Intuitive Play
January 24th, 2009, 16 Comments
Over at the amazingly talented Tammy Vitale's blog, I saw a link to Susan Cornelis's gorgeous artwork. Susan has an incredible video about "contemplative sketchbooking" that connects so well to the theme of play, that I had to share it with you here.
Very cool.
This kind of play takes a certain amount of courage. There's risk-taking involved. There are lots of unknowns. This is the land of happy accidents, exploration, and yes...fun! There is a great sense of fun if we can let go enough to enjoy the process. Try playing with your chosen medium today, let one thing lead to the next. Turn off that over-thinking mind and see where your intuition leads you!
Leap and the Net Will Appear
January 23rd, 2009, 20 Comments
I'm loving re-reading Gail McMeekin's The 12 Secrets of Highly Creative Women. This week's chapter is all about taking risks. It made me think of the quote from Julia Cameron's The Artist's Way,
Leap and the net will appear.
I've been thinking about doing this for awhile now and decided that with my year of leaping, now is the time! So....
I will be leading an online Artist's Way group this year, complete with a weekly teleclass and private blog. It would run for 12 weeks and I'd keep the groups fairly small, so that everyone would get plenty of personal attention. It will cost $300 for the 12 week session.
Having a group to help you through it is so helpful. Years ago, when I was getting back in touch with my creative side, I found an ad for a Artist's Way group that was led by a local yoga teacher. We met every week in her living room and discussed one of the chapters, the exercises, and our experiences with them. And in that small group of 5 women, I made huge shifts in the way I approached my creativity.
I've gone through the book many times now and a few years ago I led a large group of about 100 bloggers through the book. I loved the online group and met so many wonderful people, but there were times when I wished the group was smaller because it was tough to keep up with everyone. I've been interested in leading a group through the book for awhile and I think the online and teleclass forum provides a wonderful opportunity for us to connect and share this work even if we can't meet in person.
I'm thinking about starting up a group in late February or early March. If you're interested in joining me in a safe, supportive, ultra-creativity-boosting adventure, leave a comment or pop me an email and let me know, so I can keep you up to date!
CED February Theme: Words!
January 21st, 2009, 33 Comments
January isn't over yet, but I want to give you a little something to get excited about, the theme for Creative Every Day Challenge in February!
The *totally optional* February theme will be Words. There are SO many ways to approach this theme. You could:
- Play with writing (fiction, non-fiction, poetry.)
- Use words in your artwork.
- Combine writing and art in an art journal.
- Alter a book.
- Learn the definitions of words and see what it inspires.
- Pay attention to the words you use.
- Practice saying mantras.
- Write and send letters or postcards (to friends or yourself!)
- Bake letter shaped cookies.
How to use the themes:
- If you're feeling creatively stuck or blocked at any point during the month, use the theme as a source of inspiration to get you moving.
- In the case of words, explore how you can use words in your work, journal about what words means to you, or use one of the examples above!
- Using the theme is entirely optional for CED participants. Use it if it inspires you, ignore it if it doesn't.
- I'll be sharing posts throughout the month around the theme (among other things) to get you thinking about how to incorporate that particular theme into your life. Feel free to make suggestions or share how you use that theme in your creative worlds throughout the month.
- Feel free to focus on the theme in your creative activities for the entire month or as much as you'd like.
- Have fun with it!
Words are alive; cut them and they bleed. --Ralph Waldo Emerson
Playing with Not Knowing and Winter
January 19th, 2009, 23 Comments
O.k., it's winter in New England, so I shouldn't be surprised by the snow we're getting whopped with here. But here I am, feeling surprised by all this snow. Why do I live here, again? Anyways, from inside my warm apartment, where the hubster has made delicious blueberry pancakes, the snow does look oh so pretty. As long as I never have to go outside...
Well, tomorrow I need to get myself to the post office to send off some artwork and calendars, so pretending I'm a hibernating bear won't work much longer.
I do appreciate the seasons, the cycles we have here, and no matter how many times I've gone through them, it still feels a bit new every time.
So I decide to play with the fun parts of winter, the child-like sense of wonder that manages to creep in when the world turns white. I play with winter by drawing fun snowmen with cats on their hats, wrapping up in colorful scarves, drinking hot chocolate...and maybe I need to find a sled. 
In the Key to Winter painting, I worked out some of my feelings about the season. It seems like I work out so much of my innerworkings through my art. If I let myself just play, sketch, and wander with color, whatever is going on in my head eventually comes to the surface. (I just sent out the first print of this painting and I love the way it came out!)
I've drawn this image of smoke from upside-down houses a couple times now. One time the smoke seemed to come from the woman's heart and this time from her hair. What's that all about? Don't know. I might not ever know. It could be something I'm processing or something utterly absurd or a little of both. Heh.
Part of creating is embracing the not knowing.
While you're playing with your creativity this month, experiment with not knowing. You could try creating a piece of artwork with no plan, just taking pen to paper and see what happens. You could tear through some magazines and tear out any image that catches your eye (don't question, just tear). Perhaps put these images together in an art journal and then write a bit about what you see in the imagery.
Later this week, I'm going to write more about one of my favorite ways to play with not knowing...doodling! Til then, toodaloo!
Creative Every Day: January 19th – January 25th, 2009
January 19th, 2009, 50 Comments
Feel free to leave a comment on this post or use the "Mr. Linky" widget below to link to a post (or posts) about your creative activities during the days of 1/19/09 - 1/25/09.
The use of this widget is not required. It's an optional method of sharing your creativity that makes it easier for others to check out what you're up to. You can use it to link to a blog post or posts during the week listed. Or if you have a bunch of posts and don't want to link to all of them, you can link to your main blog page once. Do it in a way that makes sense and is fun for you!
To find out more about Creative Every Day 2009, check out the details here and then if you want to sign up, leave a comment on this post or email me to let me know (a link to my email is in the upper left sidebar.) When you contact me, please let me know how you'd like to be listed in the list of participants, which resides in the right sidebar (I can list you as your name or as a link to a blog if you have one. A blog is not required!) If you start posting links on the Mr. Linky widget without letting me know that you're participating, I may not see that you're new. Also, if you notice that your blog is not in the sidebar and you thought you had signed up, let me know, so I can get it up there asap.
There are some folks participating who do not have a blog and for some reason their names are linking to the CED info page. I'm not sure why that's happening, but I wanted you to know that when you click on a name that takes you to the CED page, it means that they don't have a blog at this time.
The totally optional theme for January is Play! I'll be posting about this theme throughout the month. You can find out more about how you can use the theme here.
Happy Creating!!
The world is your playground. Why aren't you playing? --Ellie Katz
Works in Progress
January 18th, 2009, 10 Comments
I don't have anything finished to show, but I'm happy to be sharing some works in progress with you. This painting is developing slowly. First as a collaged canvas (above) and then painting the scene that I originally doodled in a sketchbook. Of course the image continues to change and develop as I paint it. It leads me and grows as I go.
I imagine this woman is listening to the earth, listening to the quiet growings that happen beneath the surface. I suppose it's a metaphor for listening to that still small voice within you. I hope to do some more work on it today.
I've also been playing a bit in an art journal I have. I don't do a lot of art journaling, but every so often, I'm inspired to work in this way. Here's a work in progress (below.) Recently, I surprised myself with being drawn to images of Africa (elephants have been on my joy list for quite a while, but now I'm being drawn to giraffes and African landscapes.) I clipped the giraffe image from a travel brochure that came in the mail. I was especially tickled by it because of the two other regular symbols of mine that show up in it:
A tree and loads of lanterns (check out my business name, Blue Tree Studios, for the trees and the banner of this blog for the lantern!) The rest of the journal spread was created with some paint and playfulness and a hand-carved stamp. The only words so far are, "It's possible," but I plan to do some writing on these pages as well.
We got whopped with another snowstorm today. It's been a very snowy winter in my estimation. Today, I am definitely staying indoors. In fact, it may be an all-day-pajama-fest here. The cats have all snored their agreement. Excellent.
I hope your day (pajamas or no) is a wonderfully creative one!
Honoring Your Inspiration
January 16th, 2009, 38 Comments
The second chapter of The 12 Secrets of Highly Creative Women, which I'm reading with a book group here, is all about honoring your inspiration. This is so important and part of the reason why I keep sketchbooks within arm's reach at all times. It may drive the hubster a little nuts because of the excess of paper I have around me, but if I'm having lots of ideas, it's so helpful for me to get them down. For one, I feel better after releasing the ideas from my head and I also capture lots of bits and pieces that I might have forgotten had I not taken the time to sketch, write, or scribble some stuff out.
There's a lot packed into this particular chapter, it ranges from carving out a sacred space, to creative ritual, to play! Yes, according to author, Gail McMeekin, play is an important factor for us creative people! So for you Creative Every Day Challenge participants who have been resisting getting playful, now's the time to give it a go! I'm planning some posts for next week about how to get playful if you're feeling really stuck around it.
At the end of the chapter, there's a challenge about taking a "Creative Style Inventory." I'll share my answers with you here:
- When did your creative awakening or reawakening occur? I've always felt like I was a creative person, but there was a period, right after I graduated from art school where I felt a bit dead creatively, like my fire had been put out. It can be hard, especially for us sensitive folks, to go through something like art school and come out the other side feeling good about what we create. I left with the feeling that everything had to be a certain way, a "right" way and as a result, I felt little to no desire to create. Nothing felt good enough. It took me awhile to break free of the art teacher voices I heard in my head when creating. I had to get back to being playful (part of the reason I think play is so important) and I also got back to creating from my intuition (something I'd been discouraged from doing.) I literally got away from the easel and started creating while on the floor, I took classes in intuitive art making, and began to really enjoy the process again. I had to find my way back to the joy in creating, but in a way I'm glad I went through that process as I feel much more in touch with my creative side now than I did before.
- What talents do you have naturally? I think I'm a natural peacemaker, I tend to put people at ease. I'm an artist. I'm good at encouraging others. And I'm naturally silly.
- What elements (fire, water, wood, air) draw you toward them? I'm drawn to all of the elements at different times, but I'm drawn most strongly to water. It soothes me.
- Where and when do you create? Where and when do you wish to create? I create mostly in my home studio space, but I can create just about anywhere. I create usually in the afternoon and evening and I'm fine with that.
- What activates your creative energy, and what drains it? My creative energy is activated by inspiring reading, movement (like taking a walk or yoga), playing, journaling, and taking classes. What drains it is too much time in front of the computer or television, sleeping too long, and overwhelming messes (some mess is o.k., but it can get to a point where I can't handle it anymore.)
- Do you use creative rituals? Sometimes. I usually begin creating by closing my eyes, taking a breath, and giving myself permission to make "bad" art.
- Does nature influence your creativity? Absolutely! I'm constantly inspired by the forms of nature, the color combinations I see in the world, the cyclic patterns of life. It shows up in my work constantly.
- What has been your greatest creative hurdle so far? Probably the one I mentioned in answer to question number 1.
- What time of day are you most receptive to inspiration? I don't know that there's a particular time of day...A lot of my ideas seem to come in the evening when I'm feeling a little tired or in the hypnogogic state just before sleep. I think it's because my mind is tired enough to let subconscious imagery slip through which creates some fabulous images for me.
After looking over what I've written, I think what I most need to do is do a little cleaning and clearing in my studio space. I've been slowly tackling it throughout the week, but a more concentrated effort would be a good thing. Makes me want to do one of Jennifer Hofmann's office spa days!
New Art And Resources
January 15th, 2009, 4 Comments
I have some new artwork available in my online store, Blue Tree Art Gallery. These pieces were created late in 2008 and it usually takes a little time to get them ready to sell because I like to offer prints as well. Well, they're ready to go and I'm super excited to offer these new pieces! I have the original and prints available for At Sea (above), Ophelia (below), Key to Winter and you can also buy my 2009 calendar on the website!
I'm also excited to share some awesome creative resources with you!
- I just listened in on this fabulous teleseminar with Lisa Sonora Beam, author of The Creative Entrepreneur. The call was recorded and you can listen to it here, right now! I purchased Lisa's book recently and it's really gorgeous. I seem to be reading so much lately about business aligned with your heart (which I love!) and this book fits right in with this idea.
- Another creative dynamo who writes about business with heart is, Tara Joyce, who blogs at the Innerpreneur. Lots of great things to check out there.
- My friend, Jennifer Lee is starting an amazing telegroup, the Inner Muse Group Coaching Playground, which is all about creativity, fulfillment, and focus. Sounds like it might be a great tool for some of you Creative Every Day Challenge participants who are feeling a bit stuck! Also, Jenn is offering a special rate through January 16th, so check it out now if you're interested!
I'm all abuzz with creative energy this week. Ideas are flowing and I'm working on a few different pieces. I'll be able to share those with you soon. In the meantime, I hope you are all having fun playing! I'll be announcing next month's theme around the 21st of the month.
Cat Crazy
January 13th, 2009, 8 Comments
As the owner of four lovable cats, some might say I'm a bit cat crazy. O.k., plenty of people might say that! Well, either way, I can't help but share some of the great cat stories I see form time to time.
I saw this video on Belle's blog. It features The Cat House on the Kings, a simply amazing no-kill shelter for cats (and some dogs too) in California. What a sweet life these kitties have. I would totally love to hang out there every day. They do such fabulous work, so if you can, do donate a bit to this wonderful non-profit that helps so many kitties find good homes and is home to all those who don't get adopted for whatever reason.
These other bits are just for fun. This next video was discovered through the twittering of divabat. It features a kitty who wanders on to the set of a t.v. meteorologist and gets in on the action. Too cute.
And lastly, a game for your iphone called Mew Mew Tower. I may have to check this one out. I'm not usually a video game person (because I stink at them and get frustrated!), but this one has such a great name. Heh. Yep, I'm cat crazy.
Playful Stretching
January 13th, 2009, 18 Comments
I dream about my own cats quite a bit, often in the context of anxiety dreams where I'm trying to travel with one in my suitcase or saving them from a burning building or something like that. Dreams are often the source of great art images for me. This piece on the left didn't come from a dream, it just felt dreamy. But other images I've created have come directly from images I saw oh, so clearly in a dream. Another great reason to keep a journal or sketchbook by your bed!
In this piece, I was simply playing, making marks, mushing color around. Kathryn mentioned in a comment today that play can be intense stuff sometimes. It's true! I think because play is so much fun, it can be a fabulous way to stretch ourselves beyond what we'd normally do. It's a neat way to "trick" ourselves into experimenting, exploring, and diving deeper.
In the service of play we may go just that much further with a bit of inspiration, an idea, a possibility. Playing with children, for example, is always a great way to stretch your imagination muscles. Kids are fabulous at play and possibility, silliness, and fun. An empty box is a bed for a doll, a hat, a house, a turtle shell, or a time travel machine. Try using play as a means of stretching yourself and see what comes up for you.
I'm reading The 12 Secrets of Highly Creative Women by Gail McMeekin, as part of Jamie's book group. I've read it a few times already as it's chock full of inspiration! The first chapter is called, "Acknowledging Your Creative Self" and it begins with a quote that I think works so well with our theme of Play this month:
Your creativity is waiting for you like a dancing partner. -Barbara Sher
My hope is that those of you participating in the Creative Every Day Challenge this year will fully acknowledge and embrace your creative selves. You are all so wildly creative, it makes my heart sing!
