Creative ennui

I am in a creative slump.

I’ve reached the point where my painting skills have developed enough that I can fairly accurately recreate any photograph in watercolor. For a long time, that has been enough to satisfy me.

But now it seems pointless. Making exact copies of beautiful photographs is not making art. It’s a useful practice for building skills, but I think I’ve outgrown it.

It’s time to figure out how to make the transition from copying to creating.

This painting is not quite half done, and I became bored with it before I had even put the first stroke of color on the paper. After struggling to make progress on it for nearly a week, I’ve decided to abandon it. I paint for pleasure, and this painting was creating more pain than pleasure.

So what now?

I’m not entirely sure. I’ve been struggling with how to become more creative with my painting for at least a year, and I haven’t figure it out yet. It’s so freaking frustrating!

Here are some of the things I’m considering trying while I wait for a breakthrough:

1. Practice specific skills, such as painting shadows or different textures.
2. Work on improving my color choices and combinations.
3. Combine elements from various reference photos to create my own compositions. This would make it impossible for me to rely too heavily on a reference photo’s composition and color scheme.
4. Play with a new style, such as abstract.
5. Practice painting specific subjects, such as florals, rocks, or water (e.g. 30 mushrooms in 30 days).
6. Complete some of the online painting classes that I have already purchased.
7. Try a new medium, such as gouache.

Have you ever been in a creative slump, and if so, how have you broken out of it?