creative process

Gary Snyder On Doing The Work You See For Yourself, ‘Mind Like Compost’

We’d never thought about guarding against the “lesser talents” we all have until we read Gary Snyder, whose practical counsel and poetry on the creative process is seriously clarifying.

The Ear is The Way to the Heart

This huge little insight about listening startled us awake! And got us thinking about the powerful practice we all do daily…

Stephen Nachmanovitch’s ‘The Art of IS’ Decodes Improvising As a Way of Life

YoYo Ma described The Art of IS as “a philosophical meditation on living, living fully, living in the present.” We find it full of surprising ideas that are also incredibly helpful.

Henry Miller and Others on the “Finest Medicine a Person Can Give Himself”

When we came across this quote from novelist Henry Miller, we thought, yes that IS some of the most powerful medicine we know.

Gold High Heels and Other Uniquely Personal Ways to Focus Your Mind (Mira Keras)

Former Improvised Life assistant editor-come-star-tattoo-artist Mira Keras wrote this spot-on description of a writer procrastinating. She discovered something essential in the process that unleashed her productivity.

Alex Soth and Richard Long on What Can Be Made From the Process of Moving Through the World

At his instagram, photographer Alex Soth posted a beautiful little video of a rock rolling down a path, an homage to artist Richard Long’s work, who mightily inspired an interesting view…

Tacita Dean’s Trees: Ideas Fueled by Openness to Chance, Accident, Poetic Associations

This astonishing tree is one of a group of photographs of ancient trees in the South East of England made by artist Tacita Dean. It is the product of Dean’s unique approach, which is as wonderful as the work itself.

Matisse’s 13 Sketches, 13 Prayers, Before Painting ‘The Dream’

Henri Matisse likened his state of mind when making art “close to that of prayer. So we’re viewing each one of these 13 ravishing sketches in preparation for painting The Dream as a sort of prayer…

When An Artist Fails as a Person, Is Their Work Invalid?

When I was young, I thought that an artwork reflected the values of the person who made it. Over time, I learned that this was very often not the case…

What We Do When We’ve Done Everything We Can and Feel We Should Do More (Chris Eldredge, Pat Steir)

When we’ve worked hard taking care of something and feel there is still more we should do, leaving us restless and worried, we employ this 10-word reality check, learned from a psychotherapist friend.

Being Matter of Fact about Failure and Other Lessons from Mary Oliver

Of the many tributes we’ve read about poet Mary Oliver’s passing, the most moving was Summer Brennan’s short remembrance about what her teacher taught her…

Playing with Aluminum Foil Yields Knives, Balls, Stunning Sculpture (John Chamberlain)

The latest DIY craze of hammering tin foil to make metal-hard objects led us to discovery of artist John Chamberlain’s dazzling foil alchemy…

Three Artists Approaching Their Canvas Inspire the Coming Year

Looking through the archive of images and quotes I keep for inspiration, I came across a theme I hadn’t realized I was collecting and heartening words from Agnes Martin…

Poem and a Wish for a New Year

In this perfect poem for the New Year, Poet Christian Wiman nails the mysterious process of growth that we cannot control, and often aren’t aware of, but is part of every life, guaranteed.

Lollypop Menorah Near Vegas is a Lesson in Free Association (Gary Snyder, Freud)

Artist Ugo Rondinone’s Seven Magic Mountains, fluorescently-painted 32-foot-high totems in the desert outside Vegas, reveal the poetry of free association…

Warhol’s Oxidation Painting: Alchemy of Metallic Paint, Great Eye and a Surprising Catalyst

Wandering through the Warhol retrospective at the Whitney yesterday, I was stopped dead by a remarkable 17-foot long abstract canvas I hadn’t seen before, made with materials I’d never considered…

A Wounded Cello’s Lesson in Navigating Change in Things We Love

When a virtuoso cellist found his rare, beloved cello changed after massive repairs, he had to find new ways to elicit its unique sound — a lesson in navigating change in things we love.

Brian Eno’s Oblique Strategy: Don’t Wait for Inspiration. Do this instead…

This video of artist and musician Brian Eno is full of interesting ideas about the creative process. The best, to us, is right up front in the first 1:44 minutes…

The Deep Internal Realizations to be Had from Fooling Around

In his wonderful TED talk, Gever Tully describes the “deep internal realizations” to be had from having the freedom to fool around, tinker, improvise…

Sardinian Women Show How to Wash Dishes with Passion and Joy

Our friend Peggy Markle took this remarkable little video of women in a church rectory’s kitchen in Sardinia washing dishes as one sang loudly in dialect, refusing to be shushed…The BEST way we’ve seen to transform an ordinary household task.

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