Articles

© Kurt Halsey

A poet is an unhappy being whose heart is torn by secret sufferings, but whose lips are so strangely formed that when the sighs and the cries escape them, they sound like beautiful music… and then people crowd about the poet and say to him: “Sing for us soon again;” that is as much as to say, “May new sufferings torment your soul.”
– Søren Kierkegaard

When I was eighteen years old I was a poet and an artist. This wasn’t my profession, I was driven to write and create by the same force that drove me to draw air into my lungs. I haven’t written a poem in about four years now, but when I was writing I churned out close to 250 poems in just a few years. Writing was my therapy, my way of quietly communicating the ideas I wanted to shout out loud. Much of it was typically angst filled, but that made the medium no less powerful to me and the way I grew though them no less effective.

Though I enjoyed the finished product of many of my poems, the process was quite painful for me. Each poem was born out of dark periods in my life, struggles, conflicts and soul searching. The reason I haven’t written in years is because I am finally happy with my life, no longer tormented with the angst and depression that defined my younger days. When I first came across this quote from Kierkegaard at eighteen I was astounded. He was able to put into words the exact feelings I had towards writing, towards creating in general.

After a year or so I forgot the Kierkegaard quote, lost on a scrap of paper in an old apartment most likely. That is until this afternoon. I visited the newly redesigned Kurt Halsey website and came across a blog post from Kurt that brought the quote rushing back into my memory. In his post (simply titled “A home for ghosts.“) Kurt talks about the differences between creating in art school which allowed him to make mistakes without thinking twice about the way that messing up a piece would effect other people, he simply used these mistakes to grow as an artist. Then in shared studio spaces with other artists, some of whom were good friends and others were quite full of themselves. Now he creates in his own home where he struggles to separate his work, his commitments, his creative mojo and the space that he needs for relaxation and escape.

It seems that many of the artists I know or have come across in recent months have been struggling with the demons their creative gifts bring along. When you depend on your creativity to pay your bills it can make those inner demons shout even louder. Every brush stroke, every line, every word you put on the paper can seem terribly hideous in your eyes. Then your paint mixing skills take an unwelcome vacation when you’re trying to finish a piece on a quickly approaching deadline. Sometimes being an artist can be really lonely. There are days when you would like nothing more than to never see a piece of your own work ever again.

Then you take a break. You leave the studio, go for a walk, grab a cup of coffee and sit down to people watch for a few hours in an area you don’t frequent very often. You breathe, you think and you wait. Eventually your creativity comes swaggering back into your life. It might take a few hours, a few days, months or perhaps even years, but it does come back. If you’re an artist at any career level you know that deep down inside you. You know that at some point you’ll begin to hear that nagging, tiny voice inside you call to you and demand your attention.

When it comes back it’s never the same, we progress, we change and we grow. Our creativity is no different. You might find after a break that you can no longer do some of the things that used to be second nature to you, things that you now have to work at and sometimes you find new talents have been added to your bag of tricks.

When things get rough take a break, even just for an hour or two. Try a different medium, if you normally use oil paints switch to watercolor or chacoal for a couple of days. Whenever I get creatively restless or blocked I switch between colored pencils, black ink pens, watercolors, acrylics and writing. It’s a constant battle to keep my wits about me when creating, I’m always learning new things and for the most part my work is always progressing. Keep at it, don’t give up and don’t let the waves of doubt you may have discourage you. You may never reach your creative goals, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t worth pursuing.

Any artist on the face of the this planet will tell you that at one point or another, the brilliant mojo that is responsible for the care and feeding of their creative ego will suddenly, inexplicably, dry up. It might be temporary or it might be a month but whatever the case  may be you are left uninspired, unfeeling and would rather drown your unimaginative sorrows away with a good (aged) whiskey. As a writer the temptation to slit your wrists over writers block teeters closer then I am comfortable with at times, and I was recently forced to take a long hard look at conventional creative kick starts. I put my own spin on a few and found these newer acquisitions to be quite inspirational. So I am now here to share with you my own not-so-unconventional ways of staving off the inevitable “creativity lull”.

• Clear the head. This is important. Most artists will admit that when too much is crammed into the brain it tends to push out the creativity and breeds indecision. Show stress who is boss and take a walk . Be a Zen Goddess in the park with paper and pen/brushes. Get AWAY from the workspace.

• Run errands/Do housework. Those mundane chores can be a breather, and can also clear the head. I tend to get a lot of inspiration when I am shopping, or when I am doing the dishes. I also recommend keeping a notebook or a portable art pad with you at all times. I’ve had crazy inspiration in a melting parking lot before in 100 degree heat, but I still whipped out my notebook and jotted down a few ideas, and then scraped the tar off my feet.

• Eat crunchy things. Like crackers or vegetables. Crunchy is fun, and has been said to keep studying students alert. I often will have a handful of crackers to munch on when I am trying to finish a piece. Like now. I have a small stack of vegetables crackers and because of them, I have been able to finish this sentence.

• Play Music! Loud, obnoxious, steady and pulsating or soft and sweet…It’s something I absolutely can’t write without. My father swore that Led Zeppelin was the music to paint to. I tend to listen to what fits the mood. Right now? It’s the Pixies.

• I go to a happy place if I am truly stuck. This isn’t to say that I meditate (which is another option) but I will sit, eyes closed, and mentally go to this special place to try and recall every detail. For example: I recently I took a trip to the Canadian Rockies, and was at a vista near Kananaskis county (somewhat near Banff in Alberta). I was standing at first facing a reservoir, and then as I turned around the view of the valley opened up below me. The snow covered peaks towering around me, and the cool, clean glacial wind lifting my hair was intoxicating. I remembered standing there completely taken with the moment and instantly took a mental snapshot. Thus sealing it in my happy place zone. Recalling the details of that moment and trying to recollect the rocks, the ripples of the water and any sounds that were present always works. My dead creativity process battery is jump started, and I am able to finish what I started.

• Talk to yourself. Sure you might seem completely insane, but at least it keeps intrusive people away from you at the park! Talking a process through helps tremendously. If you would rather keep it in your head, that is up to you. I don’t.  Also If I am completely tapped and all else is failing, I will go to a public place and write about the people around me. More often then not they have been the very subject of the piece I couldn’t figure out. I’ve seen bored artists sketch people on napkins, and then go home and create the masterpiece of all that is man. I’ve had a musician friend jump at me at a bar, when I was mindlessly tapping out a cadence with my fingers on a pint glass, and then proceed to write a song based OFF that rhythm ( I gloated for weeks). Inspiration can be fickle but when it hits, it can burn.

For me personally, it’s the the little things that seem to work. You can’t get blood from stone (It’s a cliche I know, but I love the imagery it conjures) and when you push and push sometimes the end result is a rushed creation, or a bad mood. Most of us have learned to take a step back and give the mind a rest, but sometimes we are so perpetually stuck on fast forward, that its refreshing to take that step back and find ways to unearth the creativity stuck inside. Whether it’s sketching the emo kid next to you, writing about the angry couple at the bus stop, or finding your happy place…it’s all about art. To me? Art is in everything. There is no right, there is no wrong. There is only “create”.  So stop beating yourself up, stop thinking too hard and start creating.
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Very rarely do you stumble upon a website that seems to be purely made to indulge the senses and relax the spirit. A simple picture will not suffice so trust me, turn up your music and click!

Labuat

The integration of interactive graphic art and music with this flash piece is nearly flawless. The beauty of the song, flowing black cursor, and intermittent graphics reflecting the seemingly poignant lyrics is nothing short of breathtaking. The art evokes the emotion of the song, and you help tell the story as you sweep the cursor across the page using a mouse or touch pad. I found myself sighing happily, dreamily moving the mouse to the beat, and couldn’t help but look up the lyrics later after multiple viewings (for those interested). It’s actually a love song.

I myself would love to go into more depth about this site and about the creators  but I am unfortunately not fluent in Spanish. Google translator can only be so helpful, and I was barely able to piece together a general summary of the project. The song appears to be the single “Soy tu Aire” from Spain by the artist “Laubat” and this animation could very well be the new hailed modern version of a music video, with less super models and more creativity.

Herraiz Soto and Co also took their art one step further and brought it to the streets of Barcelona.  Armed with a projector, a Macbook and a Wii  they set up outside a building so that people on the street could literally “paint in the air” with brick as their backdrop. The result is here:

Labuat – Pintar una canción en el aire from Herraiz Soto on Vimeo.

I hope we are lucky enough to see more from these designers!

*Super Stealth Edit* The site is also a  recipient of an FWA (Favourite Website Award).
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LESS IS MORE
Or: The Art of Designing Your Own Business Card

(Good example #1)
A business or calling card is an extension of yourself. This is the one bit of you that people have to remember you by. First impressions are important but a lasting impression will get you the business or attention that you desire. It’s a big responsibility, but worry not. The following tips will make designing your business card easier.
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(Image © racheljoyagatha)

Working as an artist, freelancer, writer or some other self-employed creative person extraordinaire is never easy. It’s hard to explain to family why your income varies so much, even though you’re constantly working. If you do breakdown and decide you need a second “real job” to help pay your rent filling out the job applications is painful. Having to answer questions about “gaps in your employment history” to someone who always has, and in all probability always will, worked directly for someone else is a daunting task. Regardless of how large your freelance checks have been, explaining to a normal person that you work as a writer, artist, freelancer, photographer (that does anything other than school portraits, weddings or fashion spreads in Vogue), designer, musician, etcetera makes you look like an unfortunate lost soul in many people’s eyes.

Though most of us were told as children that we can be whatever we want to be when we grow up, that message usually changes as we get older. Which is disheartening to those of us that refuse to believe that we can’t be comic book characters or artists when we “grow up.”
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