Finding Joy and Ease in Creating Daily
In the Studio with Genna Blackburn
Happy New Year!
One of the things I enjoy most about participating in creative challenges is that you don’t have to be alone in it. Even if you are working quietly in your studio, it’s easy to connect with fellow artists as you share your work and appreciate theirs. I love seeing what my friends are creating, and getting inspired by the glimpses of their creative practice they share along the way.
Though my friend Genna Blackburn and I live within 20-minutes drive of one another, we connected first as as fellow students in an online course in 2020. After chatting and DMing on Instagram for awhile, we finally took the step to meet in person, and became fast friends.
Genna and I love to draw together, take in inspiration, and dream about creative and business ideas. And as I just shared some of the creative challenges I’m dabbling in this year, it seemed like a perfect time for Genna to share more about her daily practice with us.
The joy and playfulness that comes from Genna’s drawings always puts a smile on my face when I see them—and reminds me that daily drawing is something to look forward to, not a task on my to-do list or something to dread.
I’m so happy to introduce you to her today as she joins me for a studio chat to talk about her daily practice, embracing creative play, and the joy of community.
Studio Chat with Genna Blackburn
My questions are in bold and Genna’s answers are beneath them.
Tell us a little bit about you in this moment—where are you writing from, what part of your day is it, what do you notice around you?
I’m currently sitting at my desk in my studio. I’m fortunate to have a whole room to myself in our home, and someday I would love to have a space outside of the house. In the backyard or above the garage would be a dream.
It’s the first day of 2024, so this seems like a fitting time to reflect. It’s only 4pm but it’s already quite dark outside as it’s been gloomy all day. Not uncommon for winter in Michigan, as you know! But I don’t mind it. It feels calming.
What does creative practice look like for you in this season? Do you have any rituals or rhythms you're leaning into lately? Are there any that you've released?
I have a 19-month-old son and that makes rhythm challenging for me. I crave more of it. I’m learning to use my time more wisely when I find pockets of time for myself. I often feel like I don’t have time to create — I am very motivated and I find the business side of things calls to me more urgently. And I will sometimes push my creativity aside for long stretches at a time.
But this past year, I realized that waiting for inspiration to come wasn’t working, and that if I would just start drawing anything, the inspiration would start to flow. It’s very counterintuitive and sitting down to create without any ideas can be scary. But I have drawn every day since July, even if it means filling a page with quick flowers before I get into bed at night. And staying connected to my creativity and keeping my hands moving in this way has been very beneficial. When I do have an idea that strikes me, I’m ready to go because I haven’t given myself time to get rusty. (I feel rusty after a week or two away from drawing, so it doesn’t take much.)
I realized that waiting for inspiration to come wasn’t working, and that if I would just start drawing anything, the inspiration would start to flow.
—Genna Blackburn
Tell us about your studio. Where do you work from each day?
My studio is a 10 x 10 room in our house with a desk, some shelves, all of my art supplies, licensing collaboration samples and filming equipment (lights, tripods, teleprompter, etc.). It’s packed but it’s just lovely. I have to tell you about my desk because I love it so much. It’s a Gerton solid wood table top from Ikea and it’s a bit deeper and wider than a standard desk, which is so nice. And I was able to put adjustable legs on it, from Ikea as well.
I spend a lot of time at my desk so it is important to me to be able to set it up ergonomically. The table top is a bit lower than normal so my arms can hang loosely at my sides, and my monitor is raised up on a stand so I can look straight ahead. Adjustable chair as well so I can sit with my feet flat on the floor. Chef’s kiss. I have purchased little cans of wall paint in various colors and am working up the courage to paint a mural on one of my walls. Think big flowers, bunnies, rainbows and sunshine.
Also, I have a salt lamp on my desk that I just love. It provides a nice, warm glow. And I leave it on until I’m done working for the day. So even if I shut off the other lights in my room, like to go have lunch, I leave the salt lamp on. And shutting it off when I’m done working is a nice ritual for me, it’s a signal that I’m done working. When you work at a location outside of your home, you have rituals that signal that you’re done working, like driving home. But when you work at home, you have to create your own rituals, otherwise it can be really hard to transition from work time to non-work time. Turning on my salt lamp when I’m ready to focus, and turning it off when I’m done for the day, is part of my routine.
You've been sharing delightfully playful crayon drawings for the past several months. How did you get started with these, and what has it meant for you as an artist?
I had been telling my therapist that when I found time to draw, I was too tired and didn’t have the brain capacity to do it. And she basically said that’s ridiculous, stop telling yourself that. And so then I realized: I felt like I needed a ton of brain capacity to draw because I was putting too much pressure on myself to make the drawing something useful, marketable. I tell students all the time not to do that, because I have learned that it doesn’t work, and had unknowingly put myself back into that position. My therapist told me, just get out some crayons and play! And I thought, “yeah whatever. You don’t understand. I am a digital artist. I draw on the iPad.”
But I filed this advice away and a few weeks later, I pulled out some crayons to see if my son, who was 13 months old at that time, was interested in trying to draw with them. Turns out, he was only interested in biting them and throwing them, but I started to draw sunshines and rainbows to show him how they worked. Then I remembered what my therapist told me, and I played.
I found I really loved drawing with crayons. I couldn’t undo or erase! I had to just keep going. And because crayons cost so little (plus these were already hanging around the house), it felt like absolutely no pressure. It wasn’t like I was working with expensive paints or something. I started doodling in my notes during an online workshop and just kept going. I have filled several books with drawings in the last 6 months and this brings me so much joy. I sometimes draw the same things over and over like I did when I was a kid. Sunshines, rainbows, clouds, cats, bunnies, frogs, ducks. Purrmaids! I am working on a coloring book based on these drawings and will be self-publishing it very soon.
When you work at a location outside of your home, you have rituals that signal that you’re done working, like driving home. But when you work at home, you have to create your own rituals, otherwise it can be really hard to transition from work time to non-work time. Turning on my salt lamp when I’m ready to focus, and turning it off when I’m done for the day, is part of my routine
—Genna Blackburn
Can you tell us more about participating in creative challenges and daily art making? What draws you to this type of challenge?
For the longest time, I didn’t want to commit to anything that I might fail at, like a 30-day or 100-day challenge. And I kept thinking, someday I’ll start drawing consistently. Then one day I was listening to Andy J. Pizza’s Creative Pep Talk podcast and he said the exact opposite. Commit to something huge so that even if you only get halfway there, you’ve still done a ton! He said it more eloquently than that, but that was the gist. That really struck a chord in me. I decided to do the 100 Day Project. I drew 100 animals. It took me longer than 100 days, but it was still a huge turning point for me. Then I did a 30-day pattern challenge. And another. I made space for creativity in my life. I came to terms with the fact that I wouldn’t love every single thing I made and that was okay, because tomorrow I was going to do it again. Whereas before, I was so afraid to make something “bad,” I wasn’t even trying. I think drawing every day for a set amount of days can be transformational. You get into a groove. You make lots of things so you learn a lot about your style and your likes and dislikes.
I’m starting a new program called 75 Art. Registration opens January 18! I’m going to bring together as many artists as I can to make art every day for 75 days, because I know the powerful transformation that it will bring.
What kind of inspiration do you surround yourself with? Are there any artists, books, or other things that inform your creative practice?
My very favorite book on creativity is Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert. I have the audiobook and I have listened to it more times than I can count. Her views on creativity resonate with me and have helped me reframe many things that have made an impact on my process and the fear I have around making art. There are a ton of great takeaways and quotes in there, and every time I listen to it, things hit me a little differently, in a good way. If I’m feeling especially creatively blocked, I put the book on and her voice is like a calming meditation for me, and it helps me start to draw.
I think drawing every day for a set amount of days can be transformational. You get into a groove. You make lots of things so you learn a lot about your style and your likes and dislikes.
—Genna Blackburn
Do you like constraints or rules when it comes to art making? If so, what are some of your favorite creative constraints to work with?
I’m a big fan of constraints. It seems like they would be restricting, but it’s actually really freeing to work within a set of parameters. Without parameters, there are so many options, it can be paralyzing. For my 100 Day Project, I chose animals and I drew everything on the iPad. So when it was time to draw, I didn’t have to decide what medium to use, or what subject. I just had to pick an animal and go. I currently work in a pretty specific set of colors. That is so helpful to my brain. I’ve figured out which colors I like, and I don’t have to decide every time I draw. You could even pick parameters for only 5 days, and say, “For 5 days I’m going to draw breakfast foods every day and I’m only going to use markers.” And see where you end up after 5 days. You’ll probably learn something about yourself.
How do you play?
I love working on my business, so play is sometimes hard for me to prioritize because it feels like I’m wasting time. But I have seen the importance of making time for play, so I’m trying to get better at it.
Playing with my son never feels like a waste of time, so I’ve definitely had more play in my life since he came along. I can’t get enough of him. He’s such a happy, joyful little man. I also love water, so I try to get near some whenever I can. I find just sitting next to water to be incredibly rejuvenating.
What does community mean to you as an artist? Where do you find and create community for yourself, and for others? How do you foster that sense of connection virtually?
Community is very important. Especially for entrepreneurs that work mostly alone. I am very fortunate to have cultivated relationships with other artists that are in a similar place as me in their creative businesses, and we talk all the time online. It’s so nice to have people you can message if something’s bothering you, or you want some feedback, especially people who can relate. I have also been in a mastermind of 30 creative business women since 2021, and that has been invaluable. We learn from each other, support each other, and cheer each other on.
In my new program, 75 Art, I will be cultivating a community of artists that want to make lots of art and have a group of like-minded people to cheer them on! Coming together to achieve this goal is going to help everyone accomplish their big creative goals for the year, because making lots of art makes all the other goals easier.
Can you leave us with a favorite poem/quote/excerpt that speaks to you in this moment?
“You have treasures hidden within you and so do I and so does everyone and bringing those treasures to light takes work and faith and focus and courage and hours of devotion and the clock is ticking and the world is spinning and we simply do not have time to think so small.” Elizabeth Gilbert, Big Magic
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