That’s one of the questions that emerged from the workshop Kerri Twigg and I ran this weekend. Our offering, How to Hold Space for Creative Expression, was geared toward finding and nurturing your inner artist.
Kerri and I introduced a range of practices—from mindfulness, drama, and writing—to tap into making art in the everyday. We weren’t concerned with completing a bunch of to-dos. But oh what magic can emerge when you simply enjoy the practice of creating.
We noticed elements of our daily life, and how they can inform our art.
We wrote by hand, our words becoming pictures in and of themselves.
We moved in a way that felt instinctive.
We used our memories to write a short story.
We went by our artist names throughout the workshop.
We imagined a future in which our inner artist features strongly.
We noticed when our inner censor came up.
We learned that if we step into our artist identity, everything we do can be art. Together, we formed a temporary artists’ collective.
Several participants were surprised by the artists they found inside themselves. These inner artists took different forms: voluptuous versions of themselves, “me but much bigger” (taking up space!), even “a rosy mist.”
The participants took risks and played. We laughed a lot. It was weird at times. But it was also magical and oh so nurturing. That’s what creative expression can feel like when you hold space for it without the pressure of outcomes.
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