More and more, I’m finding that creativity is exploration, simple!!
I’m sure there are specific definitions for what exactly creativity is. But I think that when you’re willing to follow your ideas, explore and experiment to see what, if anything, will come out of them, then you’re being creative.
Creativity Means Freedom to Experiment
As I continue working on Stitch The Sketch, it has become obvious to me that exploration is at the heart of creativity. Last episode, I created a piece – Towering Above #1 – that I like. I decided to explore what more I could do with that piece. So this time I picked out the organic shapes in the fabrics I used last week and started to just shade these shapes.
The more I think of it, I realize that the rules can get in your way of being creative. In this case, I should have had a subject that I was going to draw, but I decided not to focus on drawing the subject (the jars) but rather to draw the shapes that make up the jars.
Creativity Means Rules Can Be Broken
By breaking my own rule of starting with a subject, I opened myself up to some more possibilities. Another rule that was broken in this design is using a greyscale color scheme. Although I did use mainly greyscale, I added color in various places. It’s good to have rules and to know the rules. It helps maintain structure and order. However, in order to spark creativity, we need to be brave to break some of the rules. We need to be able to mix things up somewhat.
The design in Episode 33 is one of my favorites. (I thought that about the design in episode 32 too 🙂 ) It’s not of any subject in particular but I just love it. The jars lose their identity to organic shapes. And although this design is not the “all-in-all”, I’m especially excited by the opportunities it presents. Because the possibilities which result from creativity is just as important as the process of creating.
Exploration Means Idea Generation
I see new possibilities to create abstract pieces using this process. I see the possibility of starting with a realistic image and abstracting it to the simplest shapes. Or to start with completely abstract shapes with no reference to reality. The ideas are many and what better way to be creative than to have the ability to generate ideas. If you’re stuck with the same old ideas then you’ll create the same old designs. However, if you can commit to exploration, you’ll generate more ideas and your designs will evolve with time. And that’s where we all want to be.
Question: Do you use exploration to generate new ideas for your work. Share your thoughts below.
Warmest Regards,
Watch the entire Stitch The Sketch Series here.
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