If I had to describe how my creative mind works, I would say picture a white room full of baboons and buckets of paint. Let them loose for about a good 30 minutes. Then let me go with a pencil to discover the shapes and pull the mural to the surface.
Because for some reason, God has built in my mind the ability to extract meaning from the abstract and find random connections in the smallest details.
And thank God for the perspective of my trusted cleanup crew that comes behind me to help me hone areas hanging out there, especially if I need the finished product to “translate to the masses.”
If the message doesn’t have to translate, I use messy baboon paint room #2 which is left untouched by the world outside my mind.
But you want to know a secret? I don’t have special “creative powers.” I just have incorporated some simple creative principles into my daily life.
I want to share five of my Rules of a Barefaced Creative to help you become more confident as you discover and throw down your epic skills.
1. The Barefaced Creative must focus on the creative disciplines or creative play. This
discipline means you have to take at least 15 minutes each day to do something creative that doesn’t relate to “getting a job done.” Doodle, write a random lyric, piece of dialogue or reflection, or do some Post-It origami. This activity keeps me tuning my creative spark plugs, even if it is unrelated to my “day job.”
2. Notice details. I call this Creative Scavenger Hunts. When you see creativity expressed in a way you admire DON’T COPY IT, COLLECT IT. Take your time, do your research and build an
inspiration board. Let that be a springboard for
creating something that is uniquely your own.
Do you have an Instagram or Pinterest account?
Instant organization!
3. Create for the sake of your soul, market to an audience of one. If it speaks to your heart, it can
reveal some beautiful things about you and the God who is unraveling the bigness of His creative insight, inside you.
4. Put your work out there. In a world of social media, let your personal pages become the gallery where you display your work. Also find a group of creatives to share with. Yes, you will get haters, but you’ll also get some great insight on growing your gifts (and some thicker skin). All creatives need it.
5. The best kind of creative space is Barefaced Creative Space. This space gives me the room in my art for my humanity to shine through. Yes, others might refer to these anomalies as mistakes. Sometimes I purposely keep them just to stretch my ability to be ok with one of biggest creativity thieves—fear of judgment. In the guise of my barefaced humanity, I am released to embrace the freedom of “happy little accidents.”
I’m praying this issue of Leading Hearts inspires you to embrace confidently all the priceless original beauty that God has planted in your soul—it’s up to you to let those blooms feel the sun.
Peace!
Amber Weigand-Buckley
editor, Leading Hearts Magazine