One of my most prized gifts as an artist and creative is my ability to create impulsively and without hesitation.
I don’t normally draft most things before I create them. This rule goes for painting and poems in my case. For you, it may be different. You can also work on making this habitual or natural for you by practicing automatic creation. Much like the notorious automatic handwriting, you are creating something (writing, drawing, sculpting, singing) something without stopping, worrying, editing, thinking. You just do it. You consider all the other factors after the fact. If you can learn to do this, you can open yourself up to some amazing work that only the natural, intuitive side of you can bring out in your work.
Here’s a poem I did write, back in 2004 without stopping to think or consider how things fit.
“I pulled from the depths of a candied mind
Strived to reawaken a long lost friend
Like an unopened box so fragile and light
I feared to find it broken.
Frozen and enraptured, dip my hand inside
Fear of the unknown, my arms trembled.
If only a box, but wishing for more
My morbid fascination, in it I reveled.
And when my hand, I drew to myself
found only a pile of ashes
I looked inside, to my amazement find
a box only of rose petals.“
How I do this: As how I paint, I “feel”. I feel the flow in the colors, in the words. I don’t stop to consider their compatibility or complimenting partners. They are simply “felt” and brought out by instinct. If the word that comes out makes no sense, you will begin to learn how to correct yourself and remembering better, more correct words for the next practice. Do this with whatever medium you use.
Get some paper, a notebook, found articles and work with these materials on a daily, weekly or monthly practice. Do this often enough and your mind and heart with begin to understand and flow. You will find your rhythym.
This is very different from the way I have been working lately, where every line, shape and color is considered.
I’ll have to get back to working on a couple things this way, I think some of my best ideas have come from sketches that I did in this more intuitive way.
no that’s cool. I think the most important thing is really feeling out what works best for you. Some people benefit greatly from a more impulsive form of creation and some of us like to work in “layers”. I like the sound of yours!
Deacon’s stuff is cool. I have one of his prints.
Yo! Deacon!
I have the ability – at times – to write on complete impulse.
Other times, I have to carefully consider what I’m writing: what I want to say, and how I want to say it.
Writing on impulse is definitely something to cultivate. I like that word “cultivate” in this context. It fits well.
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Does he have anything online yet? I’d love to check it out!