Day 04: Chipmunk
7 Day Wildlife Sketch Challenge!
Day four is the first of our two mammals 🐿️
A very cheeky chipmunk!
This little fellow is all soft circles and sweet fur and a lovely little meditative sketching sojourn with a simple posture (after the challenge of yesterday, we deserve it!)
Speaking of yesterday, how did you feel about your blue faced honeyeater? How are you feeling about your progress through the challenge overall?
Whether you are new to sketching, or have been playing with pencils for a long time, it is normal (but not very nice) to find yourself facing a formidable adversary: self-criticism.
That relentless inner critic, whispering doubts and insecurities that threaten to stifle your creativity and dampen your spirit. But there is a powerful antidote to these inner meanies: compassion.
Compassion, considered a soft and gentle quality, is in fact a mighty force that can transform your relationship with yourself and your art. It is an empowering embrace that soothes the harsh scrapes of self-doubt and helps you light your path to creative expression and growth. By addressing self-criticism with kindness, you harness the inherent power of compassion as a catalyst for unlocking your true artistic potential.
It's essential to recognise that self-criticism is natural companions on the creative journey - another one of those things I want you to normalise, because normalising these natural reactions disempowers them. We have a tendency to moralise feelings - but they are neither good nor bad, they just are. As humans, we are wired to strive for excellence and seek validation from others. It is traditionally how we were kept safe. However, when we internalise an overly harsh or demanding criticism before we even look to seek external validation, believing our work is not even worth sharing, our thoughts can hinder rather than help our artistic journey. So the first step in confronting self-criticism is to greet our inner critic with understanding and acceptance, rather than resistance or judgement. Treat your wild heart like you would that of a child - because no matter how old we get, that inner wild heart is tender.
But here's the truth: you are not defined by your perceived flaws. Your worth as an artist, as a human being is not contingent upon achieving perfection, but rather on your willingness to show up, to create, and to express yourself authentically.
Begin by acknowledging that self-criticism stems from a place of fear—a fear of failure, of not being good enough, of not measuring up to our own impossibly high standards or thinking other might judge us as harshly as we judge ourselves. But here's the truth: you are not defined by your perceived flaws. Your worth as an artist, as a human being is not contingent upon achieving perfection, but rather on your willingness to show up, to create, and to express yourself authentically.
So, the next time you catch yourself falling into the trap of self-criticism, pause for a moment and offer yourself a kind word or a gentle reminder that you are doing the best you can. Replace self-judgement with self-compassion, and watch as the heavy weight of that inner critic begins to lift from your shoulders.
Unfurl, my friend.
Celebrate yourself for being here, for showing up. And celebrate your other artist kin doing the same
Take a moment to reflect on how far you've come since you first picked up a pencil. Celebrate the small victories—the pigment strokes that capture the essence of a fleeting moment, let that sketch bring a smile to your face. These are the moments that fuel your creative journey and remind you why you fell in love with art in the first place.
Compassion thrives in community and connection. Reach out to your fellow artists, whether online or in person, and share your struggles and triumphs. You'll find that you are not alone in your journey and that together, we can lift each other up and inspire one another to new heights of creativity.
Honestly, I am so honoured to be walking and sketching this wild world with you. Thank you for your practice my friend, you are amazing.
Chipmunk
Image by Jack Bulmer from Pixabay
https://pixabay.com/photos/animal-chipmunk-closeup-bokeh-4544725/
PS: Guess what?
My comprehensive seven week wildlife art masterclass is now open! I only open this up twice a year, so we can work intensively as a small group on using lots of different supplies to make wildlife art - AND - become the most confident, curious, and compassionate artist we can become.
You can find out more here:
Thank you for your wise words, dear Natalie. It's always an enrichment to read it and to think about it. I'm feeling understood and not alone on this way anymore.
With yesterdays Honeyeater I feel good. It was a special pose, but it succeed that I only draw and don't have to much thoughts about it. I have my safe sketchbook and time. I don't like the practice to sketch something in 1, 2 or 5 minutes. But everyone has a different way of learning.