Make Art Anyway: Matisse-Inspired Creative Self-Care

Pain and illness stole Henri Matisse’s ability to paint, but not his determination to create. When a paintbrush became impossible, he chose a new tool.

Scissors.

He didn’t stop making art—he just changed how he made it.

Les Coupes (The Cut-Outs) were something new and different.

Join me to be inspired by his journey. Let’s explore Painting with Scissors.

Finding Creative Freedom in Paper and Scissors

My early forays into collage involved intricate fantastical arrangements of images cut from my mother’s magazines. To be frank, Matisse’s Cut-Outs I’d seen didn’t impress me much.

Preparing for the COLOR OUR WORLD summer reading program at the library where I work gave me the opportunity to get to know a little more about several famous artists I had of course heard of, but now have more reason to admire.

I deeply respect Matisse’s tenacity. His perseverance through pain. His need to create, and the intense gratitude he felt for being alive to do so following a complicated surgery he didn’t expect to survive.

As well as a reason to look at more of his cut-paper art, I also have a more informed perspective.

I’m more of a fan. I better appreciate the art. And I admire the resolve it represents.

Matisse had every reason to quit.

But he didn’t.

What’s holding you back from making art?

Art as Survival

Henri Matisse is proof that you don’t need perfect circumstances to make art and practice creative self-care. All you need is even just a few minutes and a willingness to start.

I wasn’t expecting this project to be so therapeutic as I prepared my sample for a class at the library. But as I cut my Matisse-inspired stars I realized how good the process felt, and knew I needed to share it with you.

Colored card stock is ideal for this project. Feel free to use other paper, including your own painted or gel-printed papers if you have them, but there’s something about the defined solid colors of the card stock that we used at the library and I’m using in my video that allows one to just get enter into the process of intuitive shape-making. And it creates satisfying arrangements. The thickness of the cards stock is stiff enough to not be floppy while you’re cutting, but also thin enough to cut without effort.

Use what you have.

The solid colors were ideal for the times I did this project this summer. But even junk mail would work. Painted or unpainted.

If you’re interested in buying card stock like we used at the library and you can see in my video, Amazon carries a similar 300-pack of colored card stock. You can also get my favorite scissors on Amazon. Mine have taken a lot of abuse but still cut beautifully.

If you use any of my Amazon links and make a qualifying purchase, I will make a small commission as an Amazon associate. This does not affect your price, but allows you to support BETTER WITH ART with your new art supplies. So, thanks so much if you do! If you’d like to see more of more art materials I use that are available on Amazon, you can check out my Amazon Storefront.

Art as Self-Care

Choose a few colors that catch your eye. And if a full page is intimidating, yes, I know how intimidating a full sheet can be when you want to create shapes to adhere to another sheet of card stock or a journal page can be. Feel free to cut them down. One thing that worked really well over the summer was sharing sheets and bits and scraps, and groups (and me!) using previous groups’ scraps.

Don’t worry about perfect edges or corners or circles or anything. Perfection is highly overrated, not to mention impossible or at least totally subjective in art.

Wonky has more character.

Guide your scissors gently, and let your hand and scissors guide you. This art activity, like all BETTER WITH ART art-making, is about the process. Our results will be interesting, but creating them is where we find the true value.

Creating intuitively without the desire for perfection helps regulate stress. Letting go of the fear of making mistakes allows you to learn to trust yourself more.

Art as a New Beginning

Matisse’s creativity didn’t end with his limitations; it adapted. He embraced new methods when faced with challenges, proving it’s never too late to innovate.

Life gets lifey. It can be hard. Maybe you don’t feel the same spark when you think about art as you used to make it. Maybe you don’t find joy holding the same tools. And life can be too busy even when it’s not at its hardest, I get it. For years I refused to make art on a regular basis, despite how balancing and life-giving it was for me, because there always seemed to be something more important to do.

But taking time to make art is not a waste of time. It’s great for our mental health.

I’m telling you what I needed to hear. To believe.

This is your invitation. Even if you only have a few minutes here and there, you can still practice meaningful creative self-care. And you don’t need to spend a lot of money to reclaim your creativity. Use what you have. Even if it’s just junk mail and hands to tear and rearrange it.

You don’t need to do things the same way you did before. Embrace new tools, find snippets of time, and let go of needing perfection.

Join the Creative Journey

I hope this simple practice of cutting colorful (or not colorful if that’s what you have or prefer in the moment) brings you joy. If it helps reconnect you with your creativity, I’d love to hear your experience. Share your journey in the comments, tag me on Instagram (@better.with.art), or join the BETTER WITH ART online community private Facebook group you can receive a link to by signing up to invite me into your inbox from time-to-time. It was weekly, but I am sadly far behind.

More Ways to Connect

Feel free to sign up to be notified of upcoming workshops, online and in-person, and other opportunities to make art with me.

If you pop over to YouTube with the video below, don’t forget to like and subscribe for more creative self-care prompts. And if you’re interested in my art beyond the BETTER WITH ART creative self-care prompts that can be quickly done with easily accessible materials, you can check out my Melinda VanRy Art channel.

I’d also love for you to come hang out with me on my BETTER WITH ART Instagram and/or Melinda VanRy Instagram.

Let’s make art, because we are BETTER WITH ART.

Your creativity matters.

If your budget allows, check out my ArtWear that encourages others to make art for mental health. It’s available in my Fourthwall shop along with accessories I create by with my art papers under glass cabochons that make them luminous as they magnify the patterns!