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Your Creative Push

Your Creative Push is the podcast that pushes YOU to pursue your creative passion, even though you have a busy, full-time life. Twice a week, Youngman Brown interviews artists, musicians, writers, photographers, graphic designers, and other inspirational creative individuals in an attempt to get them to inspire you to put aside your excuses and START DOING WORK. Each artist opens up to YOU, revealing the things that hold THEM back on a daily basis, and how they FIGHT THROUGH IT. They then give you one final push, in an attempt to motivate you to start doing work as soon as the episode is over. If you have a full-time job or full-time responsibilities and WISH that you had the COURAGE and MOTIVATION to FINALLY do that thing that has been on your mind, this podcast is for you!
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Now displaying: October, 2016
Oct 31, 2016

Joey Feldman is a mixed-media artist from Los Angeles, California.  His works are figurative with a frenetic, cartoonish style at their core.  With line art applied to its fullest extent, Joey’s initial, fast-sketched lines play a role in the final piece.

Full shownotes: http://yourcreativepush.com/joeyfeldman

In this episode, Joey discusses:

-How he wakes up early and gets right to work because of the way that his creative energy gets drained as he goes about his day.

-DDD and LGD -- The feelings of depression that he gets if he doesn’t create something.

-His experiences with drawing O.J. Simpson, Eminem, and Donald Trump.

-His advice for people to deal with haters or with criticism.

-Dealing with procrastination and distractions.

-Freedom (the app) and how it helps to keep him focused.

-How he balances his time.

-The value of to-do lists.

-How meditation helps to energize him and also “clear the slate” in his head.

Joey's Final Push will inspire you to do the things you don't want to do, so that you can do the things you want to do!

 

Quotes:

“I get up at 4:15 every morning and I just have this desire to create.”

“I mean the guy is orange and yellow.  How could you not draw him?”

“I think it’s just this day and age of distractions is what holds me back the most.”

“It all goes back to a plan, because left to my own devices, I’ll find 35 other things to do if it’s not written down.”

“Just go and make stuff.  Create!  Do the things you don’t want to do, so you can do the things you want to do.”

Links mentioned:

Freedom: Internet, App, & Website Blocker

Neil Gaiman - Commencement Speech at the University of the Arts 2012

Connect with Joey:

Website / Facebook / Instagram / Twitter

 

Oct 26, 2016

Shawn Coss is an Ohio-based artist who loves to sling ink and paint at paper until it forms some type of creature.  He works for the webcomic and cartoon show, Cyanide and Happiness and also produces his own personal “dark art.”  During the month of October, Shawn is illustrating mental illness and disorders for Inktober.

Full shownotes: http://yourcreativepush.com/shawncoss

In this episode, Shawn discusses:

-How and why he started his Inktober project about mental illness and diseases.

-Some of the positive and negative feedback that he has received for his depiction of mental illnesses.

-How he handles negative feedback and “haters.”

-How he juggled getting a nursing degree and still created art.

-How he got involved with Cyanide and Happiness.

-His advice for people whose version of success isn’t necessarily gaining monetary independence through their creative passion.

-The common advice of quitting your job and just “going for it.”

-How he balances his time between work-work, personal work, and family.

-How he feels as if he is wasting time when he is sleeping.

-How he feels unfulfilled if he goes to bed after spending a day without creating something.

-Trying to find the balance between creating art and spending time with family and friends.

-The story behind his books.

Shawn's Final Push will inspire you to stay on your own path – don’t change it to fit anyone else’s!

 

Quotes:

“That’s just how I’ve always been.  I’ve never been apologetic for my artwork.  I’ve never set out to offend anyone, I create just to create.”

“I create artwork that I want to create, and I realize that when I do that, or any artist does, success will find you.  Or at least your audience will find you.”

“You’ll definitely find an audience that digs your stuff.  Whether that will pay your bills or not remains to be seen.”

“I feel like I’m wasting time when I’m sleeping.”

“If it’s in my head, it won’t leave until I create it.”

 

Resources Mentioned:

Cyanide & Happiness

Kindergarten: A Collection of Creepy Stories by Shawn Coss

AMN Clothing

 

Connect with Shawn:

Website / Facebook / Instagram

 

Oct 24, 2016

Karl is a painter from Sweden with a special interest in nature… specifically birds. Karl’s style comes from his interest for the forms of meditation found in Zen Buddhism, and he believes that the first brushstroke is the most important.

Full shownotes: http://yourcreativepush.com/karlmartensagain

In this episode, Karl discusses:

-How zen calligraphy helped to make him understand how he was trying to control his life.

-How so many years of looking at birds allows him to paint them by memory.

-How the practice of kyudo affects his painting.

-Karl takes Youngman through a meditation exercise.

-Why thinking too much about how the painting is supposed to look like can interfere with the actual painting of it.

-The theory that the first brush stroke is the most important.

-To approach the first brush stroke (or any first creative action) full of energy.

-To not worry about what other people think about your work.

-To embrace "happy accidents," and see where they take you.

-How art is a (safe) battle ground for him to overcome his fears.

Karl's Final Push will inspire you to create from your heart.

 

Quotes:

"If you have the knowledge of how to paint, if you paint with the image faded in your mind, then your intuition will paint for you."

"As soon as you start thinking about how it ought to be, you limit yourself."

"If you paint with your heart, you will paint something beautiful."

"I don't do it for the art.  It is a practice ground for overcoming my fears."

"The only advice I can give is believe in what you're doing, and just do it.  Don't be concerned with comparisons."

 

Connect with Karl:

Website / Facebook

Oct 21, 2016

Stuart Holland is a visionary realism artist currently based in Boise, Idaho. Working in primarily charcoal and watercolor, Stuart's work often depicts ethereal figures as they explore and engage with stark landscapes riddled with enigmatic natural and artificial features.  Drawing influence from sources like psychology, various spiritual traditions, psychedelics, and quantum physics, Stuart's drawings and paintings explore the timeless concepts of Light and urge viewers to contemplate their innate relationships with Self, Nature, and the Universe at large.

Full shownotes: http://yourcreativepush.com/stuartholland

In this episode, Stuart discusses:

-How his recent work has been heavily influenced by ayahuasca ceremonies that he recently took part in.

-How his artistic style has changed since his experiences.

-His reason for using charcoal.

-The experience of telling his parents about his transformative experience.

-Self-doubt and how to deal with it as a creative person.

-The importance of having a creative sanctuary.

-The role that travel plays in expanding his perspective and feeding his creative energy.

-How he balances his time as a bartender, an artist, and someone who loves to sleep.

-His dreams and the significance that he gives to them.

-Lucid dreaming and how they can be used to potential “speak” with your subconscious to get through creative blocks.

Stuart's Final Push will inspire you to be honest with yourself, both in your failures and your successes.

 

Quotes:

“I would really love to get into working with holograms and using that as a medium to facilitate a facsimile of a psychedelic experience in a sort of immersive art installation.”

“It’s so hard to be a creative person in a world that doesn’t necessarily favor creative endeavors.”

“Having that creative space is crucial for me.”

“Creating something and bringing it to fruition and manifesting it in front of you is a very sacred ability that we have and it needs the reverence and the opportunity to flourish.”

“Each night you dream it’s like having a mini-life.”

“It’s not going to be one single decision that makes that transformation happen in your life, but it’s going to be a small series of decisions that you make throughout your day, throughout your week, over the course of a year.”

Links mentioned:

The Doors of Perception and Heaven and Hell by Aldous Huxley

Dark Nature: A Natural History of Evil by Lyall Watson

The Human Experience Podcast Episode 69

Connect with Stuart:

Website / Instagram

Oct 19, 2016

Gary Taxali is an award-winning muli-media artist from Canada who draws inspiration from vintage comics and advertising, producing an assortment of graphic design, fine art, and street art, all rolled into one.  His work has been seen not just in print and in museums throughout North America and Europe, but on toys, wine labels, coins for the Canadian Mint and clothing.

Full shownotes: http://yourcreativepush.com/garytaxali

In this episode, Gary discusses:

-The experience of designing coins for the Canadian Mint.

-A very serendipitous story relating to coins and his ancestry.

-The relaxation that can come from being aware of the serendipitous nature of existence.

-His experience with clients wanting to control his creativity and how he dealt with it.

-His process of creating a design for the marriage-themed coin.

-How he gets through the creative struggle of not being able to pin down the perfect iteration of an idea.

-His advice for people who have a difficult time “going for a ride” with their art as opposed to being in complete control.

-What we can learn from an obsessive love of doodling.

Gary's Final Push will make you see how AWESOME you are!

 

Quotes:

“I really believe that serendipity exists all around us.  You just have to open your eyes and just stop and take a look at it.  Because it’s rampant, it’s everywhere, it’s in our lives on big levels and on little levels.  It’s really refreshing to know that when you are aware of it, how much more relaxing, I think, life can be in terms of submitting to the process of just what life is.”

“Drawing pictures in boxes is pretty easy.”

“I like to do something that has a bit more dynamic energy.”

“Our mind likes to remind us of why we shouldn’t do things.”

“I think creativity is just a settling with, honoring, and embracing your idiosyncrasies.”

“Don’t ever let your art be something that you think is a measure of who you are.  It’s not.  The measure of who you are is your awesomeness, and you’ve already won the game.”

Connect with Gary:

Website / Facebook / Instagram

Oct 17, 2016

Chris Reeves is the founder of 2930 Creative, a digital advertising agency in Dallas, Texas focused on helping the nonprofit, medical, tourism, and mortgage industries.  Chris and his team have also began branching off into many new mediums, including a Facebook Live show and two podcasts, "The Creative Block Podcast" and "One-Star Review."

Full shownotes: http://yourcreativepush.com/162

In this episode, Chris discusses:

-How he and his wife started 2930 Creative and how he is surprised to have made it five years strong.

-Not quitting when the going gets tough and continuing to persevere.

-How and why he started the new podcasts “The Creative Block” and “One Star Review.”

-The fear that comes when you start a new creative project.

-Coping with loss and how experimentation with new projects have helped him.

-How technology has made things both easier and harder.

-His earliest creative moments.

-His experiences being in a ska punk band as well performing as a DJ.

-The idea of having creative “phases.”

-How he and his wife balance their time.

-The importance of making some separations between work life and home life.

-How he gets past the “shiny object” syndrome and decides which of his many ideas are valuable enough to pursue.

-The importance of giving back.

-Making a “creative bucket list.”

Chris's Final Push will make you realize that the worst that can happen is that nobody cares, but more than likely, many people will care!

 

Quotes:

“I think the biggest reason we made it is that we didn’t quit.”

“I think it’s just not quitting.  Because it is easy when things get hard to just do something different.”

“The idea was born out of the fact that chasing down clients for money is not very fun.”

“It’s always scary when you start a new thing.  I think every creative feels that way.”

Links mentioned:

The Creative Block Podcast

One-Star Review

Curate

Conscious Capitalism: Liberating the Heroic Spirit of Business by John Mackey

Uncontainable: How Passion, Commitment, and Conscious Capitalism Built a Business Where Everyone Thrives by Kip Tindell

Pencil Kings

Schoolism

Pen Pineapple Apple Pen

Kung Fury

Connect with Chris:

Website / Facebook / Instagram / Twitter

Oct 14, 2016

Stephanie Halligan is a cartoonist and the “art and soul” behind Arttoself.com, where she delivers a daily dose of doodles and notes of inspiration to her subscribers’ inboxes.

Full shownotes: http://yourcreativepush.com/161

In this episode, Stephanie discusses:

-How Art to Self came to be and what it means to her.

-The importance of putting work in on a daily basis and giving yourself goals and deadlines for that.

-The notion of making work that you need to see, that will help you out on your daily grind, and how that will most likely resonate with others.

-Her six-year old mega-fan!

-How it’s not just her cartoons and notes that inspire people, but also the fact that she shows up every day to do it.

-Some of her daily resistances that hold her back from putting in the work.

-Understanding that creative blocks and self-doubt will always be there, so just recognizing its presence can help to diffuse it.

-“The War of Art” by Steven Pressfield and how it helped to inspire her to create daily content via Art to Self.

-The importance of creating personal work as early in the day as possible, when the resistance isn’t as strong.

-Taking E-mail and social media apps off of her phone.

-Taking motivation from the perseverance of people like Jim Henson.

Stephanie's Final Push will help you to realize that it’s okay if you have found yourself in an artistic break – all you have to do is start again today!

 

Quotes:

“Show up and create.  On the days when fear is kicking your butt, show up and create.  On days when you feel on top of the world, show up and create.”

“If I let fear, emotional doubt, and worry stop me from drawing, I probably would only draw ten days out of 365 every year. So it was important for me to be held accountable for that work.”

“It’s amazing how sometimes those lowest moments can produce the best art.”

“It’s okay if you’ve stopped.  It’s okay if you’re not doing the thing that’s been bubbling up in you for so long that you know you should be doing or that you really want to do.  It’s okay that you’re not there.  But how about tomorrow?”

Links mentioned:

Stephanie's Creative Confidence Guide

The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles by Steven Pressfield

Better Than Before: Mastering the Habits of Our Everyday Lives by Gretchen Rubin

Jim Henson: The Biography by Brian Jay Jones

Connect with Stephanie:

Website / Facebook / Instagram / Twitter

Oct 12, 2016

Kelogsloops is a talented 20-year old artist from Melbourne, Australia who has been drawing since he was five years old.  He has amassed an impressive online following, with nearly 200,000 followers on Instagram. 

Full shownotes: http://yourcreativepush.com/160

In this episode, Hieu discusses:

-His artistic journey and how he got to the point he is at now.

-The decision to go against what everyone else thinks is best for you to pursue the thing that you love.

-The notion of being on your deathbed and regretting not doing something you truly cared about.

-How to handle your parents or loved ones not being supportive of your passion.

-The change that he made so that he could pursue his artistic passion.

-The incredible power that comes when you can align the thing that you want to do with the thing that you have to do.

-Creating a YouTube channel and putting his face to it.

-His passion to help anyone out there who might also be struggling from the same problems that he is, but not have a teacher or a friend to reach out to.

-How he dealt with being mistaken for a girl.

-His advice for people who might want to transcend gender “norms” of artists.

-Anonymity and how it can help you to fully express yourself.

-The differences between inspirational art block and motivational art block.

Hieu's Final Push will make you realize that you are in control of your happiness today!

 

Quotes:

“The more I drew, the harder it was to study.”

“You shouldn’t have to change your work to fit those around you.  Because that’s not very expressive of yourself in the first place, which kind of defeats the purpose of art.”

“My work isn’t about whether I’m a guy or a girl.  That’s the last thing that people should worry about.”

“I create my work to resonate with people.  The point of it is to connect with people and make people have a dialogue between themselves and the work.  So it’s about what the person sees in the work, not what I put in the work.”

“That’s how I tackle art block.  Just surround myself with inspiration until I get a new perspective. And that’s when I get the new fuel to go on again.”

Links mentioned:

MINDSHIFT - Motivational Video

Connect with Hieu:

Website / Facebook / Instagram / YouTube / DeviantArt / Tumblr / Twitter

Oct 10, 2016

Jordan Matter is a portrait photographer specializing in actors, models, and dancers.  He is the photographer behind the NY Times bestseller “Dancers Among Us,” and in October, 2016 he is releasing his new book, “Dancers After Dark.”

Full shownotes: http://yourcreativepush.com/159

In this episode, Jordan discusses:

-How he initially became interested in photography and then how he came back to it.

-The black & white printing course that he took at School of Visual Arts in New York City.

-The story of what gave him the inspiration to approach photography with a new determination.

-How a long period of “alone time” gave him the opportunity to obsess over photography and completely devote himself to it.

-How individuals can still keep an open mind to a potential path to making money from their now-casual creative passion.

-The difference in results between a defeatist attitude versus an optimistic one.

-His books Uncovered and Dancers Among Us and how they led him to eventually create his new book, Dancers After Dark.

-The notion of serendipity and how it has played a role in his photography and his career.

-The difficulty of a passion project with no guarantee of income taking away time from your family.

-Giving up sleep or giving up mindless activities to give yourself time to create your passion projects.

-Dancers After Dark and how it is a celebration of passion and one’s willingness to pursue it at all costs.

-How the nudity of the dancers shows all of the muscles that they have developed from so many years of hard work and practice.

-His advice for people who might struggle with approaching their creative pursuit without a plan.

Jordan's Final Push will inspire you to leap first, and the net will appear!

 

Quotes:

“When I saw my first print come up in the developer, it was like a Hallelujah moment.  I just suddenly realized that this was what I wanted to do.”

“So I picked up the camera again, but this time I went at it with renewed gusto.”

“I don’t know that I’m really meant for a casual passion.”

“This doesn’t always have to be casual.  How can I explore possibilities within this passion to make a living at it too?”

“The bigger thing for me was that I was allowing myself to fantasize about what it could become.  Whereas before I had seen why it wouldn’t become that.”

“If you know you love things in the general sense of a certain subject matter, keep working until you find specifically where you fit into that.”

“You can pay your bills and have your passion project.”

“I’ve just learned to exist with very little sleep so that I can do all of the other things that I want to do.”

“One of my photos went viral and I didn’t take it.”

“Once you cut out spontaneity and once you cut out the fresh moment, then all you’re looking for is the thing you’ve already planned to do.

“I think the biggest mistake that people make is they plan something out, and then they do it as planned.  And then they stop.  You want to surprise yourself!  You don’t want to just get what you expect.”

Links mentioned:

Dancers After Dark

Connect with Jordan:

Website / Facebook / Instagram / Tumblr / Twitter

Oct 8, 2016

Chris is a sculptor and a painter of all manner of critter, and has exhibited in galleries and museums throughout the world.  His work has been published in numerous books and periodicals in the US as well as in Europe and Singapore.  Chris is also a toy designer and sculptor of numerous instantly sold-out editions of designer art toys and figures.

Amanda’s mixed-media work combines the textures and colors of antique domestic objects, the natural world, and an obsessive attention to detail.  Her fabric creatures evoke ideas of cast-off children’s toys and ill-conceived taxidermy experiments with crooked human teeth.  Her work is highly sought-after by collectors around the globe, and she has exhibited her work in galleries, boutiques, and conventions across the United States, as well as Europe and Japan.

Full shownotes: http://yourcreativepush.com/158

Listen to Part 1 here!

In this episode, Chris & Amanda discuss:

-The “F it moment,” where you have no more time to finish a project and you have to put your perfectionism aside in order to submit your work.

-The idea of getting many different projects started all at once and how to handle all of that on a daily basis.

-Will you be happy or sad with how you spent your time when you are on your death bed?

-Coming to terms with the fact that you have a lot to say about the world and finding the way to say that through your creative endeavor.

-What their creatures bring to their lives and what their lives would be like without them.

-What their online followings do for their creative process.

Chris & Amanda's Final Push will inspire you to put your head down and keep putting the work in and finding a way to let the creativity in!

Quotes from Amanda:

“It’s kind of this narcissistic fear of failure and it really keeps me from doing a lot of stuff.”

“The way that I try to combat the futility of time is that I try to break everything down into small chunks.  Eventually all those bricks will eventually form a wall and then you’ll have a body of work.

“In terms of creativity, for me it’s drawing first and everything else after.”

“It gives me a reason to share my crazy obsessions with other like-minded people who also appreciate crazy obsessions.”

“You have to be a little crazy and a little silly and be willing to be a little frivolous.  I think that’s really really important.”

“Do whatever you can to demystify the creative process.”

Quotes from Chris:

“The thing that holds me back the most is that there is not enough time to do all the things that I want to do.”

“I don’t want to be yet another contributor to the endless bucket full of commentary.  What I want to do is give people a break for a second.  To look at something that might make them smile in an otherwise dismal day.  Or just a normal day.”

“Wishing got nobody anywhere.  Except for Pinocchio.”

“On Friday night, where are you at?  Are you out drinking with your friends?  Or are you in your studio working on your passion, working on what’s important to you?”

“Really put your head down and put the work in.  That’s the only way you’ll get results.”

“The goal is not to end up in a place in your life.  The goal is to get better and progress until you can no longer create art.”

Links mentioned:

Bindlewood

Connect with Chris:

Website / Facebook / Instagram / Tumblr / Twitter

Connect with Amanda:

Website / Facebook / Instagram / Tumblr / Twitter

Oct 7, 2016

Chris is a sculptor and a painter of all manner of critter, and has exhibited in galleries and museums throughout the world.  His work has been published in numerous books and periodicals in the US as well as in Europe and Singapore.  Chris is also a toy designer and sculptor of numerous instantly sold-out editions of designer art toys and figures.

Amanda’s mixed-media work combines the textures and colors of antique domestic objects, the natural world, and an obsessive attention to detail.  Her fabric creatures evoke ideas of cast-off children’s toys and ill-conceived taxidermy experiments with crooked human teeth.  Her work is highly sought-after by collectors around the globe, and she has exhibited her work in galleries, boutiques, and conventions across the United States, as well as Europe and Japan.

Full shownotes: http://yourcreativepush.com/157

In this episode, Chris & Amanda discuss:

-Where the inspiration for their creatures came from.

-How they intend to make their art a projection of the way they want to see the world, not necessarily the way the world is.

-How they feel a protective sense over their creatures.

-Amanda’s fascination with teeth.

-How Chris started his “Morning Scribbles.”

-The momentum that you can gain by putting out daily content.

-How they deal with creative blocks.

-The idea of “poop sketches” and the fact that rough, initial versions of a piece of art often have more life to it than a final, perfected version.

-The “inertia approach” of just getting started and building momentum.

-The positives and negatives of being a creative couple.

Quotes from Amanda:

“Sometimes I really do feel like I’m not the one in control.  I feel like they’re using my hands to come to life in a way.”

“They’re definitely autobiographical in a lot of ways.”

“Getting started, getting motivated, having discipline, time management – that whole family of stuff is like my white whale.  It’s the thing I long to overcome.”

“I try to go for the inertia approach, which is just start doing it.  If I can get myself started, generally I’ll keep going.”

“We always joke and say that our creatures live in the same world.  But mine live in the house and his live in the backyard.”

Quotes from Chris:

“I’m trying to make a projection of the world the way I want it, not necessarily the way the world is.”

“I want to engage the audience.  They’re looking at a monster that isn’t recognizable as anything, but they can recognize themselves in this character.”

“You can start your day with already accomplishing something, and that’s a really good mindset to be in.”

“I never thought that one third of my business was going to be from the thing I was doing every day anyway and not sharing with anybody.”

Links mentioned:

Bindlewood

Connect with Chris:

Website / Facebook / Instagram / Tumblr / Twitter

Connect with Amanda:

Website / Facebook / Instagram / Tumblr / Twitter

Oct 5, 2016

Mica Angela Hendricks is a professional illustrator who works primarily in ballpoint pen and acrylics.  She travels the world with her military husband and her talented 7-year old daughter, Myla, with whom she collaborates for A Busy Mockingbird.

Full shownotes: http://yourcreativepush.com/156

In this episode, Mica discusses:

-How she began drawing with her daughter.

-How her daughter has developed as an artist and how they now collaborate with ideas.

-The idea of being on equal ground with her daughter in terms of creative control.

-Trying not to get too discouraged by the talented artists and creatives that inspire you.

-Some of the many ways that she gets through creative blocks.

-Her advice for people who have trouble letting go of their creative control.

-A practice in collaboration of letting your followers or fans help to decide what you are going to draw.

-The friendliness and helpfulness of the people on Instagram.

-The value you can provide by posting either works in progress or “mistakes,” to show that it isn’t just as easy as creating something wonderful from start to finish.

-How Myla doesn’t care what other people think about her work and how we should all strive to reach that same freedom.

-Dealing with negative feedback.

-Dealing with dry spells and having to deal with the ebb and flow.

-How the name “Busy Mockingbird” came to be.

-How we all need both relaxation time as well as physically active time in our daily lives.

-The idea of “going on an adventure” with kids as a form of meditation.

-The story behind her book, “Share With Me.”

Mica's Final Push will inspire you to keep trying every single day and to always continue to learn.

 

Quotes:

“I like to let her have control.  It prepares her for when she’s older to be able to have the confidence to know that her ideas are valid.”

“I told her one time that she inspired me and she was kind of surprised by that.”

“Who cares, you know?  I’m drawing what I like and if you don’t like it, there’s a little button up there that says ‘unfollow.’”

“You get dry spells.  You get this time where everything just comes out like crap.”

“If you have to draw a hundred bad drawings to get to the good one to get you back into it, then you better start doing it.”

“Knowing that you’re going to have that ebb and flow is necessary to functioning properly as an artist.  You have to know that it’s going to come back and it’s not gone forever.”

“I feel lazy if I’m watching TV.  If I watch TV I have a sketchbook in front of me.”

“If you enjoy doing something, you’ll get better at it in time.  You just have to keep trying and keep learning.  Never ever ever stop learning.”

Links mentioned:

"Share With Me"

Connect with Mica:

Website / Etsy / Facebook / Instagram / Twitter

Oct 3, 2016

Abz is an illustrator from Perth, Australia that is still relatively new to the art world, having been making art for the past 3 years. Much of his work revolves around nostalgic characters and fantasy themes, and he’s currently in the early stages of creating his own imaginary world. 

Full shownotes: http://yourcreativepush.com/abz

In this episode, Abz discusses:

-What he is attempting to create with his “imaginary world.”

-How he was initially inspired by Rave Master and then later by his friend.

-How you don’t need any authority figure to give you permission to create and share your creations.

-How using an alias can potentially help bring confidence to people who are shy or afraid to share their work.

-Pushing aside negative thoughts because it doesn’t matter what other people think – the only thing that matters is being true to yourself.

-One of his earliest creative moments.

-The notion of finding your own “dark hallway,” where it is just you shining a light on your creative focus.

-His love for Pokemon and how Pokemon Go has helped to increase his following recently.

-Self-doubt and laziness and how to combat each of them.

-Attempting to post more work on a regular basis and drawing every single day and how that has positively changed his output and mindset.

-How you are going to look back on your old work after a year or two and detect all of the mistakes anyway, so you might as well put it out there and move on to the next thing.

-How our eyes are often a year or two ahead of our skills.

-A recent difficult moment when he was demoralized, but how sometimes all it takes is encouragement from a friend or loved one to get you back on track.

-One of his best creative moments, the first time someone wanted to buy his artwork.

-The satisfaction that he gets from going to conventions and meeting the people that support his work.

-The notion of chunking down your time into 45-50 minute intervals and focusing solely on one task.

Abz's Final Push will inspire you to go to sleep at night feeling like you just had a meaningful day.

 

Quotes:

“Being anonymous seems to give you some sort of boost in confidence.”

“It doesn’t really matter what other people think about it because at this point being authentic is my main priority.”

“One of my major weaknesses is this sort of laziness that takes over when I’m a bit afraid to approach whatever it is that I’m trying to get done.”

“Sometimes you have to create the trash to get to the gold.”

“Our eyes are often a year or two ahead of our skills.  You can detect what you want it to look like, but you just can’t get there quite yet.”

Links mentioned:

Svslearn.com

Rave Master by Hiro Mashima

The Pomodoro Technique

Sir Ken Robinson’s TED Talk: “Do schools kill creativity?”

The Element: How Finding Your Passion Changes Everything by Ken Robinson

Connect with Abz:

Etsy / DeviantArt / Instagram / Facebook / Tumblr

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