International
design educator, and SURFACE 1°22 creative director Emily Wills is looking for hosts and collaborators to help her share three inspiring textile design workshops.
She will be visiting
London in July, Perth in August and Bali in September so get on
board...!
mindfulness + meraki
Mindfulness is awareness, acceptance and letting go, a check-in on thoughts and feelings, actions and reactions. Meraki describes doing something with soul, creativity, or love — when you put “something of yourself” into what you’re doing, whatever it may be. Mindfulness plus meraki is a journey of creativity, love and acceptance, a conscious letting go of judgement, status and attachment.
27 Jun 2014
26 Jun 2014
The Luxury of Letting Go
The ability to ‘Let Go’ characterizes mindfulness.
Neither rejecting nor holding on to any thoughts that may arise.
Observing and mindfully recognizing that things are as they are
in that moment, without
reaction.
I
moved to Bali temporarily. To dip my feet in it’s cool waters and taste the
kind of life I dreamt of. I wanted to slow down, escape my full time job and
take time out. I didn't know what I was going to do, but it didn't matter
because the rent was cheap, the food delicious, people friendly and sunshine
uplifting.
Then I landed in Ubud and wondered how I came to
be in such an overwhelmingly busy town. Ubud was not how I’d pictured
it and I feared I’d mistakenly moved from a concrete jungle to a jungle with
concrete. I found myself twiddling my thumbs, wanting to work and shroud myself
in the buzz. I came to Hubud to be physically close to the energy of this
creative and entrepreneurial spirit. My first visit wigged me out. I had been in
Bali less than a week. And I began to experience an existentialist melt down. Within 24
hours I was trying to develop a business plan, downloading ‘the $100 startup’ on
my Kindle and smashing out emails. There was too much frenergy and I felt my ritualized habits were attempting to
recreate the exact same office environment I had left behind.
So I turned my mobile off. I turned my laptop
WIFI off. And I packed away my kindle. Why was I here? What did I want to
achieve by leaving my full time job in Singapore?
I reassessed my values. And reminded myself that I didn't move here to become an entrepreneurial wizard. I didn’t choose Bali over returning to Australia for better job prospects. I moved to Bali as a gesture of respect to myself, to reassure myself that I deserved more from my life than feeling unfulfilled, bored and restless. I came with the inherent belief and self trust that once I let go I could start living a life I was proud of. I may not become a commercial success. But that's okay. I am creative, I am intellectual, I am caring and I am spiritual. My strengths cannot be judged beside others. I just am who I am. And for now, I am here.
I reassessed my values. And reminded myself that I didn't move here to become an entrepreneurial wizard. I didn’t choose Bali over returning to Australia for better job prospects. I moved to Bali as a gesture of respect to myself, to reassure myself that I deserved more from my life than feeling unfulfilled, bored and restless. I came with the inherent belief and self trust that once I let go I could start living a life I was proud of. I may not become a commercial success. But that's okay. I am creative, I am intellectual, I am caring and I am spiritual. My strengths cannot be judged beside others. I just am who I am. And for now, I am here.
Labels:
Bali,
Buddhism,
connection,
creativity,
culture,
happiness,
hopes,
Hubud,
isolation,
letting go,
love,
meraki,
mindfulness,
motivation,
narrative,
p,
purpose,
social psychology,
Ubud,
zen
The Motivational Holy Trinity
Peering through the Jungle, 2014 |
“Each
artist expresses through art his unique way of experiencing life.
This is the essence of creation.
Through our art we bring into existence something that did not previously exist.
The creative process fulfills our need to express our experience.
And if the expression has been true, we will feel a sense of completion and satisfaction.”
This is the essence of creation.
Through our art we bring into existence something that did not previously exist.
The creative process fulfills our need to express our experience.
And if the expression has been true, we will feel a sense of completion and satisfaction.”
(Loori,
2004, p.84)
Madder Moon exhibition, Singapore 2013 |
"We do things because they're
interesting.
We do things because we like them, because they're inherently gratifying.
We do things because we get better at them, because they're the right thing to do,
or because they're part of a larger purpose."
We do things because we like them, because they're inherently gratifying.
We do things because we get better at them, because they're the right thing to do,
or because they're part of a larger purpose."
(Pink, 2010)
Loori and Pink artfully surmise why we engage in the
creative process, why we decided to become artists, designers, writers,
performers. I am motivated to be creative because creativity is challenging by
nature, I feel stimulated and excited when approaching a new task or learning
new things. There is said to be a holy trinity of motivation, outlined by three
key points. Are you unmotivated by your creative
pursuits because you overlooked one? Apparently it’s not all about you.
Autonomy . I
did this myself...!
Mastery . I’m
getting really good at this...!
Purpose . I
did this for a cause greater than myself...!
Loori, J.D (2004) The Zen of Creativity; Cultivating your Artistic Life. Ballantine
Books: New York, USA
Pink, D. (2010) Drive: the surprising truth about what motivates us. RSA Animation [Online] Accessed 09/06/2014 from, http://www.youtube.com/watch?gl=SG&hl=en-GB&v=u6XAPnuFjJc
Wills. E. (2013) Peering through the Jungle. [Online] Accessed 23/06/2014 from, http://www.surface122.blogspot.com/
Pink, D. (2010) Drive: the surprising truth about what motivates us. RSA Animation [Online] Accessed 09/06/2014 from, http://www.youtube.com/watch?gl=SG&hl=en-GB&v=u6XAPnuFjJc
Wills. E. (2013) Peering through the Jungle. [Online] Accessed 23/06/2014 from, http://www.surface122.blogspot.com/
Labels:
art,
artistic,
asia,
autonomy,
connection,
creative,
creativity,
culture,
daniel pink,
happiness,
loori,
mastery,
meraki,
mindfulness,
motif,
motivation,
purpose,
social psychology,
textiles,
zen
25 Jun 2014
Synonymal Blend
Instead
of using one word to describe something, I blur the two. Synonymal Blend is a
term I came up to explain this unconscious blending of two synonyms. I'm not
sure if there is an actual word that exists to explain this - I couldn't find
one...
Synonym (noun)
1. A
word having the same or nearly the same meaning as another word or other words
in a language.
Blend (verb)
1. To
combine or mix so that the constituent parts are indistinguishable from one
another
Synonymal describes a words synonymous quality with
another word. Blend is the process of combining two elements to make a new,
fully merged outcome.
Synonymal
Blend (adjective) therefore describes the
process of mixing two existing words that have similar meanings to create a new
word. This sometimes happens as a slip of the tongue and/or mind, and can be
intentional - where chillout and relax become “chillax”, or accidental - when scratch and itch become “stritch”.
In my own creative practice I am less likely to use
the actual term synonymal blend, but rather could look at ways of combining
synonyms to describe aspects of my work in new ways, using new words. Examples;
drawing and sketching could become “skrawing”,
or doing an illustration using embroidery could become “peneedling”.
Other
examples... please add your own synonymal blends
Frantic
+ Energy = Frenergy
Jazz
+ Dancing = Jancing
Hiccup
+ Cough = Hiccough
http://thefreedictionary.com
23 Jun 2014
Subtractive Poetry + Fashion
Personal Creativity Manifesto
“...without a manifesto, we
cannot conceive the future.” (Kyes, 2008)
The artists’ manifesto can be defined
as a “document of an ideology, crafted to convince and convert.” (Caws, 2000)
On a more personal level, the artist manifesto is an individual document
written to inspire, challenge and motivate. It can help the author to
articulate the parameters of their creative practice and what philosophies the
process is built upon.
I
haven’t written a personal creativity manifesto as yet. But I have identified that
having an engaging
narrative supporting creative ideas is at the core of my creative practice.
Seth Godin's (2009) tribe building theory is underpinned by the central aim to tell
a story that connects with its audience and creates a sense of community.
Daniel Pink says that storytelling
is important because as “facts become so widely available and instantly
accessible, each one becomes less valuable. What begins to matter is the
ability to place these facts in context and to deliver them with emotional
impact.” (Pink, 2009) Narrative therefore helps to generate interest in ideas,
and provides people with a story with which they can subscribe to.
Godin
says that we are searching for meaning and a tribe to ascribe to, articulating
that we "are living through and are right at the key moment of a change in
the ways ideas are created, and spread, and implemented." He
calls this the ‘time of Tribes' – which is defined by storytelling, ‘connecting
people and ideas.’ (Godin, 2009) The objectives
for my creative projects are underpinned by Seth Godin’s leadership theory of
building a tribe, described by his four steps; Telling a Story, Connecting like
minded people, Leading the movement to Make Change.
Telling a Story
For my projects to be successful
they must connect or resonate with their audience.
Godin and Pink see a future defined by shared storytelling, a way to connect like-minded
people and ideas.
Godin and Pink see a future defined by shared storytelling, a way to connect like-minded
people and ideas.
Connect Like-minded
people
Projects are interactive and
experiential, helping to cultivate a wide audience.
Collaboration is key. Projects share
visions, and contributors bring a variety of skills from
different disciplinary backgrounds.
different disciplinary backgrounds.
Leading the Movement
Be exemplary and step into the
unknown as a role model, mentor and guide.
Make Change
Ensure the projects have longevity
and new ideas can keep being adapted from previous ideas.
Challenge creative thinking
processes in order to find new connections and propose
new cross-disciplinary relationships.
new cross-disciplinary relationships.
Caws, M.A.
(2000) Manifesto: A Century of Isms.
University of Nebraska Press: USA.
Godin, S. (2009) The Tribes we Lead. TED Talks [Online] Accessed 20/06/2014, from http://www.ted.com/talks/seth_godin_on_the_tribes_we_lead
Kyes, Z. (2008) Manifesto’s of the Future. e-flux [Online] Accessed 20/06/2014 from, http://www.e-flux.com/journal/manifestos-for-the-future/#_ftn5
Pink, D. (2005) A Whole New Mind; Moving from the Information Age to the Conceptual Age. Riverhead, Penguin Books: USA.
Godin, S. (2009) The Tribes we Lead. TED Talks [Online] Accessed 20/06/2014, from http://www.ted.com/talks/seth_godin_on_the_tribes_we_lead
Kyes, Z. (2008) Manifesto’s of the Future. e-flux [Online] Accessed 20/06/2014 from, http://www.e-flux.com/journal/manifestos-for-the-future/#_ftn5
Pink, D. (2005) A Whole New Mind; Moving from the Information Age to the Conceptual Age. Riverhead, Penguin Books: USA.
7 Apr 2014
Subtractive Poetry
“When you cut into the present,
the future leaks out.”
William Burroughs
I thought it would be interesting to set parameters
when playing with newspaper blackouts, and so I combined subtractive poetry with six word memoirs. I
chose to black out text from a series of 'News in Brief' stories and to reduce
these down to six of the original words to tell a new story.
This is a tool that could
be applied to assist in the creative naming of artwork, exhibitions, or personal
design philosophies.
Six word memoirs are a concentrated form of storytelling. The
idea is that stories can be communicated effectively and more poetically
through a limited word count. Writing six word memoirs is fun and addictive,
finding the six magical words within one short newspaper story is even better.
http://www.smithmag.net/sixwords/
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