Learning from Great Masters
By Chris Dunmire
Thank goodness for Thomas Alva Edison (1847-1931). This passionate man — credited with having a hand (some might say 'hand-lifted') in creating useful, life-changing inventions: the phonograph, light bulb, and telephone, along with having multiple electrical, mechanical, and chemical patents behind his name — left us with an incredible insight about genius and the cross-generational collaboration we particate in.
DaVinci's Genius Habits
By Linda Dessau
As artists, we get to play in the land of the senses as often as we allow ourselves to. And our gift to the world is that we help others to engage their senses through what we create. Da Vinci took great care to create an environment that nourished every one of his senses. Nothing was there by chance.
Author Interviews
By Molly Childers
Writing Down the Bones was the first book that made me feel like a writer. I've been gleaning inspiration from her work since I was first introduced to Bones in high school. Her unquenchable curiosity, thirst for juicy details, and unsparing honesty kept me coming back for more with Wild Mind. Goldberg is, in fact, the first writer who truly seemed real to me — she wasn't just a face in a dusty old book, but an actual flesh-and-blood woman battling it out on the page. I could picture having coffee with her in a cafe and writing for hours.
Profiles of Creative Empowerment
By Diana Rivera
How many film artists, actors and designers all draw inspiration from Federico Fellini's magnificently constructed worlds, connecting thoughtful story structure and characterization? Countless. It's curious to think about when one artist inspires another's work, it's a co-creation of a separate entity. Like any great piece of art, it takes on a life with legs to walk, hands to mold and eyes to direct the way. Fellini's wife and collaborator, Giulietta Masina, did that to me. The first time I saw her in Fellini's "La Strada" she performed the role of Gelsomina, a fey young woman sold off to a strongman by her mother.
Fostering Creativity
By Abby Connors
I'm consistently reminded that my first impressions of a child's idea are often way off the mark. What looked to me like a dinosaur turned out to be a robot; what I thought was a puppy scampering was meant to be a unicorn. When I'm patient enough to really listen, and double-check when I'm not sure I get it, my students trust that their ideas will be heard and understood. This leads to more ideas, more raised hands, more confident sharing of imaginative suggestions.
Guided Imagery
By Molly Childers & Chris Dunmire
Are you procrastinating, or letting other tasks take precedence over your creative soul-work? This guided meditation reveals how much energy resistance takes when you struggle against your natural desire to do creative work.
The Nine Modern Day Muses
By Jill Badonsky, MEd
We tend to be attracted to confident, bold, defiant people in the world of art. Many times audacity can go further than even talent. The talented artist, writer, or musician who does not show belief and confidence can flounder, when someone less talented but with assertive belief can flourish. Being convinced in the merit of our work is an attractive energy that sells and magnetizes attention as much for the product as for the belief itself. Spending time working on confidence, acting "as if" we are worthy, excellent, daring and courageous would be time well spent for the creative person desiring success. That is why one of the nine Greek Muses was upgraded to a Muse with moxie called Audacity.
Creative Writing Prompts
By Bonnie Neubauer
In this exercise, you will combine three existing items (prefix, root, and suffix) to create a fourth (new word). When you write, you do the same type of creative math. Example: one funny anecdote from work + one exotic location you want to visit + one ethical issue facing you = a new idea for a screenplay. It’s fun to look at things you’ve written to identify the life moments that you added together to make one writing.
Creativity & Inspiration
By Tom Evans
There have been many times throughout history where two or more people come up with the same bright idea at the same time. Some of these cases will undoubtedly be down to either plagiarism or espionage but some are the result of pure synchronicity of thought and invention. In this modern day and age, unless you sit in a dark cave, you are bombarded by terabytes of data each day. You could easily scan a newspaper but not consciously read an article about a new invention or idea but then it could appear in your conscious mind sometime later, perhaps as a light bulb moment. You then see the invention mentioned on TV or the Internet sometime later and you might think someone has stolen your idea when it wasn't necessarily yours in the first place.
Writing Inspiration & Encouragement
By Barbara Abercrobmie
We write personal non-fiction — essays, memoir and autobiography — not to gaze at our belly buttons and muse over how wonderful or awful our lives are, but to put down our own small, individual truth. One question we all face when writing non-fiction about our life is how creative can you be with the truth? I believe the best way you can answer this question is from your own expectations as a reader.
SoulCollage®
By Anne Marie Bennett
In this Collaging with Cancer series, I take you through my cancer journey step by step, and show you how creating SoulCollage® cards helped me to express my feelings, find my balance, and create a haven of inner peace where I was able to stay connected to Self, Others, and Spirit. As I share my journey with you, I hope that it brings you or those you love some measure of inner peace, and a movement towards acceptance and a possibility of joy.
Second Time Around | Journey, Interrupted | Collaging the Fear | Standing Up to Cancer | Being Held by Community | Resting in the Healing Light | Stay Away | Celebrating Life | Goddess of Peace and Mindfulness | Cancer and the Wounded Body | My Healing Team | Possibility Awaits | Opening to Healing
Art Perspectives
By Whitney Freya
The principles of design are not the result of a panel of art academics who felt the need to create more rules. The principles of design are the language of our mind's eye, how we visually analyze everything we see. They have been used by artists for centuries to create paintings that successfully communicate their heart's desire, the natural beauty of a landscape, the spirit of a portrait, or the innate element of objects in a still life. Now you are going to learn how to use them. The principles of design are interwoven throughout our lives because we process so much of our world and our life visually.
Creativity & Spirituality
By Jan Phillips
Someone asked me what I thought was dying to be born. Homo sapiens, I said. Homo sapiens (Latin: "wise man" or "knowing man") is dying to be born into the next iteration — the homo sentiens, perhaps. Homo sapiens knows, but look where that's got us. Brains without a heart. Homo sentiens (Latin: "feeling human") will bridge the brain-heart gap and compassion — "feeling with" — will be their modus operandi.
Rock Painting Tutorial
By Ernestina Gallina
Could anyone resist to these funny lovebugs? They make a beautiful gift and are a statement of love. Choose the model and color combination you wish from the photos to guide you through each step. Choose smooth rocks that through the years have been gently smoothed and molded into the shape of a small ball.
