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Friday, February 6, 2015

Sustaining Creativity



When I look at other works of art or intricate crafts done by others I often find myself more in awe of the time involved rather than the skill.  The ability to sustain my interest or drive to complete a project sometimes escapes me.
I am also learning that different types of projects take different methods to get myself to sustain my energy and interest.

For example fiber art and quilting I need people.  I need the energy of other people, the vibrancy of their input/feedback as well as the inspiration of their own efforts keeps me focused on my end result.
Beading and wire wrapping are meditative to me.  I can work on them as completely unrelated noise and activities take place in the background. Both are easy to put down and pick up without missing a beat.
Writing and painting though I do better in solitude. I tend to follow a winding path with these and I have no clear picture of the end product and so I let myself wander and experiment and paint over or erase as I look at the results and search for the level of satisfaction I want. A fly on the wall might hear me talking to myself or the skull in front of me.

With some forms of creativity I need a road map to know when it is complete and with other the project leads me and I cannot always guess what the outcome will be.
I find that it is easier to sustain a long-term creative effort if it is a project that leads me. There is excitement and surprise.
But a well mapped project needs to be quick or I will get bored and give it up before my objective is reached.
For other people I know it is opposite. The unknown uncharted end has to come quick or fear of the possible outcome will keep the unfinished project in a drawer. And it is the well charted design the may take long hours of carful stitching they prefer.
My mother and I worked well together this way. I loved designing cross stitch pieces and latch hook patterns. I could even sustain through the painstaking process of creating the color chart for my mother to follow, but then the actual repetitiousness of making the rug or the pillow front bored me and I was ready to move on long before it was done.

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