Being an Artist in the Age of Social Media

Well….This is a topic I’ve been swimming in lately as prepare for my art show in September. As a mother of two young children (one of whom is home today), I have to actively create time and space to connect and create. This is not necessarily an easy task and as I mentioned in previous posts, I am often called to surrender to various situations and just let it be.

I don’t go on social media until 10 in the morning because I have found that creating that space has been a wonderful act of self care. I also spend much less time than I used to on it which feel both wonderful and scary. What I have discovered is that as a creative and visual person I need emptiness and openness to be in my imaginary world, a dream world that I can float in. When I find myself spending too much time out of that space I leave myself and go into others which I find a bit challenging. As I type this I fear I sound selfish, but it’s the truth. Don’t we all need that space to live in our own ideas and dreams?

Having said all this, I have expressed and completely believe that inspiration is valuable beyond description. Therefore my thought is…can we curate our inspiration? Can we become disciplined in our quest for seeking out and allow that which elevates us and informs us to be what seeps into our inner world? Of course we all need that down time and as an artist I need to share, but does it have to feel so endless or can it be a delicate dance? I believe it can. There is a balance in this life and it is a gift to get to know ourselves. That is the beauty of art. To truly create something with depth, we must go deep. We must delve beneath the surface. I enjoy swimming in that space.

Lauren