Discovering yourself: Inspired to be You.

Now we are not going subtle today, we are diving deep into a topic I think’s really real to a lot of us, its one of my greatest foes as both an artist and just as a person. It is something I have not yet entirely mastered, but depending on the day, I find I have varied outtakes on this.


So on a good day, I achieve something or do something that feels truly like me; I would have sat at my computer, edited an incredible photo, met up with some friends or done something simply epic! I feel on top of the world! But then I get those days where I have achieved nothing, feel confused as to where I am going and get a little lost in myself. This is totally a natural thing! We can’t feel epically ourselves every minute of the day, often we can feel like imposters in our own bodies. 


I struggled with this a lot in 2018/19, where I had a lot of issues with creating similarly to some artists that I looked up to since I was a kid. Naturally I was always taught to see their work as inspiration, analyse what we liked about it and create with that in mind. But as I started to develop my business and grow into my own creative, I found that this inspiration pattern because too much of a routine; something I would do almost like an instinct. I found that a lot of my work couldn’t let go of links attached to other creatives. I had lost what made me sparkle!


So once this harsh reality hit and I sadly lost a couple dear friends out of it, I learned to listen to myself again, allow whats inside of ME to speak out and try to ignore outside influences as best I could. I would sit down with my notepad and pen, and begin just seeing what came naturally. I found turning off social media influences as best I could helped to not drain in other inspiration sources as this was my only way of feeling inspired to create. Now have found I can dissect a photo more and see what specifically I like about it, and channel just that into my work. 


Discovering myself was very scary (who knows what you’ll find!) But it opened myself up to a rainbow of inspiration, where I was once only inspired by the same artists, trying to fit into a shape I wasn’t meant to fit into, I know appreciate their work, but see mine for what it is and how it can benefit me personally. I suggest the same to you, to try and block out the tunnels of voices and inputs into your work, but think about what really makes you tick. If those inspirations didn’t exist, what would you be doing? 


Where once I would say I was inspired by photographers, I know say I am inspired by theatre, fashion, costuming, renaissance paintings, modern art, contemporary dance, lighting, makeup, nature, architecture, landscapes, baroque e.t.c.


I challenge you to look further than what you know, to find yourself through something you never thought you could feel inspired by. I try to discover who I am based on what makes my heart sore. I think the world is so amazing and full of potential, but we must ask ourselves what we really connect with.

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