I think that with what was a trend towards trying to have the perfectly curated Instagram account …I am glad that I am older and wiser to know better. Or shall I say, I choose my inherent creativity over curation.
The internet is a playground for me, a place for me to experiment and to have the guts and courage to not be perfect, and to try different kinds of art, writing and photography.
I am constantly experimenting and love the creative process first, over product. Maybe that is why I am not a millionaire yet? Yes I said, “yet.”
Honouring your own unique creative process keeps you being you, and staying true to who you really are. If you do this, it means you likely will not be the most popular person on the internet ! Why? The creative process and experimentation can be messy, not so pretty and sometimes even ugly, or you may in the future even look back and say, “what was I thinking?” (how many of us have thrown out old and embarrassing personal dark-thoughts diaries, weird sketches or photos we thought were amazing, only to find out later they were … well … needed some help?)
My own creative process is one which to many people looking in from the outside, looks like “all over the map” or “unfocused” or “scattered.” I have tried to change those parts of myself for too many people over the years, for far too long, until I finally accepted that this is MY creative process, an integral part of who I am, and I must say, a mighty fine interesting aspect of self!
So on that note, here is one PhotoArt experiment from my early evening walk last night. See the feature image at the top of the page? This image below is exactly the same image but with a different take on it, and it is quite fun.
I made both of these photos (and many more) last night, when I was having a hard time dealing with the recent loss of my Mom. It has only been just 12 weeks since she passed away so all pretty fresh. I find that in going outdoors in nature, with camera in hand, the process of making photographic images and then making those into art, I am able to find peace again, to be grounded again, and the tears fall away.
And a side note to those of you who worry about competition, (and I have written about this before) … the thing about your own unique creative process, is that IF, you stick true to that, you have no competition! There is none, because nobody can see the world in exactly the way that you do, in the exactly same moment and time that you do, and nobody else can express that artistically the same way you do.
And so on that note, go out and TRY. Try something, try anything and everything. Nobody is watching or reading anyway 🙂 … or if they are, you may just inspire them to reclaim parts of themselves that they too had given up to try to fit in and be accepted into the massive popularity-focused internet world.
P.S.
Thanks Mom, for accepting me and all my weirdness. I miss you.
Love,
Brenda
