Everyone is Creative

By Kelle Walsh, Imagine Magazine (Fall, 2004).

(continued from page 18)

Shift perspective. If creativity means bringing something new into being, then it is imperative to break old patterns and allow yourself to see the world with fresh eyes. Take a week off from clutter and distraction, advises Tharpe. Don't look in the mirror. Avoid television, newspapers and clocks. Like someone who is visually or hearing impaired, altering the way you experience the world will allow you to develop your other senses.

Mine your memory. "If all art is metaphor, then all art begins with memory," says Tharpe. Look at pictures from your childhood and welcome the memories: the smells, sounds and impressions. Unlock the memory chamber and you'll unleash a flood of subtle, unedited impressions that are rich fodder for creative ideas.

Choose a domain. "Too many people assume that most of the world is off-limits to them," says Csikszentmihalyi. "Some consider art beyond the realm of possibility, [for] others, [it's] sports or music. Or dancing, science, philosophy—the list of things that are 'not for me' can be endless."

To find your creative talent, try as many domains as possible, Csikszentmihalyi suggests. Start with things you know you like, and move to related areas.

"I always had many, many interests," says Willow Gibbons, 27, who has been an artist, musician and free-lance clothing designer in Brooklyn, New York. "So many things excited me. I had to go through a process of demystification, so that I could find the reality of what these different things meant to me.

Now Gibbons is focusing on one of her passions, writing and playing music. "I think I decided that if I ever wanted to be exceptional at something, in my own eyes, that I would have to make a choice." The choice was not to stop having all my interests, but to dedicate myself to one medium that would challenge me the most spiritually and artistically."

Prepare for drought. Even the most creative minds run out of ideas. The secret to keeping the flow going? A collection of inspirational nuggets stored away for such a dearth. Tharpe makes a cardboard filing box for every project she begins. From the first musings for a dance, perhaps written on an index card, she builds the idea through found objects, notes, pictures, music—all kept in the box. When her flow is blocked, she opens the box and peers inside, looking for the

FALL 2004 Imagine 19

Continue to article page 20 »

About the Author
Kelle Walsh is a journalist based in Santa Cruz, California. Creativity Portal was granted permission by the publisher of Imagine Magazine to reprint this article.