How the Artist’s Method Helped Me Find My Own Creativity: NPR
Eight summers ago, I found myself in a yoga studio in D.C. sitting in a circle with several other women. No one was in dog down, neither of us had rubber pants on. A curious bystander would probably assume we were part of some kind of support group, and in some ways we were. We were a diverse group of struggling creatives in the making Artist Road.
Artist Road It is a 12-week course that helps people unleash their creativity – whether in art, work or life. In essence, it’s a great practice for bringing more fun, curiosity, and creative inquiry into your everyday life. but for me, Artist Road It has come to mean more than just a fun summer project or a tool for overcoming writer’s block. It helped me confront my fears about trying new things, and gave me a better framework for living with the vulnerability and uncertainty that comes with life. I will talk about it with anyone who will allow me to express their secret desires for the realization of their artistic dream – whether small or large.
Getting into the artist’s mind
The shining behind Artist’s way She is Julia Cameron, and I often call her my fairy godmother. Her philosophy helped me understand that the ability to be artistic comes more naturally than one might think. Cameron believes that “the refusal to create is self-willed and goes against our true nature.” In other words, we all have inner creativity; We just willingly choose to shut ourselves off from that impulse. Your course aims to help us unlock the artist who lives inside each of us.
Did I consider myself an artist at the time? Not at all. I gave up dance lessons in my teenage years, and most of my creative writing was buried in my diary, along with to-do lists and reflections for the week. I was too nervous a millennial to follow anything bohemian like an artist’s life.
The author’s beloved version of Artist’s wayWith a magazine and some flowers you collected during an artist appointment.
Lauren Gonzalez
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Lauren Gonzalez
The author’s beloved version of Artist’s wayWith a magazine and some flowers you collected during an artist appointment.
Lauren Gonzalez
In many ways, I felt quite the opposite. I was a bumbling and insecure college student, trying to build a life on my own for the first time. I played by the books, got a job in the capital that looked good on paper. But I felt like I had put on a pair of shoes that just didn’t fit my style. But where do I go from here? what can i do? I had no clue, so I waited for the inspiration to come.
Inspiration has struck. While attending a yoga class, I noticed a promotion for a summer workshop centered around it Artist’s way. I thought the workshop would put me in charge of the process, and over the next three months, I would meet with this group of women to discuss the weekly readings as well as share our progress, frustrations, and aha moments.
The path Cameron is charting is simple, but it takes commitment. There are weekly readings and exercises, all geared towards helping you understand your technical stops and how to get out of your own way. You are required to write your morning pages at the beginning of each day. It’s meant to be an unrestricted style of free writing: no stopping and no editing until you’ve filled at least three full pages.
A butterfly that the author saw during a date with an artist.
Lauren Gonzalez
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Lauren Gonzales
A butterfly that the author saw during a date with an artist.
Lauren Gonzales
And then there’s the Artist’s Rendezvous – a weekly commitment to take yourself in a solo activity for the purpose of immersing yourself in a sense of fun and joy. No agenda, just play. all i say, Artist’s way Packs in quite a bit in three short months.
Invite fun into your life
However, you continue Artist’s wayMy advice to you is to stick with it, even if you feel some resistance. Is it possible that Cameron’s New Age cliches are a little too hard to swallow? For some, maybe. But there is a way to connect to the process that doesn’t require a spiritual understanding of creativity.
Whether or not you believe human creativity is inspired by a divine force, it is easier to see how our aversion to risk, failure and humiliation keep us from taking the creative leap. My practice with the morning pages revealed how often my creative ambitions were overshadowed by fear. I was always finding an external circumstance or an internal flaw as the reason for not attending dance classes or an exciting job opportunity, and those limiting beliefs started making their way onto the page.
This is because free writing is a gargle for the soul. You write a lot of bullshit early in the morning, but eventually you start to reveal your fears and fears and the stories you tell yourself to protect you from risk. But eventually, you start to realize that they are just stories.
My Morning Pages helped me realize that I tend to avoid any situation that makes me feel vulnerable. However, creativity and vulnerability go hand in hand. You can’t have one without the other, and Cameron’s writing illustrates this tension vividly.
But Cameron also offers you a respite to remove your writing block, or any hindrance for that matter. Fear is the most inhibiting force, but its antidote can sometimes be a dose of lightness.
This is where artist appointments come in. Cameron asserts that recognizing your own limiting beliefs is only half the battle on the path to artistic enlightenment. You also have to actively work on bringing fun, joy, and fun into your life. Without these ingredients, the end result will be semi-ripe. It’s like a cake without the toppings – who wants a slice of it?
And so I embarked on a journey of self-indulgence. I baked blueberry muffins on a Sunday morning. I went to a series of meditation sessions that took place in a paddock for horses in Rock Creek Park. I listened to my favorite Gipsy Kings album from start to finish, without any skips. I collected fallen summer flowers and pressed them between the pages of my notebook. I went to a park behind Embassies Street and stared at the fireflies at dusk.
My favorite artist’s date was one of the last. I rented a car and drove to St. Michaels, a pretty little coastal town in Maryland that seems a far cry from Washington, DC. When I got back, I just crossed the Chesapeake Bay Bridge at sunset. I don’t remember what song was playing, but I will always remember what it felt like to open the windows, sing at the top of my lungs, and stare at the pink and orange sky that unfolded before me.
way behind Artist’s way It was quirky for me, with many starts and stops. But I’ve learned that life never gives you it straight. It took me a year to get the courage to quit my job, and a few months later to get a job in a creative field. It took him another three years to return to the stage and perform dance routines for an audience. I haven’t published any short stories yet, but maybe next summer.
I go back to Artist’s way Often during the season, each practice brings new insight. However, each time, I learn anew how important it is to satisfy my curiosity and transcend the limiting beliefs I have had about my creative potential. And whenever I wallow in the uncertainty of a new adventure, I’m reminded of Cameron’s motto: “Jump, and the net will appear.”
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