Im always curious about peoples optimal creative zone. Do you like to listen to music when you paint? Do you prefer silence? Movie on in the bg?
I need bg noise to function, it's like the only way I can work, haha. I need a sweet spot of genuine interest in what i'm listening to and the ability to tune out without missing much - novelty and familiarity both. It's very hard to find hours and hours of the precise kind of noise I need, but favourite LPs and bad horror movies work very well. Sometimes when a piece is nearly done and it's just the fun little colour tweaks and stuff I don't have to focus too hard for i'll put on music that resonates emotionally, but that's kind of a special moment and not super common.