Hi everyone,

It’s incredibly gratifying to finish
a painting. Seeing everything completed
and in the right place – it’s like coming home at
the end of a long journey.

There’s just one thing left to do: the signature.
Now, not every artist signs their work, which is fine!
It’s really a matter of preference. When it comes to my
paintings, for example, I do like to sign them.

Watch the video and see how I do it

There are of course a million ways to do this – no one
method is the best – but what do you think about this?
Do you like to sign your work, and if so, how?

I would love to know!

In gratitude, Nicholas

The process of making authentic art actually begins before you even start.

What you choose to look at, think about and even remember is ultimately what makes your art yours. In other words, what you put in affects what you create.

Especially when making Art.

This is what I am talking about today.

The strength of your art, your output, is contingent on your input.

The more discernment involved in the curation of all that inspires you, the more authentic your art becomes.

It is a simple idea but one we often overlook.

Do you curate your input? In what ways?

Let us know in the comments below.

And if you are new to Art2life, click on the link below and get my free Color Tips download.

This can really help you improve the color in your art.

Color Tips Download

Hope your Sunday is great.
Nicholas

Is it hard to choose
the right colors when
creating your art?

I used to really struggle with this.
I would spend a ton of time
changing colors and in the end the colors
I ended up with were not really any
better.

And then I started choosing colors
in a different way.

It has to do with looking at three important
aspects of color.

These are value, saturation and harmony.
Choosing colors based upon these, especially value,
can markedly change and improve your Art.

This helped my art process so much.
Maybe this approach, or even part of it,
can help you too.

If you are new to Art2life,
click on the link below and
get my free download that goes
into quite a bit more about color.

You can get it here:
Color Tips Download.

Thanks so much
Nicholas

Our art is really just
a sequence of choices.

A series of “Yes I like this”,
or “No, I don’t like that”
decisions.

In the end it is
all about discernment.

To get good at this we need to
practice. Not just in our art but
also in our life.

Discernment is the primary
factor in making your art, truly
yours.

Focusing on discernment
in both Art and Life
optimizes both.

It can make the mediocre,
extraordinary.

Are you saying “yes” when maybe it should be a “no”?

Let us know in the comments!

Thanks for sharing a small part of your Sunday
with us,

Nicholas

Hi, for the past 2 days
I have been talking about Design
because the Art2life Free Workshop
has started!

Go here to grab your spot!
We just started with lesson 1 Design
and have 3 to do over the next week.

Today I am talking about the
importance of seeing the 30,000ft
view of your art.

From a distance you can
best see how one change
affects all the areas of your art.

Understand too,
that changing your art, improving
the design is usually done
in smaller, incremental changes.

It usually takes repeated efforts
to get one’s art really strong.

Design is one of the
most powerful principles
available to us and that is why it is the first lesson
in the Free Art2life Workshop
this week.

Hope to see you there!

Nicholas

PS During the next week I will be doing
additional training in the A2L facebook group.

Click on this link to join the group!

Fear holds us back in our art.

But not all fear is the same. Knowing which kind of fear
you have is important to discern.

Most fears come from not knowing the answers.
Uncertainty in life and art conjures up a little fear
almost every time.

And this is a good thing. At least in art making.

Watch the video and I will show you…

Uncertainty forces us to use our intuition and when this occurs
our art becomes more personal. Not knowing, in the end, can
dramatically improve our art.

What do you fear?

Leave a note in the comments below!

Nicholas

PS I am launching the FREE Art2life workshop on
April 26th, 2019. To sign up, just click here!

PSS If you would like to take a deeper dive into all things art,
just join my free Art2life Facebook group, which you can do
by clicking here. Hope to see you in there!

There is something cool about garage sales.

There are so many disparate things and all are thrown on a
few tables on someone’s front lawn.

You never know what you might find amongst all this person’s stuff.
People sell all kinds of things.

There seems to be no rhyme or reason as to what might be on those tables.

There simply is no curation.

Sometimes our art can feel a little like one of those garage sales.

Being able to recognize and then fix it is what I am talking about today.

Watch the video below…

choosing less instead of adding more are helpful ideas that can strengthen
and clarify your art.

Do you ever get the sense your art veers towards that garage sale place?

How do you recognize this and what do you do to fix it?

Leave a comment here and we can talk about it…

Nicholas

PS The free Art2life Workshop starts on April 26th. If you haven’t yet grabbed you spot, just click the link below to do so

https://workshop.art2life.com/2019-free-art2life-workshop/

Sometimes, to make a big change in your art, all you need is a small, one in your thinking.

I was reminded of this when recently being shown how to find mushrooms in the forest.

Watch the video below and let me show you…

Like the wide awareness of an owl perched quietly high above, we too can learn to perceive our art the same way.

Especially as we create. Staying above the singular details permits us to see and respond more accurately to all the parts of our art.

If our art is made with broad  awareness, it can feel more expansive and open.

And as a result, it becomes a more generous invitation for those who encounter it.  There is simply more space for the viewer’s experience of your art.

This kind of thinking generates art that is memorable. It creates art that is desirable by others.

It does something that possibly we all strive to do in our art.

It creates connection.

Do you ever view your art in this way?

Let me know in the comments below.

Nicholas

PS We have a winner from last week’s North Star Challenge!…watch to discover who!

PSS  The free Art2life Workshop is going to be amazing… it starts April 26th. If you haven’t signed up already, just click on the link below!

https://workshop.art2life.com/2019-free-art2life-workshop/

Hi everyone,

Once we begin making our art, everything changes. It can so much that sometimes our art ends up very different than intended.

The reason this occurs is because once the art is underway, it is super easy to forget the essential feeling we had when we began.

So how do we remedy this?

It turns out the workaround is not only remembering but prioritizing the “feeling” we want to express in our art.

And not just when we begin but all the way through.This desired feeling can become the “North Star”,a reference point, for our creative decisions in making our art.

Spending time understanding the “North Star” of your art is one of the most powerful and bold steps you can take to strengthen and unify your art.

Interestingly, and not surprisingly, I have discovered when querying this idea for myself is that the North Star of my art is not too far from that of my life.

The act of writing it, articulating it, and then sharing it is a big step in its formation.

So today, I ask you,

What is the North Star of your Art?

We all can’t wait to hear.

In anticipation,

Nicholas

PS The brightest North Star comment will receive the NW illustrated, 3 Book Collection by Don Miguel Ruiz.

PSS If you haven’t signed up for the upcoming Free Art2life Workshop, that begins April 26th, you can do so here.

www.art2lifeworkshop.com

It is going to be amazing….

Hi everyone,

The hardest part of making art is when you are not making it. And, it seems like it gets harder the closer you come to starting.

But it doesn’t have to be that way.

Here is a simple re frame that might help you start more easily:

Starting will never be super easy. It just feels a little risky. But it turns out that uncertainty often makes great art.

And yes, this seems to work in life too. How do you overcome starting resistance? Your thoughts?

Nicholas

PS On April 26th we are starting our brand new, free Art2life Workshop.

To join, click below and we will notify you when we begin:

www.artlifefree.com