Practice Art Every Day.
I love when the right ideas show up at exactly the right moment. Recently, while reading LensWork, I came across Brooks Jensen’s insight about cultivating an “everyday art mind.”
At first, I interpreted that as make art every day—a beautiful concept, but let’s be honest… who actually has the time? Between sleep, relationships, eating well, staying active, running a business, managing emails, and keeping up with social media, the thought of adding daily art-making feels overwhelming.
When I asked my students what their biggest challenge was when creating art, the number-one answer was: time.
But time isn’t really the issue. We all have the same 24 hours. So why are some artists so prolific while others struggle?
Musicians know the answer. Athletes know the answer. It’s practice—consistent, bite-sized, intentional practice. Jensen’s point wasn’t about producing finished artwork every day—it was about thinking like an artist every day. Training your creative mind the way others train their bodies or their instruments.
So instead of stressing about daily masterpieces, let’s break it down into manageable creative “drills”:
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Practice noticing—light, shadow, textures, and moments.
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Visualize scenes and consider the emotion you want a viewer to feel.
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Keep a creative journal with ideas, inspirations, and patterns you notice.
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Read and learn how other artists approach their craft.
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Study other perspectives to expand your creative vocabulary.
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Review your archives—you’ll find overlooked gems with fresh insight.
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Print your images and live with them; let them speak back to you.
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Spend a few minutes in the studio, even if you’re only prepping materials.
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Strengthen your intuition by listening closely to what your gut tells you.
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Engage with artists, take classes, and immerse yourself in creativity.
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Integrate art into your everyday life, even in small, five-minute ways.
As the old joke goes:
“How do you get to Carnegie Hall?”
Practice. Practice. Practice.
Most of us can’t create finished artwork every day—but we can nurture the creative mind daily. And that steady practice is what leads to authentic, meaningful art.
Tell me in the comments below, how you go about practicing making art on a daily basis, especially when you don’t have time to get into the studio.
Be well….be creative,
Clare
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As a fellow artist I so agree that actually creating something ourselves is hard to “fit in”! Love your perspective & suggestions … Thanks!
Thanks Barb:)
When I don’t have time to work in the studio, I sometimes go in and just look at and think about pieces that aren’t completed. Occasionally I’ll have an epiphany on how to solve a problem. But in any case, just seeing my works-in-progress generally makes me feel enthusiastic about getting back to work as soon as possible. I probably don’t do this daily, but will now make a conscious effort to do so.
Yes Gayle, it always helps to give a little space and come back and just sit with the work. I do this all the time as well:)
love love love
Excellent reminder! Thank you for putting it into perspective for us Clare. An every day art mind feels more manageable without the pressure we tend to put on ourselves to create-make-create-make….
It does indeed seem more manageable doesn’t it:)
My husband says, “As you practice, what you practice, becomes your practice.” Thank you, William.
Love this. Yes, Thank you William.