Art: The expression or application of human creative skill and imagination
© Copyright 2022 Artwork by Cordi Neckermann
I simply LOVE creating Art and most of all, I love inspiring others to flex their creative muscles. Hence I have quite a few creative outlets ranging from dance to crochet to drawing to card making and paper-craft. I deeply believe adding creativity to your daily life is the best happy pill you can take and there are no negative side effects (not that I've found anyway!)
Roll on the floor laughing
There is nothing better than the feeling of being in the flow without thinking about time and getting completely lost in a project. Forgetting about deadlines, laundry, dishes etc. (all that fun life stuff!) It’s almost like going on a mini-holiday, travelling into a different realm. Creating doesn’t have to happen in solitude to be fun though. I often share it with my kids and it is amazing to see how one thought can snowball into a whole creative project that makes the entire family roll on the floor with laughter.
Creating art is like a magic ability to direct your focus into something enjoyable and productive without expectations or judgment. My experience of creating art when I was growing up was not like this at all. There was a lot of judgment around my creations from others and I wasn’t encouraged to pick and choose what criticism I took on board or not. I was never encouraged to create something unique or expressive; it was all about rules and colouring inside the lines. But really, there is no right or wrong when it comes to art. Your way of expression is right, no matter what anyone else says. Martha Graham summed it up beautifully when she said:
“There is a vitality, a life force, an energy, a quickening that is translated through you into action, and because there is only one of you in all time, this expression is unique. And if you block it, it will never exist through any other medium and will be lost.”
I’m sure I’m not the only one whose creative muscles have not been strengthened enough to create art without the fear of judgment or not meeting high expectations. The need to create is natural to us humans, but sometimes gets badly neglected and suppressed. The health benefits of adding a little creativity to your life almost sound too good to be true.
Being in the flow of creating reduces anxiety and stress and boosts your mood. Strengthening your creative muscles can increase your problem-solving skills and help you focus better. Just try it out for yourself and see what it does for you.
“But I don’t have time”, you say, “I can’t draw a straight line”, you say, “I can’t think of anything creative to do” and my all-time favourite: “I am just not creative.” All good reasons, but not good enough. You don’t have to become a full blown artist. Just a small spark of creativity planted into your day can light you up.
Getting started is the biggest obstacle of all and I want to help you overcome it. Creating art is a Journey, (yup it’s the big J word!) and I would love to be your tour guide. The creative spark that lights me up every day is drawing in my sketchbook. Even if it’s only for five minutes. So I created a short drawing class for you that is for the absolute and ultimate beginner. You can take a look here.
My sketchbook is my playground where I can be myself on the page; to finish or not finish a drawing, to share or not share my creations. In a sketchbook, you can make as many mistakes as you want and have as many goes on drawing something as you like. Learning from our mistakes is the most valuable way of learning when it comes to drawing.
As I grew up with lots of rules around drawing, I have since made up my own and therefore start every new sketchbook with them:
Just DO, don’t overthink it
You can’t do anything wrong so be as SILLY as possible
Have NO expectations
Over the years I have devoured a lot of books on creativity, drawing and painting. I want to share my most favourite one with you here. The Nine Modern day Muses (and a Bodyguard) is a wonderfully funny and heartwarming book to read when you are setting out to strengthen your creative muscles. It was the first one I read when I started flexing my creativity and I go back to it time and time again.
If the muse has kissed you and you feel like getting started, please visit CordiPower.com and let’s go on a sketchbook adventure.
I hope to see you soon :-)
Keep flexing those creative muscles!
Cordi