hope you have all had a wonderful weekend. I had a lovely time catching up with some old work friends at a baby shower on Saturday. It was wonderful to catch up with these amazing women and I also had a great time meeting some new people as well. One thing that really stood out to me through was just how far I have come since I left almost 9 months ago. Not in any bad ways of course, my time spent in this woprkplace was a wonderful experience that I was apprehensive to give up. Needless to say, settling in at my new workplace was a difficult time. I am not what you would call a proponent for change, and although the concept of spontaneity excites me, it is much better suited to the 'exciting' people of the world. I knew it was time for me to move on and I never second guessed my decision, but it wasn't an easy transition. But here I am at the other end and I'm so happy in my job and in my life in general. Seeing all of these ladies again really highlighted that for me, and I am so grateful to still call them my friends.
Anyway, enough gushing, onto business. I wanted to talk today about that tricky concept of creativity and more specifically of what is considered to be creativity and what is considered to just be a hot mess. As someone who has always struggled to define exactly what it is I wanted to create, I can totally relate to people who feel as though they wish they could be creative (or arty farty as my eloquent mother would put it). My mum thinks anyone with dreadlocks and who dresses a bit bohemian is 'arty farty', but personally I don't think it is that easy to identify. I can't speak for any other designers or artists out there, but for me it has always been a struggle to describe myself as creative and have really confidence and pride in what I create. I don;t know if it is because I can see all the minor mistakes I made when making the piece in question or because I know how easy or difficult I found it to make, but whenever I see a piece of mine I always see the flaws before I can see its beauty. Perhaps this is a kind of beginner's anxiety or something, but now that I think about it, I see it all the time around me.
I think back to that baby shower I attended on the weekend and my heart warms at the thought of how it was all brought together. The lady it was held for hails from China and, due to her culture, was not familiar with the Western tradition of baby showers. The girls wanted to celebrate for her and so they organised the shower, providing a venue, food, games, prizes and presents all for her. How lovely is that? On top of this, two of these ladies actually hand made gifts for the bundle of joy. Hand made little teddy comforters. We all sat around as she opened the presents and did the obligatory 'ooohhs' and 'aaahhs' for each gift. When these hand made gifts were opened it was brought up that they were just that. I was so impressed, particularly as someone who cannot either sew nor knit. I complemented them both on their efforts and they both shrugged them off as 'not a big deal'. One of them actually apologised to the guest of honour because 'it was my first time, sorry, the legs are too skinny!'
Through my eyes both gifts were perfect and I was totally blown away by the effort, thought and talent that went into creating them. I honestly think they could make a little business out of it (although i think that EVERYTHING cute and fun should be made into a business), but through their eyes it was just a simple gift, even worth an apology!
This got me thinking about the way we see our own creations. Perhaps everyone else marvels at the jewellery I have made as I secretly critique in my own head (one can only hope). And furthermore, what makes creations 'good'? Is it just down to a person's individual taste, or is there a kind of universal standard and anything above that is considered 'creative'? I guess it's that age old debate that surrounds abstract art. Is it really art or is it just something that my nephew could have painted at preschool?
I asked myself these questions and I decided that, for me, creativity is about engaging in the process of creation. Anyone with that urge to create something can be classified as creative. As far as which of these creations is considered 'good'? Well, beauty is certainly in the eye of the beholder, but I will certainly keep in mind that I think all designers and artists are their own biggest critics. This can only make me work harder and improve upon my craft.
I heard a great quote recently (from a Justin Bieber song of all places... shame) that I think relates really well to this discussion. The singer ponders the age old saying of 'the grass always being greener on the other side' correcting it by saying 'the grass is always greener where it is watered'. This is so true and just goes to prove why Justin Bieber is a world wide teen sensation! My point here though is that instead of looking at others and wishing you were as creative as them, you should spend your time respecting and tending to your own craft and soon enough it will be a talent to be reckoned with.
On the other hand, maybe this pic will explain the differences in grass colour more aptly
Peace and Love
Serra xxx
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