March 2004 Newsletter

"Invent your world; surround yourself with people, color, sounds and work that nourish you." — SARK, Living Juicy

In This Issue

• March 2004 Journal
• What's New @ the CP

March 2004 Journal

An Interview About Creativity
Recently, I was given the opportunity to participate in an interview for an article about creativity. The questions were aimed at people who actively pursue creativity in their lives. The questions were:

1. Did you always think you were creative or is it something that you discovered later on in life?
2. If the latter, how did you discover it? Did you actively seek it out or did it come to you unexpectedly?
3. How do you express creativity in your life? What is your art?
4. What has this expression brought to your life?
5. Are you a full-time artist or do you do art (in some form) just for personal pleasure?
6. There are numerous books, guides, exercises etc., telling people how to access and cultivate their creativity. Did you ever try any of these? What worked for you and what didn't?
7. How would you recommend that someone could discover their creative talent and cultivate it?

So how would you answer the questions? I would love to hear the answers from a few of you creativity enthusiasts out there, even if you don't want to share with the class.

On another note, if you've been around the CP for some time, please give my new game Find the Art! a try (details below). I challenge you to have a little fun today. Plus, there's something nice in it for you!

Have a fruitful March!

Creatively,
Chris

What's New @ the CP

Try it! Tutorials
As a "visual" learner, I'm inspired and motivated so much more when I see HOW something is made. There's something about breaking down a project into simple steps that translates into, "Hey, I could do that!"

This is what we're trying to accomplish with a new feature on the Creativity Portal, called Try it! Tutorials. As you guessed, these aren't going to be extremely elaborate, expensive, or time-consuming projects. The goal of these tutorials is to break a specific art or craft technique down into simple steps with visuals to help spark your creativity and lead you off into your own artistic direction.

Of course, we're having a ton of fun putting these together, and hope to add more through the year. Enjoy our first set of tutorials-hovering around the collage, assemblage, and mixed media themes. If you find our tutorials helpful, please let us know!

Fontifier: Make Your Own Handwriting Font!
How would you like to create a font fashioned after your own handwriting? It's not as hard as it seems, and you don't need expensive software to do it. The result is your own spiffy handwriting font that you can use in your word processing and graphics programs!

Nit Wits #13: Frosted Flakes
Well, what did you think snowmen ate for breakfast? Certainly not hot coffee and stick-to-your-ribs oatmeal. You are what you eat, after all... (hmmm, that snowman is showing up everywhere!).

Another Life ... I wish I were someone else.
By Edward B. Toupin
In our very early years, we all strive to be like "someone else," as we're not really sure who we are at the time.