Creative Thoughts to Get you Going!
- When I get an idea for a song it would gel in my mind for weeks or months, and then one day just like that, I’ll write it. ~ Johnny Cash
- If you’re going to be an artist, real life is your inspiration. ~ Madonna
- A person creates what they defend against. ~ The Buddha
- Criticize by creating. ~ Michelangelo
- Happiness lies in the joy of achievement and the thrill of creative effort. ~ Franklin D. Roosevelt
- Sometimes I think creativity is magic; it’s not a matter of finding an idea, but allowing the idea to find you. ~ Maya Lin
- Creativity involves breaking out of established patterns in order to look at things in a different way. ~ Edward de Bono
- When the spirit of child’s play enters into the creative process, it’s a wonderful force and something to be nurtured. ~ Joni Mitchell
- In my experience, the best creative work is never done when one is unhappy. ~ Albert Einstein
- The whole difference between construction and creation is this; that a thing constructed can only be loved after it is constructed; but a thing created is loved before it exists. ~ Charles Dickens
- Sometimes we become so entangled in the mundane facts of our lives that we forget about our creative nature until it starts nagging us with reminders of its needs or until we feel so fractured we know something is wrong. ~ Anne Hazard Aldrich, Notes From Myself, 1998
- Creativity is the firing of my soul. ~ Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
- True creativity often starts where language ends. ~ Arthur Koestler
How to Ruin Creativity #5
If all you ever paint is a particular style and subject, over and over your work is going to get old looking. Try new things. It doesn’t have to be every time, and it doesn’t have to be a major change. Try a different surface canvas vs. masonite. Use a color you usually don’t; mix it with all the colors you usually use and see what the results are. Work horizontal instead of vertical. Mix it up and your creativity will explode!
A New Painting a Day!
The challenge starts today – first painting posted September 2 in the evening! Try the challenge with me – it does not have to be a masterpiece. My favorite quote from Thomas Jefferson:
Determine never to be idle. No person will have occasion to complain of the want of time who never loses any. It is wonderful how much may be done if we are always doing.
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Day One: Teaching in Seoul
Actually I have not started teaching but the long voyage is over! I was up 27 hours with a few cat naps on the plane.
The sponsor, Eunha and the interpreter picked me up and the airport and we came to the Seoul Youth Hostel right in the center of the city and set up. There will be 30 students each day. I am teaching for 6 days with this upcoming weekend off. I have heard that we will be taking a tour!
Stay posted – I swear this will get more interesting! I will add pictures! To see what I am teaching look here.
Until later!
Day Two: Teaching in Seoul
With the help of my interpreter Annie and the dynamic seminar organizer Eunha, the first day got off to a wonderful start. 31 ladies divided by a language, culture and distance were all brought together through our love of painting.
Mary with Eunha Lee (the lovely sponsor)
The room is crowded but not one lady complained (like I would understand). They managed to make do with the limited space.
I am enjoying the Korean and Asian food. Getting better with chopsticks but somehow a fork just magically appears.
Went to a shopping district – reminds of a combination of NYC, Tokyo and Rome: NYC because of the density, Tokyo because of all of the neon and Rome because these drivers are crazy and the pedestrians seem unaware!
Day Three is almost here. Can’t wait to finish our first piece. Watch for the next post of many ladies all holding the same painting. My favorite part.
Another adventure all brought by painting. No one could have ever told me that painting would open up a wonderful world of seeing other countries and realizing that women are the same everywhere.
View from the easel
Shopping/Run over tourist district
Eating at a Korean BBQ
Day Three: Teaching in Seoul
We are just about finished with a Dutch Old Master Still Life. I find it amazing that we are able to create such great artwork with all of the hurdles. Pictures of the finished pieces tomorrow as we are putting the final touches on in the morning. Our next piece is titled “The Difficult Lesson” which I found out was worrying the ladies. They thought the lesson was difficult but I had to assure them that the girl in the painting was having the difficult lesson, not us!
View from the classroom
I did meet 30 US high school students as I am staying at the International Seoul Youth Hostel. They had all just arrived for a year study here in Korea. We wished each other well as we went through the cafeteria line, dishing up our food and willing to just take our chances. I now know where the restaurant keeps their secret forks. Things are really looking up in that department.
Day Four: Teaching in Seoul
Another wonderful day – we finished the Dutch Old Master (waiting for the final touches before the big group photo) and started on next piece. Here are pictures with everyone finished with the sepia under painting on the Difficult Lesson.
This is where we eat lunch everyday
Stage One of the "Difficult Lesson"
How to Ruin your Creativity: Part One
Artist at work (whether he felt like it or not)
The first way to destroy your creativity is only to paint when you feel like it. (more…)
Day Five: Teaching in Seoul
The class and a few of the almost finished paintings
The class and a few of the almost finished paintings from days 3-4
How to Ruin your Creativity Part Two
Another way to ruin your creativity is only to paint for sale or to teach.
The more successful you are at teaching or selling your work, the more important it becomes to remember to paint just for yourself regularly. If you’re worried about the time it takes away from paintings that are earning you a living, think of it as an investment in yourself. The enjoyment and satisfaction of a painting or study done without an outside demand dictating what ought to be in it and looking over your shoulder will feed back into your other paintings.
Days Off from Teaching: Also Known as Sightseeing
Four of the ladies, one of course the interpreter took me on a world-wind site seeing tour. We started with a great lunch at an Italian restaurant in the shadow of the Seoul tower. We had pizza that we dipped in honey and Italian bread dipped in soy sauce. After that is was pretty standard fare. We sat in a little booth on crushed red velvet couches.
Next it was off to a typical preserved historical village. Seeing history from 1000 years ago was mind boggling. Then we went to a palace across town. We toured the palace and its accompanying gardens. I enjoyed the painting on the underside of the roof and the small mythical figures on the roof line. Best part was when we realized that we left out of the wrong side and were about a mile from the car. No problem – hire two cabs to drive us to our car. Cabs are very easy to obtain and if you can’t communicate with the driver you say “Free Interpreter” and he dials the phone and you talk to an English speaker who acts as a translator.
Then we went to an open market frequented by Koreans. No US restaurants or shops here. I think I could have spent all day here. Highlights were that of young men making a traditional sweet treat all accompanied by a “rap” on what they were doing. It was punctuated with English words and had us all laughing. Of course we had to buy the treats. Turkish men were serving up ice cream using a very long spoon so that they did not have to bend to scoop. We then decided to stop of tea and I had 100 Flower hot tea while the others had refreshing cold tea served in large bowls. I later bought (or the ladies did) an identical tea pot and tea on the street.
We looked at mother of pearl products as it is a specialty of Korea. Then it was time for dinner! I am becoming quite fond of the Korean food but decided that I really need to cut back on the cabbage.
The day was topped off by a performance of Korean music and dance. It was one of the most unbelievable things I have ever seen. Many of dances were all based in the agricultural past and history. The traditional Korean instruments were spotlighted. One was a 10 minute opera with one woman singing playing 100 parts. At the end, they pulled all Caucasians onto the stage to play a drum and dance in a circle. I got a free fan out of the deal but was mortified but in a good way. Sadly the day was over as quickly as it began.
I have posted all of the photos (75) to my Facebook page – view all here (even if you are not a FB member)
Day Five Teaching in Korea
I am teaching my last group. We are painting a Wine & Cheese Still Life. The group is part of the Decorative Painting Society of Korea. Home tomorrow! (click on image to enlarge)
Way to Ruin Creativity #4
Some amount of stress leads to a higher standard of painting but obsessing with every detail of painting is distracting. Do you worry about the fact that your studio is not perfectly organized so you should not work? Use that energy to put paint on the canvas. Do you worry that household chores aren’t finished? Well, they will never be so use that energy to finish a painting. Use the energy toward something that does have the ability to be complete such as a painting.
How to Ruin Creativity # 3
Keep a Note of Your Ideas
It doesn’t have to be a sketchbook with page after page of perfect sketches with perfect perspective and full color. It doesn’t have to be a written journal with page after page of detailed recordings of your thoughts,dreams, hopes and aspirations. But you need to keep some sort of record of your ideas, things that you thought were great, inspirational photos, postcards of paintings, etc.
You’re not going to remember them all, some may be too advanced for where you are now as an artist, some may need development. It can be a box, file, journal, or sketchbook… just find a place to store those ideas for a rainy day.