Hello everyone! My name is Judy, I was diagnosed with adhd as a kid but my father said that was just an excuse for my behavior and it was all bs. It wasn't until I was an adult I learned the science behind adhd and the dopamine issue. Now I have medication and practice adhd mindfulness , trying to make my adhd tolerable for me and those around me lol.
I'm currently in an art mastery course with Milan. It's a year long and kinda intense. I'm learning tons of new stuff, like oils, and improving with every lesson. I'm on this site because I really want to focus on my drawing skills, specifically people but all my skills need a tune up lol.
I will share my instagram once I get some of my recent stuff up there. I am thinking of using it as a record of my skill evolution over the next year.
Being neurodivergent is good and bad. I feel like we see the world differently, now if we can just focus long enough to translate what we see to our art we're golden lol!
Awesome to meet everyone!
1. I keep post it notes around my studio. They say things like "breathe" which reminds me to slow down and clear my mind. I might need to do that every 5 minutes on a scatter brain day lol.
2. I set reminders on my phone to tell me it's time to get started. I also set my phone to no notifications during this time. My boyfriend also knows if I am in the studio don't bother me unless I am taking a break. All I need is one question about where the scissors are to totally derail me for the next hour.
3. I have a process before I paint or draw. I change into my art clothes, do some stretches (I need to do them anyway but before standing at an easel for 4 hours it seems like the perfect time to do it) and then setup my work area. Say its oil painting, I pour out the cleaning solvent then choose my colors, put them on the palette, put my medium down, select the brushes I think I will be using, mount my source (as close to the canvas as possible for the same reason Iris mentioned, less time for my brain to change what I just looked at) then take a few deep breaths. I do things in the same order, same steps each time. This gives me a flow from the beginning, it's less for me to think about.
4. I wear headphones when i work. Classical music is nice since it doesn't have words and I won't start singing along, dancing etc lol. The headphones block the noises from outside, dogs, boyfriend etc. It helps put me into the creative world. Sometimes I will play music with lyrics, but it's from a playlist I made that I know will keep me in my flow state.
5. A timer, absolutely need this. It alerts me every hour when I stop, drink water, stretch, eat a snack maybe. The breaks are essential or I will hyperfocus and then become fatigued or stiff from standing in one position too long.
6. A dopamine board. It's a whiteboard that I write what I did today. At the end of the day you look and see today you spent 30 min practicing your sketching, 2 hours painting, 2 hours reading about art, looking at art, finding inspiring ideas and sources. It's concrete evidence of your productivity. Productivity means progress in your skills. Progress means dopamine, dopamine is what our brain is missing and we need to fill it up wherever we can!
I love that we have a place to share what works for us and can get ideas from others!
