Creative Process_unknown author

Creative ProcessDownload the_creative_process.doc

The Creative Process
Original author unknown.
Additions by Brenda Pinnick

1. The ability to come up with new ideas is already there. It’s your birthright. It doesn’t have to be invented, IT HAS TO BE DISCOVERED. Over the years we’ve developed layers and layers of habitual reactions to most any situation. We REACT when instead we should RESPOND.
2. Creativity is a state of mind that is connected to relaxation.
3. Wonder is a higher state of consciousness that leads to QUESTIONING. The state of questioning is the definitive tool of creativity. Creativity is ultimately about the ART OF QUESTIONING.
4. Creative problem solving encompasses RISK-TAKING. Fear of failure and playing it safe keeps one from indulging.
5. Looking for a FORMULA will keep you from getting there.
6. It’s almost always a STRUGGLE. The question is how to embrace this very struggle. How to maintain it. How to be fed by the process.
7. There is never a guarantee for RESULTS.
8. Working collaboratively can help maximize your efforts. Working with the right person(s) doesn’t make you twice as good…it makes you 10 TIMES as good.
9. Remember, It’s a PROCESS – research, pondering and digestion.
10. Playing and FOOLING AROUND is a good starting point.
11. The BLANK PAGE – (It is the great pitfall of creativity.) One must overcome one’s inability to simply begin. One must get past their daydreaming, mechanically, procrastination and the feeling of incompetence. START ANYWHERE, JUST START!
12. Creativity is not just limited to art related activities. Most all endeavors in life can be creative ventures. The more you live in a creative mindset, the easier this becomes.
13. Creative problem solving needs the condition of priority. HIGH PRIORITY means carrying the question with you all of the time, either consciously or unconsciously. This condition is necessary for ideas to “magically” appear.
14. Cliché’s are a habitual approach to problem solving which lead to predictable solutions. Here one is dealing with the known and what one already knows is lacking in terms of newness, energy and spontaneity. An automatic response to problem solving leads to cliché solutions.
15. On the other hand, don’t immediately eliminate cliché concepts, for at times by re-interpreting time worn images, one can revitalize an ordinary cliché and give it the power it originally possessed.
16. In short, you are being asked to create something larger than your normal capabilities can handle, like lifting 100 pounds when your strength capacity is only 50 pounds. If this is the case, it’s a process that calls for new CONDITIONS.
17. The missing ingredient is FEELING connected to one’s self which can only arise by struggling with the given problem. It’s a question of getting involved through your own process so that this feeling can appear.
18. So, by QUESTIONING- which puts one into the UNKNOWN- by PLAYING AROUND with the spirit and enthusiasm of a CHILD- by being PATIENT and not forcing the issue, SOLUTIONS have a way, at times, when you least expect them to simply PRESENT THEMSELVES and say, “HERE I AM”.
19. For certain formal problems, each stage of the project dictates it’s next incarnation. For example, in the process of creating a design, a piece might call for or suggest the use of more intense color, or less complexity, or the re-proportioning of forms or the introduction of scale. This is what one is presented with during the design process and one should remain sensitive to all that is given. Allow room for exploration.
20. After pondering these 19 thought, forget everything you’ve read. Put them aside and let your experience be your teacher so that you can learn first hand in developing your own understanding.

Comments

[Brenda Pinnick]

Sharyn, I don't think you're the odd duck at all. I'm the same way, I feel like I can never die because I have way too many ideas and way too much art to make. I DO think that we all have moments or times when the "stuff of life" gets into our heads a bit too much and clutters things up. I always "warm up" before starting in the morning by playing around with color, shape, lines, etc. before opening up my files or putting paint to canvas. This gets me into "RIGHT BRAIN" mode and helps me get into "FLOW". Thanks for your comments.
B.

[Sharyn Sowell]

I am definitely the odd duck here. I've read articles like this and always end up shaking my head, as the creative process for me doesn't fit the mold the authors describe. For me, I just feed my eyes and look at the world around me and then I can't NOT be creative. The only thing that puts the brakes on is prolonged stress, and it's a sure sign that I need to pull back a & rest. For me creativity is just a natural part of a balanced life when you're interested in the world around you. Sometimes the rub comes when as a designer you can't get inspired for the particular task your client wants done immediately, but that's a different topic altogether, I suppose! Thanks for posting this, Brenda. An interesting viewpoint.