A few weeks ago, I was contacted by the curators of Create Whimsy.
At Create Whimsy we share the stories and journeys of makers […] and their work, providing inspiration for living creatively every day.
My interview is complete and available for you to read in their Spotlight Series.
I hope you hop over to check out my interview because I’m sharing some of my current thoughts surrounding creativity. Once you’ve read the interview, come back and let’s have a discussion in the comments here (where I can see and reply to you easily)! I’d love to know: How do you think can people overcome the challenges they feel to their creative ability?
Very nice interview. Spot on about creativity. Children explore & create effortlessly, never let go of that ability.
I enjoyed reading the interview very much, Yvonne. You field questions so well, with clarity and grace. Thanks for introducing me to this site; I’m going to read through several of the other interviews as well.
Since I’m fairly new to following your blog, I liked seeing quilts apparently made in the past — Downstream and Beacon, particularly.
Your journey toward perfecting techniques is inspiring.
The interview was very interesting. Most of the questions have been addressed in one form or another over the years in your blog posts. I really like the idea of being open to failure. So much of my life, I carefully planned everything so that success was the only acceptable outcome. I’ve found through art quilting that many times, where I think I’m going is not actually where I end up. Sometimes, I have to decide if I can find a different way to achieve my goal, change direction and goal or ditch the whole thing and start over. It is very hard to embrace the idea that “failure” is an acceptable outcome. I’ve had to let go of the concept of time wasted, fabric wasted, and look for the lesson learned. I use sew alongs as a way to stretch my skills and experiment outside my comfort zone.
Really enjoyed reading the interview, hearing again your thoughts/processes/philosophies/learning adventures. I particularly liked what you said about the question about creativity coming naturally or not. I also LOVED gazing at the photos of your quilts again, just some excellent locations!
Very interesting interview. The thought of seeking rejection as a way to grow really struck me. Though the word “rejection” seems a bit harsh, I tend to think of it as feedback. I agree we often convince ourselves that we aren’t creative. But just living day to day requires creativiity on any number of fronts.
I agree that seeking things out of your comfort range is key. I had a Bad Thing that took my creativity away for years, and last year I tried to wake back up. I went back to old things I used to do, but found them all overwhelming. So I turned to things I would have disdained before – patterns with all the colors pre-selected. Crafty things I thought were, I don’t know, too “country”. Counted cross stitch, which made me cringe in memory of ducking finished projects from well-meaning friends.
…and you know what. Counted cross stitch is like meditation, and the Internet means you can have a sampler of Halloween creatures or a Pride Heart. Wreaths where, dare I say, fun to decorate instead of cringe-inducing. And a quilt-along with applique work had patterns and directions to keep me calm, and substituting my own color choices reminded me that the art was in the selection and assembly style. By the end of seven months I was re-designing blocks.
So the lessons learned – start small, nay, start with something you are sure is “beneath” your fine level of skills. Get over yourself. Pick only things that make you smile, just that crazy grin ear-to-ear smile. C’mon, it’s the Inter-Toobs, it’s out there! Do one bit, one block, one 5 inch heart. And then go outside and walk around and come back, and if you still love the thing in all its homey glory, you got it! Start something you can do one piece at a time and add the colors and trims you dream of even if they don’t look right at first. You’ll get it.
As you have said, you’ll find failure. And after that, you’ll find art. Happy hunting.
What an awesome interview. Your point about risking (or seeking) rejection is well taken, it is a learning experience to both succeed and to fail. We mostly learn more from our failures and mistakes. Your style is unique and modern with a fresh take on piecing and quilting.
oh good. I’ll go look.