I felt that my previous post about ‘feeling less inclined to post’ on my blog a day or so ago, might have come over as rather negative. As much as I can see that it may, the message I was really aiming for, is that I think creativity is a highly personal endeavour. Like having dreams and desires that we do not share with others, there is something hugely personal in the creative realm of our existence.
My own creativity comes from a place of introspection. I am an oxymoron, in that I run photographic workshops, and having to explain what I do, and perhaps more importantly ‘why’ I do what I do, has not come easily for me. As someone who works more intuitively, having to dissect my own compositions much later in order to explain them to others, I have always had an inner-world where my creativity resides.
As a young boy I was into painting and drawing. As a teenager I was into music composition. As an adult I moved from music into making images. During all these stages of my life, there was always one thing that was constant: an inner-world of dreams and visualisations.
I think that to develop as a photographer, there is only so much technique that one can learn. Technique equals ‘formula’ for me. The rest is just experimentation and intuition. A hunch that the unformed idea you have may show some promise. The hunch that what you’re currently doing is the right approach, even though you do not know what the outcome maybe, is vitally important.
Trusting one’s own introspection. To ask questions of oneself, to be in a constant state of ‘feeling if it fits’, and re-adjusting things all the time, and knowing that nothing is truly ‘finished’, is part of that inner world I think that all creative people live in.
Being a creative person is also a little bit schizophrenic in the sense that we have to be able to be ‘inside’ what we are doing whilst at the same time remain ‘outside’ of it. I think this is why photography tends to attract more introverts. Consider the street photographer: Is he really involved in the scene? In a way he is because he has to be part of it to get those intimate shots. But at the same time, he has to have the uncanny ability to also remain outside of the scene, as an observer.
This is what is at the heart of all creativity: the ability to be part of the creation, whilst remain outside as an observer. You need to lose yourself in order to be surprised and do new things, but you also need to be able to fine-tune and ‘steer’ the direction of the journey once you find your idea.
There is far too much concern of what others think. Rating your creativity based on what others feel about your work is dangerous. It has to come from within. If you know and trust your creative inner world, then you won’t get lost.
This is what I mean by sharing less. There has to be space and time to reflect upon your own thoughts and feelings for your own work. Just because I create images, doesn’t mean I always understand or like them immediately. I often have to sit with the work, and sometimes it’s many years before I’m able to grasp how I feel about it. So why hand that responsibility to others before you’ve even figured that out?
So value your inner world more, and consequently, perhaps share a little more lightly.
