Have you ever noticed when a small child sits down to create, they do so with courageous confidence! The young artist paints with bold brush strokes and explains in detail what their work is about. Often that creative spirit is stifled as the child moves through life. It becomes too risky to create freely, due to irrational fear of judgement from others perhaps. People, wake up! The time has come to cease the worry and unleash your inner artist.
Is everybody a painter, potter or photographer? No, of course not! However, we are all inherently creative beings. We can apply creativity to as many aspects of our life as we wish: relationships, cooking, selecting clothing, or even playing with our children or pets. Pablo Picasso said, “Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up.”
Life becomes way more interesting when you look at the world through the lens of your imagination. Be observant, soak in all the delicious colors and textures in your environment. Allow your personal reality to inspire you to create: write, sew, garden, love someone, walk, sing, fill in the blank… I promise you that the creative process is life altering in the most positive way! Georgia O’Keefe writes, “I found I could say things with color and shapes that I couldn’t say any other way - things I had no words for.”
O’Keefe’s words resonate with me in a big way. As an art teacher at the secondary level, I am very comfortable directing art process minutiae to a large classroom of cell phone wielding teens. Currently, I have chosen to commit a good deal of my time to making art instead of teaching art. However, teaching art is still a passion for me, so stay tuned. I am very blessed and humbled to have made the switch. Ultimately, I need to channel my inner 5 year old when I show up in the studio. Learning to be with my own creative process and trust its message takes a bit of courage. We all need to quiet our worries and breathe. Be brave, be bold, be BRILLIANT; that little kid in you has been cooped up for far too long. I encourage you to unleash your creativity today!