Can't get going in 2025!
Moving slow, but here we go
Happy (belated?) New Year! I don’t know about you, but we are struggling to get going with new projects, and nothing is really coming together, and we’re distracted by the news (sending you love, Los Angeles ❤️; also no, sorry, Canada does not want to be absorbed by the US).
Anyway so we are going through past projects and half-finished pieces to see if there’s something worth working on, and trying to muster up a plan to get inspired.
This is how Kristen gathers inspiration: she finds things in the garden or on her walks and puts them on the windowsill, for potential subject matter for future drawings.
My inspiration is hidden away in notebooks. I carry one with me most of the time, and scribble down ideas during my bus rides to work. Here’s a peak at a few from the past year:
Soooo many terrible ideas scribbled in these pages. But eventually I get something half decent that may turn into something more than half decent. Eventually.
Here’s some finished pieces and prints-in-progress in our dining room/studio. We keep them on the wall so we can look at them throughout the day and keep working on them. New prints coming soon… stay tuned!
We’re getting there.
Here’s some of Kristen’s painting warm-ups and a few ideas being worked through:
Some magic happening there, for sure. We just gotta keep going.
I hope you liked this tiny peak into our world. Do you want to see more of this kind of stuff? Or is there anything else you’d like to know about? Let me know.
Thanks for reading!
See ya next time,
Marc & Kristen
Visit our shop: johnsart.ca • prints • original art • calendars









The cat at the start is right - Just Keep Making Stuff, Silly Goose - the advice we all need (me included!) right now <3 beautiful art too, and the collection on the shelf - suuuch a great idea for inspo!
Hi Marc & Kristen! Thank you for this newsletter. It did my heart good to know that other creative folks are feeling the same things...we start to breathe and then realize we're having a panic attack.
Thank you for the encouraging message to just keep doing the work. It makes a huge difference to hear it from you. We need to make magic happen, especially when the world is dark. Grateful for being able to share this time with you. We WILL beat the darkness. Hugs to you from the Rockies.