Myth #2 We aren’t all born creative – and I don’t have a creative bone in my body. Why do people think that do you suppose? Could it be that they really believe it, or is it that they just don’t understand the nature of creativity?

To really embrace this idea that we are creative we must first understand the nature of creativity. What is it?  How do I know that I have it?

We tend to have very limiting beliefs around creativity, what it is and how we do it. People generally tend to think of art and it’s offshoots, to be what creativity is all about.

Think about your life. When did you really, really, really want something? How did that something arrive? It began with seeing or hearing about something and having feelings about that thing. This may or may not have had anything to do with art. From the feelings, your desire for that thing began to grow which in turn made you feel good when you thought about it….. and so it goes on until that thing turns up in your life.

Sometimes this happens in a way that you could never have planned or arranged in a million years.  However the fact remains that you have created it – your thoughts and emotions created it! This is true creativity…….. and it’s what we all do every day of our lives.  We can create anything we want so long as we focus on the positive aspects of that thing, have good feelings about it believe in the possibility of it……and not the absence of it or the not having of it.

So how does this relate to creativity and art, if we are all born with this ability to create anything. It means that what ever our area of interest, from cooking or wood working to facilitating, or accountancy – we can bring our own flair, our own flavour if you like to that thing.  We can create new ways of doing things, making things or transferring information.  This is all creativity.

This weeks Question: Can you make a list of ALL the creative things you currently do in your life?

A friend sent me these amazing photos this week of a flower festival that takes place in  ”Bloemencorso” Zundert in the Netherlands. This event began in 1936 as a flower parade and has since become the become the oldest and most celebrated flower festival  in Europe. Ever since it began, Zundert in the Netherlands has hosted an annual flower show Bloemencorso. On average 50,000 visitors come to the town to look at the brilliant flower displays.

Giraffes made from Dahlia Flowers

Something’s Fishy

Tigers

Here is a link to a Video of the procession…..I think the next one is my favourite – I just love the cows! To think all these things are made with flowers is just mind blowing!! And yet you know the people who do these probably consider themselves quite ordinary and ‘uncreative’

Flowering Cows

This Weeks Question: How can you use flowers to enhance the quality of your life and your creativity?

***!!!!HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!***

Well here we are at the tag end of another year again.  If you are reading this, then I guess the world didn’t end on Sat 21 Dec and we can all look forward to another wonderfully creative year. To acknowledge and celebrate the creativity of my students I am going to share some of the wonderful  work they have done with me in the past year.

Bessie – Steve (Oils)

They are all to be commended on their perseverance and commitment to their art.  Creativity is seldom easy and we often have to fight for our right to nurture our creative spirit, as others often view it as an indulgence rather than an essential part of who  we are.  The other thing about that is that when you pursue your creativity, it makes others uncomfortable, because they aren’t honouring their own creativity. So congratulations to everyone who has nurtured their own creativity this last year!

Sunset – Ash (Acrylics)

Courtney – Humming Bird (Pastel)

Jess – Pen & Ink Study

Elise – Kapati Coast (Pastel)

Summer Scents – Deborah (Oils)

Faith – Tonal Study (Oils

Skull Study – Rewa (Charcoal)

Jo – Pencil Drawing

Lee – Pelican (Pen & Ink)

Kandinsky Tree – Louis (Acrylics)

Lorraine – Poppies (Oils)

Lorraine O’Day – My Dog (pastels)

Pumpkin – Merran (Water Colour)

These are just a few of the wonderful works from my students this year. It should be noted that while these works are all original works by the students, some of them are copies of other photographers and artists and are intended as learning exercises only. Thank you all for allowing me to work with you and guide you on your creative journeys.

Grace – Chay

I wish all of you, students and readers, an amazingly creative year in 2013 and trust that you will continue to grow and expand your creative horizons all year.

MERRY CHRISTMAS

Wishing you all a wonderful Christmas Season filled with Joy, Abundance and Happiness in all things.

Thank you for coming here and reading my thoughts and musings on creativity.  I hope I have provided some inspiration for you over the past 12 months and look forward to continuing on into the coming year. At Christmas after The Day is over, we often find some spare time on our hands.  Don’t waste the opportunity to follow your creative free spirit at this time.

And keep on creating …………..

Something that occurred to me today, was to talk about how we engage with creativity; why we do or don’t engage with it and about making time for it. There are many issues here to look at, so let’s list them to begin an ongoing discussion. Of course there may well be more than this.

1. We are all creative – except me that is.

2. We aren’t all born creative and I don’t have a creative bone in my body.

3. I love being creative, I just can’t seem to find the time.

4. Creativity is for weirdos and I don’t want to be like that.

5. I’m a businessman/woman and I don’t have the time or inclination for creativity.

6. What use is creativity anyway?

7. I’ll get back to it when my kids are older or I retire.

8. I can’t earn a living being creative – starving artist syndrome.

9. I wish I could be creative, I just don’t know where to start.

10. Creativity is just an excuse to not be responsible.

11. Get a REAL job.

There are probably many, many more statements that spring to mind, and you know what, we all have our own special one.  I’m sure you may have said some of these very things to your self at one time or another. So I am going to begin at the beginning, because at the core of every single one of these statements are two very important things which are addressed in the first two items on the list.  Really everything else stems from them!

1. FIRSTLY – it is a universal principle – we are ALL creative and YOU are NOT  the exception!

In order to address these statements let’s look at the whole idea of creativity a little more closely. The first thing to be clear about is that there is nothing original under the sun. All creativity is built on the shoulders of those who have gone before. Even The Renaissance had it’s seeds in the cave paintings of the ancients. When we create an ‘original’ work we are always using some element of something that some one before us has created, even if it is a beautiful landscape we are sitting in, not even a photograph of one. The amazing Creator of our planet created it.

Often as artists we get bogged down in the place of, I’ve got to produce something new and original, something awesome that no one has ever done before. I think that secretly there is a little bit of that wish in all of us. However do you think that expectation is either realistic or possible?

What we can achieve is something that may appear to be original but is founded on past works. I did a series of paintings in 2011-2012 that actually honoured the creators before us. I used various elements, from Ancient Greece, to a facade from Venice, old clocks and so on.  Below is one of these works.

Beginnings

The boy is a statue from Ancient Greece, the golden leaves from a piece of ancient Roman glassware, the lace work from a Venetian window and the Roman numerals on the clock are from an old clock in Sydney.

This Weeks Question: What can you use to build on that someone else before you has already created?

Today I am going to share with you my favourite watercolour artist.  I recently purchased Shirley Trevena’s ‘Vibrant Watercolours’ book.  What a riotous feast of colour she uses.  For someone like myself who is in love with colour, her painting is such a delight.

The book is filled with useful information about her process illustrated with many of her wonderful paintings.  I have always been into oils and pastel more than water colours , however Shirley’s work has given me much inspiration and an excitement to do more with water colours.

Her water colours truly are vibrant.  In this book she has several demonstrations of  her processes and takes you from her initial set up – as in the example below,

Still Life Set UP – Shirley Trevena

Through to the finished painting…

Small Painting In Blue – Shirley Trevena

On pages 68 and 69 she discusses using water resistant material with your water colours, such as, masking fluid, wax resist, oil pastel and mixed media and texture medium.  She gives examples of ways to use these products, for example in the next experiment in the picture below she uses a mixed media  approach with oil pastel, water soluble crayon and ink.

Playing With Mixed Media – Shirley Trevena

And the she shares with us a beautifully vibrant piece using these techniques.

Still Life With Red and Green Fruit – Shirley Trevena

If you don’t have this book I highly recommend it if you want help in making your water colours zing and vibrate. It would make a great Christmas present for an artist friend, or yourself even!

This Weeks Question: How can you improve your watercolours?

Buy this book from Amazon