ingredients and wasting precious time…have your materials ready. I do this if I’m working in acrylic by premixing my colors in advance and storing them in airtight containers. If you don’t have a physical space and you’ve got an iPad, work digitally on the go. If you’ve got a sketchbook bring it with you and grab 15 minutes to draw during the day.
Organize your Inspiration. I try and reduce inspirational overwhelm by organizing my photos into shared albums on my phone/computer. If you are a Mac person…I highly recommend Freeform which is free on your Apple device. It works like a ‘bulletin board’ and I can organize my favorite next images to paint, and write down the sizes I might paint them and match that with actual canvases I have.
Practice seeing black and white patterns. These are the dramatic bones that make dynamic paintings. Reduce your photos to black and white and see if the light and dark shape patterns are readable and clear.
Keep showing up! Work small to win big! Consistency matters…keep showing up for the things that inspire you! Work small to win big. Sometimes we put pressure on ourselves to make big impressive things when really small wins keep the inspiration flowing. If that means working on small manageably sized paintings to finish in one session, that’s a win! With all the uncertainty of the world I am clinging tightly to painting and putting attention on all that is beautiful to me.
Having an art practice is a way to anchor attention in the unruly days of summer and I hope some of these ideas help you. I also thought it would be fun to share a printable intention card with each month. I choose one of these each morning and place it on my kitchen counter to remind me to come back home to my heart and my intention for the day. If that resonates for you..the card this month is courage.
Wishing you all the best and thank you for reading/subscribing! Please send me a note if you have any questions about paintings/classes or just a note to say hi!
❤️ Anne
After I planted the garden for summer, I gathered some clippings from the garden. I stood in awe at how beautiful the light can be at the end of the day in a new season.
New Beginnings. 30x24in. Acrylic. $3800
Anchored.
I’ll have more to share next week on this but this is how I like to begin my days.
Anchored. 24x24in. Acrylic. $3400
Art to See in Person in Southern California.
I am honored to have had this painting juried into the California Art Club's annual Gold Medal Exhibition, being held at the Hilbert Museum of California Art in Orange, CA. The show runs June 14 to September 13. I LOVE this painting. Send me a note if you have any questions.
Still Point. 36x30. Acrylic on Canvas. $5400
Ends August 9th 2026
Ian and I each have two paintings at Ojai Valley Museum. We're honored to be included in the ranks of 19 nationally renown artists in this show. Find the full schedule and details at OjaiValleyMuseum.org.
Magic Hour. Oil. 30x40. $5600
Also on view in Ojai.
Group Flower Show
I'm so grateful to be in a floral show at blanchessylviaojai. The show is beautiful and is up through August. Open Thurs-Sat. 12-6pm Sunday 12-4.
212 East Ojai Avenue.
If you'd like to see a virtual catalog I made one with some paintings in the series! I like the sound effect when you 'flip' the digital page.
Available Art. 🖼️❤️
I created a digital summer catalog which includes recent paintings. Drop me a note if you have any questions.
Download this month’s intention card
Print it, tuck it into your journal, or place it somewhere you'll see it each morning. Download here.
Recently Sold.
So happy this one has found a new collector. Thank you!!
If you’d like to check out supplies I use, I’ve gathered my favorite iPad accessories, sketchbooks, painting surfaces, brushes, studio helpers and books in one place. Some of the links on that page are affiliate links. If you purchase through them, I may earn a small commission at no additional cost to you. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.