I managed to take a short break from studio work today (something I rarely do) and I went for a walk to collect texture photographs for some upcoming pieces I’ll be starting soon. The slideshow below has some of the images I found.

I love that even in the urban neighborhood where my studio is located, there is nature if I look for it. These kinds of textures and patterns stick in my head and roll around until I find myself pulling them into a piece of artwork down the road, often subconsciously.

If you look at the details close enough for a long time, they start to look kind of trippy! I’d love to know which strange natural objects Roland Topor stared at too closely when he designed La Planète Sauvage? Or maybe he just focused too long on something completely banal, like a house fern….

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Do you have a creative block? Are you stuck on a project and can’t seem to move forward? Give my flowchart a try to see if you can move yourself along.

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(featured image at top of this post courtesy of Pete Rosos of 2812 Photography: source)

One of my favorite artists and biggest inspirations passed away last August. Throughout her life, Ruth Asawa stayed true to her artistic purpose in spite of a myriad of obstacles. A prolific artist, she created an amazing body of work and was the epitome of perseverance. Here’s are three reasons why you should know this important figure in 20th century art and design:

Her Vision

Ruth’s impact on modern design has been profound but under-acknowledged. She learned traditional basket weaving techniques during a stay in Mexico in 1947 and used these skills in her innovative wire sculptures.

Her combination of clean lines with organic textures and patterns, as seen in her wire sculptures, can be found everywhere in modern design today, from the white vases that made Jonathan Adler famous:

to many of the products in the West Elm catalog:

We take the “West Elm aesthetic” for granted; it’s just what modern design looks like today. But when Ruth pioneered her wire weaving techniques, that wasn’t the case. She combined many different points of view—modern mid-century with traditional craft skills—to take a risk and alchemize something completely new, different, daring and beautiful.

Her Perseverance

Ruth and her family were interned during World War II in a Japanese-American concentration camp. She faced this same bigotry again after the war when she could not finish her teaching degree because no school would take on a student teacher of Japanese ancestry. After leaving the teaching program, she moved forward by enrolling in Black Mountain College to study art, closely interacting with 20^th-century greats like Joseph Albers, Buckminster Fuller and John Cage. The ugly prejudice she encountered at a very young age did not defeat her; instead, she ventured forward to forge a life of art, education, family and public service.

Her Ability to Integrate Motherhood with Her Career

Ruth Asawa had six children. Six children! Google Ruth Asawa and look at her prolific output of artwork—sculptures, drawings and public art throughout San Francisco. Not to mention that she also helped co-found the Alvarado Arts Workshop for children in 1968 and build a public arts high school in 1982. I don’t really know how she did all this and still managed to mother her children; I wish I could have asked her before she passed away. But when I feel overwhelmed trying to balance my work with the needs of my daughter (and I have only one child), I remember Ruth and know that somehow, I can do it too.

The post Three Reasons Why You Should Know Ruth Asawa appeared first on Amy Ventura.

We all want a creative life, whether it’s part of our 9-to-5 jobs or during our own time. Having a daily creativity routine ensures that you are flexing your mind in different ways, pursuing interests and passions outside of the workplace and adding beauty (however you define it) into the world.

Although I’ve been making creative work for many years, sometimes it can be a struggle to motivate myself even though I love and value what I do. Here are some strategies that have helped me build a daily creative life and also get back on track when I’ve strayed from it.

Always end with a starting point

The best way to ensure that you can quickly get down to work is to leave yourself a starting point. Creativity is 75% momentum and it’s hard to walk into a work session cold and start something completely new.  It’s much easier to get the juices flowing when you can jump right into a task. When you end for the day, try to leave yourself an easy place to pick up on your project: a few more rows to knit, a last proofread to finish up a story, a drawing that is already blocked out. Having an obvious place to start means you can dive right in and build up momentum.

Record your ideas

Is your brain buzzing with a million ideas for new projects? Or are you completely dry and searching for inspiration? Chances are, as a creative person, you’ve experienced both states. Every creative person does. So when you have those great ideas, record them; keep a sketchbook, a notebook, or just write them on a post-it and stick all the notes in a box. When you feel like starting a new project but don’t know what to do or where to begin, you’ll be glad you kept track of these moments of vision.

If you take the day off, then really take it off

Sometimes, as much as we might want to work, our brains sucker punch us with a big roadblock that screams “nope, not today.” It’s good to try and push yourself through a block in your work, but if you can tell it’s not going to happen, then it’s time to take the day off. Fretting and feeling guilty about being stuck wastes mental energy and won’t help. Let go and do something else while the micro-processor in your head mulls over the problem in the background. Often the solution to your impasse will materialize after your mind ruminates on the situation for a while.

Dedicate a special spot for your work

Nothing is worse for productivity and motivation than having all your creative projects spread around your house in a million different places. Maybe you don’t have room for a whole art studio, but respect your efforts by dedicating a work spot so you’re always ready to pick up where you left off.  It can be as simple as a basket next to the sofa in which you put your sketchbook, pencils and drawing board.

Forget about the big picture and focus on the small tasks

It’s easy to get overwhelmed when facing a big project and not knowing how or where to begin. In spite of all the talk today of “multi-tasking,” our bodies are really only wired to do one thing at a time, so break creative projects into small, tangible tasks and write them down. You will be surprised how much you can get done over time.

Learn how to create a habit

If you love being creative, it should just be natural and easy to do it every day, right? Unfortunately, that’s not always how it goes. Sometimes creative work feels like a fun respite from ordinary life and sometimes it feels like another chore to finish in a long list of daily obligations. That’s okay! Professional artists feel this way too. In The Power of Habit, author Charles Duhigg breaks habits down into three parts: cue, routine and reward. The cue triggers your brain to follow an automated behavior, the routine is that actual behavior, and the reward tells your brain that the aforementioned behavior is worth remembering again for next time. Duhigg claims the trick to changing habits lies in creating a craving for the reward. As an example, he cites our craving for the minty taste of toothpaste in order to feel fresh — more than the actual reward of clean teeth — as the true motivation that compels us to brush in the morning. So figure out what you crave and use it to your advantage. Personally, I like to listen to music or watch movies as I make my art. I really crave that little mental escape from my harried life and want to jump into art making quickly every day so I can find that peaceful place!

A creative life is a gift to ourselves when our time is often filled with mundane obligations. It’s an exciting, often challenging, practice that can reward us with the freedom to transcend our daily tasks. Whether you are a professional artist or someone who loves being creative in your spare time, you can learn to develop a lifelong practice of creating meaningful work that will inspire you, motivate you and add beauty to the world.

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Are you as tired of this winter as me and the rest of the Western world above the snow belt? Everyone I know in Chicago has been feeling pretty demoralized by the repeated rounds of polar vortex cold and the constant barrage of slushy, mushy snow. After my 14 years of living in the San Francisco area, it has been especially difficult to re-acclimate to this kind of winter drudgery. So, to keep my spirits buoyed, I’m trying out some mind tricks to get through these last cold days before spring.

Be Zen and embrace the weather
If winter activities like ice skating or cross country skiing aren’t your thing, how about a new creative project? Knit those arm warmers, make a collage about the end of winter or paint a watercolor with all those different shades of white, white, white. Sometimes it helps me to stand still and look for new beauty in overly familiar surroundings.

Look forward to the next season
For my daughter’s upcoming birthday party, I was researching simple party favors that would not add more disposable plastic junk to our already-overfilled world when I came across a darling idea: seeds. Not only will a seed packet give our guests’ little hands something valuable to do, but it actually brightened my mood thinking about planting something and welcoming new life. This, in spite of the three inches of mid-March snow that fell last night. So, ask yourself, is there some creative project you could embrace to prepare for spring?

Spark that creativity
Put on some music and make a list of 100 creative ideas/projects you’d like to pursue this year. It doesn’t matter how outlandish they are or if you ever do them. Just make the list and push yourself when you feel like you don’t have any more ideas. I guarantee this will help you feel fresh and inspired, in spite of winter’s icy death-grip. Plus, it will give you a whole batch of good places to start next time you need an idea.

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