Monday, March 29, 2010

Back on Track


Into the light and out of the darkness. What seemed like it would last forever has now come to an end. I have finally broken through my creative block. You have no idea what a relief that is. It's a bit like the feeling that we get when the first signs of Spring appear or when the sun comes out after a long period of gray days.

Being out of practice for the way that I create my work has a good and bad side to it. The bad is that it takes longer to figure out what works best for my setups. The good is that these are the times when it's easier to experiment and when wonderful accidents happen.

During the period while I was having my creative block, I was not liking a lot of the work that I had created. It was an awful feeling. It's one thing to get bored with one's work but not to like it is another. Relief, relief! Because I haven't looked at a lot of my work for awhile, I can be so much more objective about them. This is definitely a good thing.

Friday, March 12, 2010

Nautilus Shell


This shell has fascinated me for years. One of my professors, years ago, had given me a whole nautilus shell plus two halves. While in Florida, I purchased a pearlized nautilus and two paper nautilus shells. The paper nautilus shells are so thin and fragile that I'm almost afraid to pick them up. I've photographed them straight and am now including them in setups that give them a Daliesque appearance. The shell never bores me.

The odd thing about the work that I am doing now is that they are so much darker in appearance. My past work has been much more colorful with brighter colors. I don't' know if the difference is that my older work usually began with a flower or two and grew from there. I'm always fascinated with how one's inner being leads us along the creative path.

Wednesday, February 17, 2010

Creative Block

This topic has become much too personal for me. In the past, having a creative block was frustrating. In fact, the first one was a bit terrifying as I was convinced, as are so many others, that I would never have another creative thought again. I wasn't even sure what to do about it. At some point, I found that if I went back into my studio, cleaned, reorganized and, finally, just began scribbling on paper, I would suddenly feel the creative ideas begin to sprout. Of course, that was when I did a lot of drawing and painting.

Photography, and particularly the type of photography that I do, presents a different problem. Just taking photos does not bring me back to the creative spot. There has to be a starting point for me and then, if I'm lucky, ideas begin to evolve. When it happens, it is so exciting and energizing. When it doesn't, it makes me want to scream or quit. Well, you say, what kind of a creative soul are you if you just give up? I am definitely not a quitter.

What can cause a creative block? For me, it could be that I've explored the series that I've worked on to the fullest and must now find a new idea for a series. It could be outside situations that cause such turmoil inside oneself that it makes concentrating very difficult. It could be that there are times when one has to make decisions about which direction one wants his or her life to go. No doubt that if you are an actively creative person, you have found something that creates a block for you. During this creative block, I find that all of the above has been part of my lack of imagination. This time, my block does feel permanent. It won't be because I won't let it but the struggle is a difficult one.

If anyone of you who may be reading this has experienced this situation, I would love to have you add your comments, problems, solutions that have worked for you, etc. A discussion is always much more interesting.