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"
Y
O U H A V E F R E E D O M
W H E N Y O U A R E
E A S Y I N Y O U R
H A R N E S S "
Robert
Frost
"
Y O U S T A R T F R O M
N O T H I N G A N D L E A R N
A S Y O U G O
"
E.L.
Doctorow
" P O I N T Y O U R S E L F I N
T H E D I R E C T I O N O F
Y O U R W O R K
"
Eric
Maisel
" P E R S E V E R E
G E N T L Y
"
Steve
Nachmanovich
"
I N S I D E (T H E C R E A T I V E
E X P E R I E N C E) I S
I N Q U I R Y , T H E
E X P A N S I O N O F
E M O T I O N A L D E P T H
A N D R A N G E , T H E
T U N I N G O F T H E S P I R I T
A N D T H E Q U E S T F O R
M E A N I N G "
Peter
London
" T H E C R E A T I V E S P I R
I T
D E M A N D S
P E R S I S T E N C E
"
Shaun
McNiff
"
A L W A Y S D R E A M
A N D S H O O T H I G H E R
T H A N Y O U K N O W H O W
T O . D O N ' T B O T H E R
J U S T T O B E B E T T E R
T H A N Y O U R
C O N T E M P O R A R I E S O R
P R E D E C E S S O R S . T R Y
T O B E B E T T E R T H A N
Y O U R S E L F "
William
Faulkner
" I T M A Y B E T H A T
T H O S E W H O D O M O S T,
D R E A M M O S T
"
Stephen
Leacock
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From my first
tentative steps toward artistic expression to my current more confident
stance, I have seen repeatedly that I need to nurture my creativity.
It is not sufficient to say that I am a creative person. It is not enough
to say that I am going to create. In order to actually create I find
I must focus my attention on nurturing my creativity.
What are some of the qualities necessary to nurture creativity? I have
generated a short list to consider:
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Self-compassion and self-kindness |
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Make time and space for work |
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Don't make materials precious |
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Learn new skills |
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Practice |
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Dream big |
I learned the term self-kindness from Eric Maisel. With kindness and
compassion I begin to see the potential to genuinely care for myself.
I am always at risk for being hard on myself. When I am overly critical
I am apt to limit my attempts at creative expression. If I allow my
perfectionism to become more important than expression, I will stop
myself before I begin. With kindness and compassion for myself I can
approach my work with a more generous spirit.
For many years I put aside my artwork because I did not have a space
where I felt free to make a mess. I did not make my work important enough
to claim a space for myself. When I actually created a studio and set
a daily work schedule for myself I experienced a rush of creative energy.
Now I notice when I allow my work schedule to be disrupted. Not only
am I less productive, I am also less happy.
When I was complaining about a person's lack of care in handling my
work, my friend Jayne Willoughby-Scott reminded me that the work is
not precious. People and relationships are precious, she said. When
I make my fabric, threads and paint precious, I limit my work. When
I fail to remember that my relationships with friends and family are
precious, I limit my life.
I recently took a workshop from Nancy Crow. She advocates working quickly
and purposefully to develop both intuitive and analytical skills. Nancy
has much to teach about nurturing creativity. A lot of it has to do
with getting out of your own way. She believes that you will learn best
about composition and colour by immersing yourself in them. Experiential
learning is powerful.
Practice is an essential element in developing as an artist. I find
that my quilting friends generally have an expectation that every piece
they produce should be successful. I think this is an unrealistic standard.
It is only with practice that we develop our skills. If I have an expectation
that everything I make must be successful, I won't take the necessary
risks to move my work forward.
Big dreams are essential for nurturing creativity. When I am tentative;
when I rely too much on the opinions of others; when I don't imagine
greatness I am wasteful of my skills and talents. I still find it difficult
to say my dreams out loud, but each time I gather my courage to actually
name my longings I find that it is easier to make my dreams come true.
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