do something…
February 23rd, 2005
…do anything - keep the flow flowing.
One of the things I’ve learnt recently about sustainable creativity is the importance of flow. Flow doesn’t have to mean a gush of activity, a dribble is enough. The secret is just to keep something on the go. The pot bubbling gently.
Over the last few months I’ve started a number of projects that have various finish dates and schedules involved. Nothing too tight, nothing too pressured and largely things I enjoy doing. My blog is something I can update on a regular basis. I have sketchbooks placed at various locations around my house and studio that I can just pick up when the mood takes me. I always have a pen and small book in my bag. I’ve recently started writing regular short essay-like chapters that I hope one day will turn into a book.
Some things, like the blog are long-term projects with no finish date in mind. They keep the flow flowing and keep me feeling I’m doing something, progressing. Such flow make working on longer term projects like the book possible. The flow feeds them I suppose. Most important to both is that they are all manageable, broken down into small easy to handle chunks.
Today I’m sitting in a sunny cafe working on this. I can chat to friends, take a break when I want, make a small sketch and have a cup of tea.
When I used to paint, a large painting would consume me. Physically it was exhausting and I would be lost in the process, usually at the edge of what I felt I was capable of doing. When I make a drawing I know I can finish it, feel I’ve accomplished something, and know I’ve added to an ever increasing body of work. The same is true of small manageable pieces of writing. Keep the flow dribbling a little and eventually I will have a book. Of course someone wanting to publish it or read it is another matter…
February 23rd, 2005 at 12:22 pm
Michael, keeping the flow going is hard work, the constant distraction of ‘just living’ always gets in the way - and taking into consideration the people that cross our path has a detrimental effect. Large projects take up so much time that the social niceties have to take a back seat sometime - this can have a negative effect, especially if you need input and encouragement from those you inevitably shut off… William Burroughs needed somebody to act as a catalyst - an audience to stimulate and inspire. I think we, your visitors and friends are your catalyst - keep flowing Michael.
February 23rd, 2005 at 2:48 pm
hi
i think what you have written here is fresh, positive and helpful to me as well…
we all need reminders to spend our energy well and just so you know you teach us - whether intended or not-
with your blog & so recall that you are a generous being in sharing with us. thanks. patty
February 23rd, 2005 at 9:00 pm
Michael, you have me seriously thinking less is more. I can see how important it is but the effort of reducing can in itself be overwhelming. I feel that there has to be some order to the reduction which is escaping me at the moment.
February 24th, 2005 at 10:11 am
You have, like me, re-discovered a lost truth which was buried under the headlong rush towards our graves, fostered by what has been called “civilisation”.
Our human energies are finite. When we choose to ignore this biological fact, our bodies force us to stop anyway they can, until we learn to listen.
Keep it up. Michael, you are doing great things. Go with the flow.
Cheers,
B.
February 24th, 2005 at 1:13 pm
Your entry reminded me of 2 colleagues. One of them is all PAINT PAINT NOW PAINT PAINT urgency whilst the other is “It doesn’t have a sell-by date… creativity and skill will still be there even if you have to leave it for a while”. I can empathise with the mania and compulsion of one whilst being totally enamoured of the quiet confidence of the other. “You know”, she said “you CAN just look at things and enjoy them without this constant need to record them”. Every time I think that life is passing me by and I’ll be too old to get started, I think of my friend who is taking time to enjoy her 2 boys and is supremely confident that her skill and passion will always be there ready for the next time she picks up her brush.
February 24th, 2005 at 2:10 pm
So true! I’m definitely a ‘working in chunks’ kind of person. I’ve got quite a few sketchbooks going at the same time; some with ideas for projects, others just journals, and then of course, there is my blog, too.
Having many mini projects going on at the same time can be overwhelming at times, but it does help me to maintain an active creative mind, and then when one small project is finished, there’s always another idea to turn to, when I am ready for one.
February 24th, 2005 at 2:28 pm
Its been a while since I was able to look at your blog and hwen I’ve had some time away it always surprises me how much tenacity you have. I was really touched when you mentioned in the midst of one post that you were sad ….. it reminds me of a time when I soldiered on when so much had been lost and tried hard to keep in the flow of things. It’s the right way to go but difficult — afine line between trying to hard and trying enough whilst keeping in tocuh with the sadness so you can work through it. Don’t let all the ‘things’ like notebooks and computers get in the way — even though they can be some kind of salve.
February 25th, 2005 at 3:56 pm
Hey, Michael:
I really vibe into your comments today. I think you hit the nail on the head. I’ve vowed to take the same approach with my latest project, improvising the whole way, and each day a new “dribble” so to speak. The cartoonist “Jason” really inspired me toward this, and your comments confirmed it. Keeping things fresh and new, unknown, scary and wild is such a positive way to see and live! Cheers, Michael.
February 25th, 2005 at 9:50 pm
Michael:
Keep it up and going. Your work is inspiring and it’s the little things each day that we can be proud of. I actually got back into the sketching thing after I had a grand mal seizure two years ago. I had to deal with a huge physical exhaustion as I got better, and suddenly a small project was a major success - and in reflection, it has been some of the best work too. - v
February 26th, 2005 at 6:00 pm
Hello Michael…you haven’t posted for a few days so i’m wondering how you are feeling! Take care…be good to yourself!
Love, Violette
March 4th, 2005 at 8:52 pm
This is such a simple drawing, but I like your use of color. So drab and then in the middle, primaries. It’s like the middle is just bursting out.