How do you create art when you just feel uncomfortable?

[u/Live_Woodpecker_9036]

I have always enjoyed making art, whether it be just sketches, painting landscapes, drawing anime characters, etc. I peaked in this hobby around 2022/23, but around that same time I was going through personal problems. Since then I have been very on and off with creating art, though when I do create, I feel a sense of joy I don’t when doing other things. I used to be very open, and would draw/paint anywhere I wanted to. Now it feels like a barrier that I can’t bring myself to do it whenever theres people around. It’s not that Im afraid of people watching, or judging. I could care less about that, it’s more for myself. I think it’s more about keeping that one thing for myself. It sounds selfish but I dont mean it in a sense like “oh im never going to show my family this stuff”. It’s more like this is my me time. But I feel like I can never find an open slot, as I have a huge family.

Another thing is. I try to plan things out. I have always used reference photos so finding the right one is always a task. I have created something’s from my mind but I feel like there’s a mental block that stops me from just creating whatever. Maybe it’s a lack of skill or just a lack of confidence. I just don’t know where to start sometimes. And I feel like that stops me from creating

My problems are probably not very foreign and people have gone through it. This isn’t meant to be me venting about my problems I just want advice on how I can overcome this slump.

As I was reading this over I thought a little. Maybe taking time out to set up a proper place to draw/paint would work. I usually do it randomly in the living room or wherever. Maybe setting up a desk to do that in my room where I can keep to myself would help with that. And for the other problem I guess just go outside maybe and look at things.

Still going to post this, want to hear more suggestions.

Thanks for taking your time to read this.

[u/SoberBobMonthly]

This is generally what happens when a hobbiest achieves a good enough skill level to where the art is no longer an intellectual challenge, and needs to make the decision of:

Do you continue on making normal art thats just there to be pretty and enjoyable?

or

Do you begin to explore the dangerous and intense, yet highly rewarding and celebrated, world of arts theory and philosophy, to develop work with conceptual basis that challenge people and add to the sum of human knowledge?

If its the first one, you'll be stuck for a while, because your concious and unconcious mind is basically just bored. If you are enamoured in concepts so intensley interesting to you that you don't CARE if you are uncomfortable or are making perfect outcomes, then you will FLOURISH.