All month long we’ve discussed strategies and tasks that, when used in combination, can help you develop and refine your unique artist voice. My name is Carrie and here on Artist Strong that’s what I do: help artists like you refine your skill and develop your unique voice.

Today I’m hosting a mini-workshop designed to help you put all of these ideas together into your own action plan for finding your artist voice.

You will need a pencil and paper or you can sign up to get the fillable PDF I use in today’s workshop immediately below this video.

I want to reiterate, before we begin, how finding your artist voice takes TIME, PATIENCE, and GRIT. If you haven’t heard of grit, it’s THE most important quality to develop for your success and happiness in your art, and in your life. I talk all about in a video linked below.

These three ingredients for finding your artist voice is kind of like a recipe, but the measurements of each ingredient will be unique to you. Don’t spend time comparing yourself to others. It does happen, and when it does, you can use the experience to your benefit. Perhaps a style, technique, or idea inspires and influences you to action!

In the first video we talked all about making A LOT of art. Our friend artist Flora Bowley told us to make 100 artworks. So, in my worksheet that is the number I choose to commit to creating. Decide for yourself what constitutes a lot of art. Commit to that number.

The more public you are with this commitment the more likely you will follow through on it. Choose an online or public in person place to make the announcement and pick a date to announce it!

Once you choose the number of artworks you will need to consider the logistics of executing that goal. How long will it take you to achieve your goal? What size should you make your artwork? These two questions are important to consider if you really aim to achieve the goal you set.

100 16 x 24 inch paintings will be very different in terms of a time commitment compared to 100 4 x 6 inch paintings. Be honest: what is realistic for you to achieve with the rest of your life. You have work, family, other obligations and interests that create your life. It’s already ambitious to create 100 artworks, so don’t go crazy with a fast timeline or super large artworks.

Once you know the number of artworks, the size, and your timeline it’s time to list artists you admire and want to study. You can also list artists you feel have directly influenced your art. This is what we talked about in the second video. This list will be a reference for you whenever you are feeling stuck or need new ideas. And it is a great starting point for the development of a series of art, which is video three in this guide.

You could have 10 series of 10 artworks, 20 series of 5 artworks, it’s entirely up to you but I highly encourage you to receive the video on working in a series and use this strategy to help you complete all of your artworks. Ten series of 10 artworks sounds a lot less daunting to me than 100 paintings. I’m all about breaking down larger goals into chunks. It helps fuel and maintain our motivation when we see ourselves ticking off a bunch of our smaller tasks.

Now it’s time for you to list as many ideas, techniques, and media you wish to explore: these are all possible starting points for different series! Now, choose the one that excites you the most.

The last step is to prepare to receive feedback on these artworks you plan to create. Video four in this guide gives you all kinds of support on how to use feedback to create your best art. The first thing I want you to do is list different people you can trust to give you useful feedback. It’s wise to include both artists and non-artists in this list as both can offer you different kinds of information.

Once this list is done, it’s time to create a list of questions that you can reference and use when you are ready to ask people about your art. Creating a list ahead of time gives you an opportunity to ask specific questions and get better feedback from people than if you show up with the work and say, “I’m looking for feedback.” It’s easier for people to help you when you ask them specific questions, like, “When you look at this painting, what story do you tell yourself?” or, “I’m concerned about my composition, can we talk about the placement of my figures?”

You can also add to this list or change the questions as you create your art. As you make more art, the kinds of information you need to inform your art making will likely change.

Do you want feedback on the art you are currently creating? What about today’s workshop?

I’m hosting a Facebook Live weekly Q and A on our Facebook Page Becoming Artist Strong. I’ll give you specific feedback on your art and answer your questions about developing your unique artist voice.

Post your question or the artwork you want feedback on to the Facebook page, inside our Facebook Group, or tag me @ArtistStrong on Instagram. I look forward to seeing you Fridays at 12:30 Eastern Standard time.

Don’t worry: if you can’t make it live, the replay will be available on the Facebook Page, so start sending me your questions. Be sure to pop on either way to learn from other’s feedback and questions.

Now, it’s time to Be Creatively Courageous: Tell me how many artworks you plan to create and your estimated timeline to complete them. Remember: making a public statement is the beginning of holding yourself accountable to your goal.