This is a guest post written by artist Aileen Holmes. Artwork to the left is one of Aileen’s creations. As artists, many of us dream of creating large masterpieces and gloriously large scale works.
This is a beautiful and wonderful goal to have, but large dreams can also be a burden.
We question ourselves… “Why haven’t I done this already?” Or we procrastinate and the empty canvas haunts our days.
Try looking at creativity as a practice and infuse creativity into everyday life.
Creativity is a muscle that needs to be worked out.
Masterpieces don’t spring out of nowhere (well, sometimes but not often!). Creativity is a lifestyle – It needs to exist in every day life to grow and thrive.
There are simple ways you can exercise your creative muscles:
1. Carry a small sketchbook and a camera: Capture what catches your eye. The more you train your eye to look for creative inspiration, the more you will find.
2. Catalog your inspiration: Whenever I get a new magazine, I go through it and tear out whatever is intriguing. I tear out poses that I’d like to draw or paint later. A reservoir of inspiration becomes a resource to turn to over and over again.
3. Challenge how you approach every day activities: One exercise I like to do is choose a random article of clothing and try to build an all new outfit around it. Pick a neglected sweater or funky scarf and coordinate a fun look! When you force yourself to break out of dressing automatically, you learn to look at color and shapes a new way.
4. Experiment with a new ingredient: Adding spice to your life, whether it’s a new cuisine or learning salsa dancing will open up new avenues of expression. I like to dig in the back of my spice cabinet and invent a new recipe. By adding Kahlua to my horchata and adding a pinch of cinnamon, I invented a drink I like to call a “Mexican Russian!”
Opening your eyes to possibilities, collecting inspiration, challenging your viewpoint and experimenting are all ways to work your creative muscles.
When you approach all aspects of life creatively, you Create Every Day. The more you infuse creativity into every day life, the easier it will be to create your great masterpiece!
Aileen Holmes
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Aileen Holmes is an artist, illustrator, and graphic designer inspired by vintage fashion. Her art is feminine, fun, and flirty! Her blog is fun to follow – here’s the link.
The CREATE EVERYDAY artwork shown on this page is available as a print and proceeds go directly to The American Red Cross to help Haiti. I bought mine by clicking here. When I get it, I’ll hang it in my office to remind me daily to Create!
Maria xxoo
4 Responses
Hey Aileen,
I really enjoyed reading your fabulous guest post. Write to us often.
Also, I want to take this opportunity to say “thank you” to Maria. I have a hunch that Maria has a quick eye for spotting fresh, raw talent.
Yes, you have to take every opportunity to develop your creativity. Sometimes, you even have to create your own opportunities.
It is depressing to see so many “starving artists” dying unhonored, unsung and unheard, just like a poet wrote once. Some like Vincent Van Gogh earn fame posthumously. Others like Emily Dickinson become reclusive and write beautiful poems in splendid isolation.
Just as it is important to capture your thoughts, it is equally important to learn how to market your work. In fact, a while ago Maria wrote a fantastic post reminding us of just this fact. Just as we cannot afford to lose a “holy curiosity”–as Albert Einstein reminded us–we also need to find a platform to share our works with a relevant audience.
Archan, thanks for the kind words, and the additional insight. You should write a guest post for me! Let me know if you’re interested…..
I love these suggestions, especially the idea of challenging myself with what I do daily. I love it!