Barry's day
....exploring art as a way of life, and life as art


Artist Group

Working Artist Studios is an artist-managed venue in West Cork, Ireland. It's three galleries and a number of studios occupied by four artists. More info here....

Sketchcrawl Jan 2009

Turn up at my Studio in Skibbereen on Saturday Jan 10th and join in. It's by donation which means you've no excuses! More info here....

New online Artist Community

Setting up a new website enabling artists and groups to post blogs and share information. Should be ready April 2009. Get advance information Request it here....

Art in the Amazon

I take small groups of people on Sketching and travel Adventures to Peru, such as the Amazon Rainforest and Cusco in the Peruvian Andes. More info here....

Antidotes against getting sucked into a downward spiral of despair

Barry McCullough
So it's one thing experiencing the chaos of the 'recession' and the daily madness reported by the politicians and financial sector I wrote about in my last post, but the real challenge right now in these difficult times is how to keep on going and to prosper in every sense of the word, (not just financially), as an artist.

I was tempted to write about such things as time management and networking and other hardy annuals of those who 'work for themselves', but since I'm sixty on my next birthday, rent my house, write, draw and paint, and live on my own, there are more fundamental issues to take care of first.

I'm going to list some of these fundamentals from some journalling I did last night. Most of them might appear not just basic but obvious, but the older I get the more important these basics become. So here's the start of my list.

How can I best not only survive but prosper as an artist?


  • Keep everything simple, but not too simple.
  • To keep myself and my house and studio clean and tidy.
  • To maintain a good level of health by eating wholesome food, stretching, walking or cycling at least every other day and getting a sound night's sleep every night, including not oversleeping.
  • To keep careful track of my finances. To cut out any unnecessary expenditure, save if possible no matter how modest and avoid debt (crucial).
  • To help others when possible and to not be afraid to ask for help.
  • To not get isolated, though I'm very comfortable with large amounts of time on my own, which is just as well but I do need to be careful. A fine line between alone and lonely.
  • To turn up every day to my Calling, a synergy of drawing, painting, sculpture, printing and writing.
  • To keep up to date by replying to communications such as texts, emails, post etc. In turn for me to take the initiative to communicate with others in a timely and appropriate way.
  • To be continued....

Not finished with this yet, more to add in my next post.

I'm hoping these posts will not only clarify my own thinking and actions but in some small way it may also help others. I hope so. If you'd like to make any comments or to add your own suggestions to this list, please use my contact form.

B.
© 2008 Barry McCullough Contact Me