6 big things I learned from Flora Bowley’s art course

My ‘Bloom True’ art course has ended. (Sniff.) It ended almost two months ago actually but it had such a profound impact on me, I’ve been deliberating, cogitating and digesting ever since (hence no blog posts – my brain cells were having a ‘moment’).

Here are six big, brilliant things I learned from Flora Bowley:

1. There are no mistakes
   Ahhhhhhhh (sigh of relief). Art is one big playful experiment. There are no rules. Nothing is set in stone. Don’t like something? Just paint over it. No biggie. Nothing to get stressed about. If you’ve painted over something you like, there’s no need for a meltdown – just paint it again. When you learn to paint in layers, there are literally no mistakes.
2. It’s only paint!
   Lighten up! So what if you paint a ‘bad’ painting? It happens. It’s not the end of the world. Why do we take ourselves so seriously all the time? As Flora says, “It’s only paint.” R-E-L-A-X!
3. Enjoy the process
   It’s all about the process, not the outcome. Like a yoga pupil struggling to do a difficult pose – it’s not true yoga if all they’re focused on is their crappy internal voice telling them how “rubbish” they are. It’s all about the FEELING; the joy; the immersion; the present moment. That’s what counts.
4. Listen to your intuition
   When you start a painting, you’ll have no idea where it’s going to end up. That’s part of the fun. Let the painting emerge in its own time and in its own way. Don’t try to dictate this. Let go. Trust yourself. Tap into your intuition. Your body knows what to do.
5. It’s OK to be you
   You are OK exactly as you are. There is nothing else you need to do and nothing else you need to be, other than YOU. Let your ‘you-ness’ flow out on to the canvas.
6. Follow your joy
   Pay attention to what delights you and follow that path for all it’s worth. Love bright pink? Love splodges? Love drips? Go for it. Have fun! Your joy is yours alone. Fudgeballs to what anyone else thinks. Do it for the pure joy and thrill of doing it :-)

In summation, as you might have gathered, the course was AMAZING. Life-changing actually (and I don’t say that very often).

In fact, as a direct result of the course (especially point number 6), I am now heading an unexpected direction, which I’m looking forward to telling you about. More on that in the next week or two.

Next I’ll post a series of photos showing how one of my paintings developed during the course (you’d never guess it would end up the way it did from its ‘interesting’ beginnings). And I’ll update you on how my first book Oh Sugar! is doing (it’s good news)!

Ah, it’s good to be back in blog land again…