I think that is a question that plagues every designer and artist.
Right from being at college my art teacher would refer to the style of another artist, talk about developing your own style and finding your style.
Back then I found it maddening, how on earth was I supposed to ‘find’ my style, how would it develop and what was it supposed to look like? Every project I worked on, I would end up asking the same question of myself ‘is this my style?’ usually the answer came back ‘I’ve no idea, try something else’.
This constant search for - what seemed at the time - an elusive search for my personal style, resulted in a variety of projects, all looking as if they had been produced by different people. The search for my style became frustrating and annoying and as a result I was never completely happy and content with anything I produced. At best I thought it was ok, but there was always (in my eyes) room for improvement and so the search continued.
I’d look at magazines, research trends, look at other designers and what my peers produced, and tried and tried in vain to create something that would make me look at my work and go ‘ah yes, this is ‘my style’ and I am happy with it’.
I realise - twenty years on - that I was always looking to the outside; looking to the external world to deliver my style to me, in some beautiful package that I could unwrap, read the instructions and create my work, all signed sealed and delivered with a signature that was unmistakably me. Today, as I draw (a daily habit I am developing) even if just for 15 minutes I can begin to see my style developing, and that’s the key, it an ongoing, ever evolving process, just as we are all developing and changing as human beings. Creative style is individual to each and everyone of us. How I draw a flower, a leaf, a tree or a bird will be totally different to the next person. That style is as unique to us as our own personalities.
As I (and many others) continue on our creative journey, I think it is important that we worry less about our own personal style and concentrate on developing our craft. By putting the work in (on a daily basis) our style develops as a natural part of the process. Worrying less allows for that creative space to open up, for your own creative personality to shine through and a pride in the work that you do.
I’ve come to recognise that when I don’t put the label of ‘my creative style’ onto my work, that includes thinking about it, or discussing it in style terms, then I’m left free to create and enjoy the process of pushing the boundaries of my own creativity and experimenting more. Creative style - a term to bash ourselves over the head with, a term to try and identify with, when it really doesn’t work. I believe the way to develop our creativity and produce work that is undeniably ours is to keep going, keep experimenting and above all enjoy the process. With that comes a sense of belonging and confidence that you are sharing your gift and your uniqueness with the world.
-Julia
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