The blank canvas beckons

but fear holds me back.

Can I do this?

 

Am I good enough?

Who will even like, who will want what I’ve made?

 

My inner muse responds,

‘Be still, listen to your heart.

It will never betray you.

Create what calls to you.’

 

Still with trepidation I approach –

never sure what will emerge.

I have something in mind –

 

an idea,

a concept only.

 

What colours do I need?

I choose Alizarin Crimson, Cadmium Yellow, Ultramarine Blue.

Now, what brushes and tools to produce the right marks?

Bristle or synthetic  – I select both and yes, that palette knife too.

 

Then it begins.

The process of drawing out images hidden in the canvas –

of telling a story in paint when words just won’t do.

 

Like a sculptor discovering his subject buried deep inside a piece of alabaster –

it’s how every artist works

 

Time seems to expand as the process continues.

The work begins to take shape,

I’m focused and attentive to each stroke.

Throughout I feel nudges to stop, to step back, take it in, make adjustments.

 

Then the moment arrives when I know it’s done.

Solar plexus fills with a sensation I can’t put into words –

it’s the signal to stop.

 

From fear to finishing

– my creative process.

 

The medium may be words, music, or images.

Each one of us like the Starship Enterprise – on a voyage of discovery.

We go where no one has gone before

for only we can delve into our minds and bring forth creations of our imaginings.