can't afford art supplies?
use fucking broccoli it literally does not matter
Have you always wanted to be an artsy fartsy hoe but feel like you can’t get into it because all the fucking art shit costs so much?
If so I have good news for you - art is super fucking cheap!
These are my art rules to keep it that way
✅ use whatever you have on hand - junk mail, catalogs & magazines, bills, receipts etc. Just start cutting and gluing shit, you’ll find your style!
✅ buy only clearance stuff - I occasionally get cheapo half dried, outdated junky stuff at thrift stores or chain stores for like $1 or $2. I literally never walk into a Michael’s and buy a new thing at full price. that’s just no fun at all.
✅ get creative! - mass produced art culture is stealing our creativity. do kid shit like making potato stamps, or scribble scrabble with crayons. The creative process is way more important than ASMR **tap tap** “heres my expensive tape container and expensive stickers to make content so you’ll buy stuff” nonsense
✅ google stuff! “what can i make with….” is a joyful search engine journey. (pro tip, don’t use google use Ecosia and you don’t get sucked into the mass marketed, AI driven chaos as much)
Goblin art > Mass Manufacture Art
I like following these rules. They give me delightful opportunities to make “goblin art” that inspires me to look for cool things in the real world.
We had broccoli for dinner tonight and I thought the stalks looked cool as I was throwing some into a bowl for the chickens. I snagged a sharpie and some pens, made a “stamp” and wham bam - ART!
Bean joined in and brought some scrumbly paints (omg so much scrumbly art at our house 😅) and we had the most wonderful time just stamping and tracing and being freely expressive humans.
Breaking the rules?
Do I ever break these rules? Eeeeeeevveryyy now and again. If there’s a specific thing I’m super into for a lengthy amount of time, I might splurge on a thing.
ie: I bought a nice rotary cutter for making rag rugs because 1. I use it as a work tool and 2. It generates an actual item that is useful and I donate back into my community so I felt it worth the investment
But generally for “creative” art stuff not practical things? Nope. I don’t break the rules. I don’t want to - I like the upcycling goblin nature of the kind of art I make on the daily.
win - win - win
If you’re still not sold because the idea of “rules” doesn’t appeal to you or whatever, that’s fine. But I will always encourage folks to reflect on what “rules” we can give ourselves - there is power in taking back that autonomy to set our own boundaries and guidelines, and not become overly beholden to the idea that all our problems can be solved by buying a product. If you’re not a professional artist, you can probably solve the “art supplies are inaccessible” problem in suprisingly simple ways.
Like using fucking broccoli!