Living Creatively
It's not just for artists
There is a plethora of misinformation about what it means to be creative and that only artists have a corner on that market. Yes to the former and nonsense to the latter.
As defined in the dictionary, creativity transcends traditional ideas, rules, patterns, and relationships. It is creating meaningful ideas, forms, methods, and interpretations using one's imagination to be original and progressive.
Do only artists have imaginations? I think not.
When I tell people I’m a visual artist, the response usually is, “Oh, I can’t even draw a straight line.” Really? Is that what you think about when someone says artist?
First, there are rulers to help create straight lines. Second, do you see any straight lines in my work? Do you see straight lines in nature? No. And is being able to draw a straight line creative or artistic? That’s a “hell no.”
Straight lines are only necessary if you are constructing houses, bridges, or other structures that need square corners. And even then, it may not be required. The famous artist Gaudi comes to mind. He chucked the traditional straight-line concept of architecture right out the window.
To give a little personal history, I always thought my artistic abilities were unique in my family. And this comes from knowing that no one in my ancestry created art for fun and certainly not as an occupation. I continued these unsubstantiated beliefs throughout my academic career as a student and then as an art professor. I was towing the party line advocated by some of my art professors, colleagues, and all the art academics who came before me. Artists are exceptional, unique, one-of-a-kind, blah, blah, blah.
Well, yes, we are unique. But what we create is not unique; it’s our approach to getting to that point. It is about the creative process, the steps taken, the problems solved, the trials, failures, and triumphs along the way.
Creativity goes further than a painting, a sculpture, a handmade vessel, or a piece of jewelry. It goes beyond music, theatre, dance, and all the fine and craft arts.
Creativity is an attitude, philosophy, a way to solve problems, a unique perspective, and a dream. It’s a stream of thoughts and actions that create a result that becomes the crux of our creative endeavors. It is how we face an obstacle and regroup by plowing through or working around those barriers to achieve a goal. Or maybe it’s resetting the end game altogether, realizing that through the process, there are more desirable opportunities if a different route is taken.
So, we are not just discussing an end product, such as what artists eventually produce or not. We are talking about a way of living, doing, and being—a way of being creative in our everyday lives with everyday things and creatively responding to the world by being open to what may happen despite our original plans.
What is clear from studies and my own experience on the importance of creativity in our lives is that we are happiest when thinking and acting creatively. This can mean playing with materials to make something tangible or applying creative thought and ingenuity to solve a problem. It can mean working through internal issues by expressing oneself directly through various art forms or brainstorming invention ideas. It can be composing words in poetic form or finding new ways to make a patient feel better if the traditional methods are not working. It’s taking what you have in the fridge and creating a nutritious meal, and I could go on and on.
All you nonartists, think about how many creative things you do daily.
I am one of those people who believes everyone has a little artist in them. I think this because it’s ultimately not about mad artistic skills but a mindset and a thought process.
I always tell folks that being an artist is not what I do; it’s how I approach the world when I wake up in the morning (after my first hot beverage).
Thank you for reading. Feeling creative, subscribe to “An Artist’s Journey.”