youarecreative

Creativity Vs Comfort

C2O Editor Conversation Pieces bane, batman, creativity practice, creativity v comfort, youarecreative 0

There is a great scene in Dark Knight Rises where Bane delivers a monologue detailing why he will win. His point is that he comes from a place of despair and it has made him resilient, his resilience comes from his adaptability, from his creativity.

Creativity thrives only where there is space for it. Beneath creativity is desire, beneath desire is need.Where there is no need there lacks the impetus for action towards fulfillment.(curiosity, hunger, avoidance of danger etc)

Those operating within a system who are supported by the system have their needs met by it. Those operating within the system who do not have their needs met will seek to modify the system so that it fits their needs(innovation).

Those operating outside the system will be not act upon the system as long as their needs are met outside it but will seek to enter(inclusion) or alter the system if they can not sustain themselves beyond it’s borders(disruption).

Privilege begets, satiety and comfort which slowly mutes the instincts that aid in creation. Creation is stirred in a primal place within us. Our intellect may act upon it but it is sparked in our intuition. Similarly our ability to move is tied to our need to seek food. For example plants that produce energy by photosynthesis have no need to hunt or forage because the sun provides their food source, they are at once privileged to not need to move but are also limited by their immobility.

The same applies to people living in our system of society. It is not to say that innovation does not occur where there is privilege at all. It is that the impetus to alter one’s self or environment is greater when there is imminent threat. Observe radical social movements and their relationship to the ruling class. The fringe groups, are usually ignored until they have proven to be a legitimate threat. Comfort is quite literally an insulator from shifts in the environment, it helps us maintain homeostasis but it also dilutes our sensitivity. When this sensitivity is sufficiently diminished an artists is known to have lost their “edge”.

You will see how far disrupters are willing to push against specific points of a system that are not serving them as those that are working properly will seek to be protected. Just as hacker must bend some rules, and break others in order to develop innovative methods, a visual artist must challenge know aesthetic rules. A social institution has it’s rules and we will only seek to change or shift institutional paradigms where they are not serving us, thus social innovation can only be achieved by opposing existing systems as well.

An artist may criticize the dominant institution of the gallery structure in the art industry and academia only if it poses some sort of threat or discomfort. Few artists defy the institutions that support them whether or not they are in ideological alignment ie. biting the hand that feeds you. This is because the artist can conform to academia, be accepted and supported, and survive. Creativity is a inherent in us all as a tool of survival. It is our our instantaneous adaptability that makes us creative and systems that are too rigid or insular reduce our need to use that adaptability so we rely more heavily on static comfortable environments and are more susceptible to shock.

The tricky part is realizing that the comfort can exist in many forms, it doesn’t have to be monetary though it certainly can be. Being surrounded by people who do not challenge your ideas limit your growth, never leaving your neighborhood keeps you from new experiences. One of the most common ways we stay comfortable is by avoiding introspection. In the same breath it must be said that too instability is detrimental too, so there is a balance that must be achieved.We must alway be looking for that edge, as going over can be destructive but standing too far from it deprives us of the view.

Privilege can be abandoned or risked, for creative pursuits but until there has been a detachment from the existing paradigm creativity will be stifled. Creativity is essentially the synthesis of all available stimuli (information) to produce a desired result, whether that be the alleviation of psychological tension (expression), or more simply, the acquisition of a food source (wealth). While we all thrive in privilege and comfort to an extent, we must maintain a level of sensitivity to our environment that can only come from living a relatively non-sheltered life.

The Beating The Beast Of Boredom

C2O Editor Conversation Pieces, Creative Professional, Featured boredom, cure for boredom, fighting boredom, the battle against boredom, youarecreative 0

For those of us that fixate on specific ideas, our issue is rarely that we can’t come up with a new idea or something to be passionate about. Even for the most sensitive to inspiration though, the beast of boredom can still creep up on us. To understand how to combat this monster we should understand a few things about it.

We’ll use this working definition of boredom to get things going and clarify as we go along. It is the state when the mind is absent of desire, and motivation to fulfill it. With this simple definition we can see how quickly it can shift into depression. A superficial distinction from depression would be a sustained period absent of the will to live. So boredom is the little moments in a day or could be a couple days that you don’t really feel like doing anything. Once we get into the weeks and months of this feeling it may be best to look at it another way.

One author, Peter Toohey, argues that boredom is a state of satiety. When the body has been satisfied it lacks motivation. This can be true, but it is also a very complex feeling that one can experience even when they are hungry. It could also described as a reduced sensitivity to stimuli, a sort of numbness.

To combat the numbness we would first think that we should “jumpstart” the senses with an intense stimuli, the same way we would approach waking someone up who had passed out by using smelling salts. Barring a slap in the face it can be hard to stimulate someone who is in a funk as we often call it.

Basics should all be covered of course as far as diet and sugar intake, physical activity, mental activity, and it could also just be that you might need some rest. Psychologist, Meyer Friedman suggests getting into a groove. Moving your body at a mellow pace. This causes agitation and from that agitation a desire can be formed.

The two opinions here seem to align in that immobility is the ally of boredom. Finding your way out of boredom maybe as simple as finding your way off the couch or out into the sunlight. Novelty is the enemy of boredom as is realizing that you have things to do.

Boredom is tricky because it mutes your sense of urgency and keeps you in a sedated state. By starting small, and going slowly you might be able to convince yourself that moving isn’t so bad.

This feeling is not to be confused with being overwhelmed. Feeling defeated can also inspire this sluggish and disinterested mental state, the ever present “woe is me” can stifle your drive and creativity as well but that occurs because of a different set of reasons.

Finding your way back to desire is finding your way back to boredom, and it may not come immediately but you should continue to gradually poke and prod yourself to see if any of that stimulation kicks your system in to an activate state.

4 Steps To Cure “Writer’s” Block

C2O Editor Language Arts creativitypractice, cure for writers block, youarecreative 0

Whether you are a painter or a designer, or an actual writer there will come a time when you will be creatively constipated. You’ll stare at a blank page or canvas, or that damn cursor and it will drive you crazy. In this moment its time to check in and see what is really going on.

If you feel like your creative reservoir is empty there could be a few things going on. Here are 4 trick to help fill it up and get things flowing again.

1. Consume Food

If you are super hungry you will be distracted, because your brain function will be interrupted by the hunger you feel. This actually goes for any physical process. If you are too cold, or too hot it will be harder to create. Even if you are trying to write about how hungry you are, what comes from your creative mind will be less impactful if you do not have the energy to get it out there. The energy from food will help get you out of your funk and energized body is a creative one. Coffee is a trick many use but there is a crash, you can’t replace a balanced meal. Just don’t over eat.

2. Consume Information

If you are a writer, read something. If you are a painter, watch a documentary about a painter you like. The truth is you can consume anything that inspires you, but you might not feel the urge to channel surf. That is why it is good to start with something informative. Read up on a new technique or style, read a debate or listen to a podcast in your field. What you will get is a stimulation that isn’t tied to your mastery. When we try something new, we tend go easier on ourselves because we already know we are learning. More on that in #4.

3. Move Your Body

It could be as little as stretching or walking around the room. If you are really in a funk go for a sprint or hit a punching bag. This is going to be about “getting your blood” going so to speak. But when your heart rate rises your body will release endorphins and that will act as a natural stimulant and raise your sensitivity also. One of the reasons you might be feeling blocked if you have tried to read or something is that your body is in a relaxed stated. Think about how a person is when they are sleep, harder to engage with right? You want to be alert and alive so that you can create your best work.

4. Create Without Judgement

Our art is not so different from people’s personalities. It is so closely tied to our identity that we will not share it if we don’t feel that we are in a safe environment to do so. We have to prepare that safe place by removing our critical eye from the equation. The first step to creating great work is creating any work at all and if we are not open to making bad work, the good stuff will not come either. We should learn to enjoy the process and journey before we take a step back. Even if it means digging deeper into the stuff we don’t think is “good” we just want to work to a place where we are sharing our truth. That is where our best work lies, underneath the judgement and persona.

There are other means and ways but these 4 should get you going on an average day when things stop flowing.