It is vital to trust your instincts as you create; to do otherwise is to smother your creativity. Nowhere is this modeled better than with my two children (ages 7 & 9), who, when they have a creative instinct, follow it without inhibition, self-criticism, or restraint. This past week, they wanted to start making gnomes out of polymer clay, and when I offered to find them a YouTube video to show them how to do it, my son refused.
“I know what I want to do,” he said.
And then he did.
The children worked side-by-side for the entire evening (and several days afterward), rolling out clay, adding eyes, and doing exactly what they wanted with no input from anyone else. The result is that I now have a family of little clay gnomes ready to bake (and a mess on the art table ready to tidy).
I can never complain about the mess too much, though, because there is something wonderful about watching my children make new, beautiful things.
Besides, I was busy reading a beautiful book: Gnomes By Rien Poortvliet and Wil Huygen
We found it in our cabin in the Enchanted Forest a few weeks back, tucked in a cluttered cabinet full of markers and pens and games. My children surprised me by wanting to listen to ALL of it, as soon as possible. Written like a nonfiction Encyclopedia, it’s full of whimsy and beautiful details. Much of it is written in cursive, which my son could not quite parse, and there are stories and pictures and all manner of things. I would not think a fictional encyclopedia would so enrapture both me and my children, but we finished it with little complaint from anyone in the audience.
And then my son made gnomes.
My daughter made the gnomes a bench and a carpet.
And I daydreamed about writing gnome stories to put my children to sleep.
Last night, I read a beautiful quote by Tamora Pierce, “Immature artists imitate; mature artists steal!” in an interview in “The Wand in the Word”. (Which she quite appropriately stole from T.S. Elliot’s quote “Immature poets imitate; mature poets steal”, but I digress.) And I think there is something beautiful about art inspiring more art, which, in turn, inspires more art.
If you are, however, feeling a little stuck, I love this podcast interview of Phil Cook.
He outlines four things that every artist needs to unlock their creativity. (I highly recommend listening to the entire podcast.) I found myself applying the principles to EVERYTHING this month–writing (of course), but also improv at the piano, and even cooking. It made me so happy.
Principle #1: Shed the Weight of Expectations
Principle #2: Lower the Stakes
Principle #3: Bring Yourself to the Work
Principle #4: Find Your Sanctuary
In each of us is a quiet voice that says, “I want to do this,” “I want to try this,” “What about this?”
My son listened an made gnomes.
I listened and cooked beautiful food, and set them on beautifully laid tables with candles and a tablecloth. And of course I wrote, and wrote, and wrote.
What will you create?