Deep Focus vs. Live Streaming: The Need for Creative Isolation
Balancing Client Work and Health
The past week or so, my time for personal creative work has really gotten away from me. On one hand, I was trying to rest up a little bit and pay more attention to my health, exercise, and getting enough sleep. On the other end, I was wrapped up with some client work.
It shouldn’t have been particularly difficult, but it took longer because I was trying to create a unified brand look with limited assets. I was trying to avoid repeating what other designers and companies have done with the same license, which put me into a “deep thinking” mode. It wasn’t manually difficult work, but it required careful thought—shifting one thing here and another there.
The Necessity of Uninterrupted Focus
Consequently, the only real drawing I’ve gotten done in the past week or two has been during the live streams and my evening figure drawing classes. However, I did make time to redraw some studies from class.
Even though I’m comfortable drawing in front of an audience, I decided not to film a “Fixing Bad Figure Drawing” video this time. I didn’t want to bother with cameras or mics; I just wanted to put on some music and lean into some deep focus. As much as I enjoy engaging with people, I still need those times of isolation and uninterrupted focus to really move the needle on my work.
The Dry Erase Board “Wacky Idea”
I’ve been practicing on 18x24 newsprint, which is twice as large as I usually draw. At this scale, I’ve realized I need to spend a lot of time practicing the balance of the major masses—the head, rib cage, and pelvis.
I started worrying about how much newsprint I’d burn through just drawing series of cubes and volumes. That’s when I had the wacky idea of getting an 18x24 dry erase board. I can do my sketches, analyze the relationships, and then just erase them. Since they don’t really make 18x24 sketchbooks (and I wouldn’t know where to store them if they did), the whiteboard feels like a great way to practice things I’m absolutely not going to save.
Even in these first few sketches, the relationships feel a bit off to me. I want to spend more time—maybe even in future “Fixing” sessions—focusing strictly on the upper body and getting those simple masses and proportions right at this larger scale.
Do you ever feel the need to “shut off” the social side of your art to find your flow? How do you balance being a “public” creator with the need for deep, isolated focus?
What is your favorite low-stakes way to practice the basics? Have you ever tried unconventional tools like dry erase boards or digital “scratchpad” files to save on materials?
When you scale up your work (like moving from a sketchbook to 18x24), what is the first thing that usually “breaks” for you? Is it your proportions, your line quality, or your overall composition?