Creative Aging and the Arts (Part 2)

“There is a fountain of youth; it is your mind, your talents,
the creativity you bring to your life and the lives
of the people you love.  When you will learn to tap
this source, you will have truly defeated age.”

~Sophia Loren~

Creative Aging and the Arts (Part One)

 

The creative arts should be, to me, flexible and adaptable. Embracing new concepts, moving along with the social/economic/political spectrum, can allow new discoveries as well as keep things afloat. What good is it if you master your art, stick to that one idea, but the times have left you behind?

Arts administrations need to do the same, as the economic landscape has changed so drastically in the last five+ years. A new, or renewed, interest in Life Long Learners can be key in keeping organizations going well past the base of the school ages that many focus on.

What was inspiring to me was participating, through OPERA America, a section of the Open Opera Conference: Creative Resurgence. Opera companies are looking at involving the older adult population in more ways than just filling seats. A number of opera companies from across the US and Canada attended this day long workshop/program on Creative Aging, with many of them already utilizing interactive, participatory programs.

Storytelling is one of the primary arts disciplines that seems to  be in wide use: delving into true life testimonials, musical works have been formed, from revues to full mini-operas. Being part of the creative process, the participatory input ranged from storytelling and writing to either performing the work or having professional singers enact their life stories. The librettos ranged from true life to fictionalized non-fiction.

In Creative Aging and the Arts (Part 1), I spoke about our morning session with Ms. Susan Perlstein, an advocate for the creative aging movement, and is the Founder Emeritus for the National Center for Creative Aging (NCCA).  In the afternoon two groups shared with the assemblage two recent projects that had just been completed: the pilot project I did with my musical collaborator Zach Redler for OPERA America, and Opera North’s latest operatic collaboration with an elder population.

Presentation: Transitions: Sung Stories

Opera North, Inc. worked with NewCourtland (a service for older adults) to produce Transitions: Sung Stories. Gathering oral history from Philadelphia, PA elders, Jules Tasca (Librettist) and Leslie Savoy Burrs (Composer and Executive Director of Opera North, Inc.) created a moving story that stemmed from the real life interviews.

Relating the details of the process to the group, both Mr. Burrs and Mr. Tasca laid out a professional program that produces positive results. In a video that showcases Mr. Burrs, we got to obverse how he interacted with a group of physically challenged elders. Working with a variety of percussive instruments, the participants helped lead Mr. Burrs, wielding a flute, to compose one of the pieces that became part of their opera.

What was apparent, watching the video, was how involved and engaged everyone was. No one just sat on the side, a spectator. This was a vibrant community coming together for a project that celebrates their lives, and also celebrates the worth they still have in the greater society.

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In Part Three of Creative Aging and the Arts, I’ll be discussing the work that I had the pleasure to experience with our group as well as responses/reactions of the attendees from the full day seminar.

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ATTENTION:

I am available for consulting on Inter-Generational Program Development

as well as Project Management/Facilitation

I am willing to travel or work over Skype with your organization

Please contact me at:

stuart.nager at gmail dot com

Filling the Creative Well (The Creativity Series)

Once again, one of my Triberr mates has stepped up to share their POV on creativity. Toby Neal lives a wonderful life in Hawaii, a place I’ve love to return to (hint hint). What a place t surround yourself with beauty.

The Creativity Series: Guest Post

Filling the creative well: Toby Neal

Creativity flows from depth of exposure to sensory input. Let me say that again: creativity flows from depth of exposure to sensory input.

Without sounds we’ve known, where would music come from? Without images we’ve seen, colors we’ve boggled at, shapes we’ve felt, where would new works of art come from? And, without stories, legends, fairy tales, poetry, and even journal articles, where will original narrative spring from?

New work arises from the bones of old—just as new life arises from a remix of DNA.

I’ve written before about the marvelous, magical brain and how it’s always cooking things up (Idea Mining) but with a dearth of exposure, how can new ideas emerge? In a hectic, overstimulated world with too much of one kind of input (like electronics) from whence will rise the next Michelangelo? Without time—time to wander, and putter, and percolate on rich sensory input, who could give birth to genius?

And by this, I’m not talking about retreating for six months to Esalen in Big Sur, meditating naked—(though that could be fun) I’m talking about walking in nature for awhile, letting the eyes wander where they will, picking out the butterflies trying to fly while they mate (not graceful) and the mynah bird chasing a cockroach.

 Breathing deep that smell of moss under a tree, a smell like the underside of a mushroom, cool and slightly sour.

Listening to rain falling, the parrot next door screaming “Pretty bird!” and cars honking.

Processing it. Something will emerge later from what is deeply felt and fully experienced.

I am, right now, primarily a writer (of all my creative dabbling.)  Two days ago I finished Black Jasmine, my third complete novel and best first draft to date (in my optimistic opinion, though my daughter tells me I say that of all of them.)

I am suffering the aftermath of creative overdrive, a mildly depressive state like oncoming flu. Nothing feels quite right, nothing tastes quite right, and quite frankly life looks pretty empty with nothing but fascinating work, loving family, good friends, life in paradise and rewriting in my near future.

Bleah, and bah humbug. I miss my characters. I miss my book, the constant nagging obsession of it.  I’m annoyed I feel this way, finding it neurotic and even narcissistic, and I wonder if I should go to therapy. Oh yeah, I’m a therapist. I hope that means I’m okay, but I’m far from certain of it.

I wonder if I’ll ever write again.

I apparently suffer from being a writer.

But now is the time to fill the creative well, trust the process, know that new ideas are already bubbling in the substrata of my busy brain…they just need more to feed on. Like busily multiplying bacteria, they need stuff to digest.  I need to throw a few bodies into the creative well for my rabid imagination to stew upon. No doubt, you do too.

Slow down enough to process the sensory input around you, and let it fill your creative well.

 Toby Neal was raised on Kauai in Hawaii and makes the Islands home after living elsewhere for “stretches of exile” to pursue education. Toby enjoys outdoor activities including bodyboarding, scuba diving, photography and hiking as well as writing. A mental health therapist, she credits that career with adding depth to the characters in the Lei Crime Series.

Q&A On Creativity: Nick Daws (The Creativity Series)

It has been a pleasure being a Writer Warrior on Triberr. I’ve connected with a number of really wonderful people. Many in the group responded to my call for articles or interviews about Creativity.

Here, In this Q & A, British freelance writer and editor Nick Daws reveals why creativity is important to him both personally and professionally…

The Creativity Series: Nick Daws on Creativity

 

Q. What do you do that is creative?

A. As I am a full-time freelance writer and editor, some would say that everything I do is creative. Personally, however, I feel that some of my work is more creative than others.

Sometimes I’m hired for my creativity – this applies especially with copywriting work. At other times, such as when I’m editing a book, the scope for creativity is less.

Even so, there are often many possible ways to edit a text, and creativity still plays an important role in achieving the best possible outcome for all concerned.

Q. How do you use your creativity?

A. I use my creativity in my work, as mentioned above, and also for coming up with ideas for new projects of my own. Although I write for clients to pay the bills, I enjoy fiction writing when the time permits, and always have a few short stories and other projects on the go.

Another area where I have to be creative is in marketing myself and seeking out new outlets and opportunities. Being a freelance writer is a tough gig at times. You have to be creative in how you present and market yourself. And sometimes you may have to reinvent yourself entirely!

Q. Why is creativity important to you?

A. Creativity is essential to me partly because, as I said above, it’s one aspect of what my clients pay me for (and sometimes the main thing).

Beyond that, though, creativity is what keeps me excited and motivated by my work, and always trying to do better. I’d hate to have a job that offered no scope for creativity. I’d soon go mad from boredom!

Q. Who or what has been a creative influence on you?

A. There are numerous brilliant creative writers whose example has inspired me – just a few examples would include the British poet and novelist Laurie Lee, science-fiction author Roger Zelazny, thriller writers Stephen King and Dean Koontz, and fantasy author Robin Hobb.

There are also some brilliant bloggers whose creativity (and productivity) never cease to amaze me: Darren Rowse of Problogger, for example, and Joanna Penn, of The Creative Penn.

More generally, the Internet itself has been a huge creative influence on me. It’s an endless source of creative ideas and inspiration.

Q. What do you feel your creativity does for others?

A. For my clients, I hope my creativity helps them to produce the very best work they can – be it a book, a website, a blog, an advertisement, or whatever. And I hope that, through my work, my creativity inspires readers to try new challenges, to take on projects they might not otherwise have considered, and to find new sources of fulfillment and creative satisfaction.

 

Byline: Nick Daws is a professional freelance writer and editor, living in the English county of Staffordshire. He has a blog at www.mywritingblog.com and a homepage at www.nickdaws.co.uk. His publications for writers include the CD-based Write Any Book in Under 28 Days and Kindle Kash, a downloadable guide for writers who want to publish their work for profit on the Amazon Kindle platform.

 

Zencherry: A Colorful Life (Creativity Series: Guest Post)

It was a cold day in hell September where I had the misfortune  fortune to come across a very interesting blog called Zencherry.

As I was reading along I just was struck by how funny this woman could be: this woman whose name shall not be named, unless she so wishes. Funny, poignant, witty, thought provoking… All this and more. She was the first to come to my aid when I called out for guest posts for this new creativity series.

It is my pleasure to welcome you to the mind of Zencherry.

#1 in The Creativity Series:

Zencherry: A Colorful Life

 

Stuart was foolish kind enough to allow me to guest host on his blog today so a big tip of the ultra cool hat I picked up for this special occasion.

Acck! (Spits feathers out) Maybe not, my freakish hair just can’t compete with that. Ooo I know!

 

 

 

 

That’s better. (Looks around at Casablanca ambiance going on) Now this is my kind of hat! And blog for that matter.

 

 

Stuart is always asking real stumpers on his site. Things like: What Constitutes Education  and in Re-imagining and Reboots in Life where he asks “What are you doing with your life?”

Today he’s asked me to broach the subject of (dah, dah, daaaah) CREATIVITY

(Pats sound man on the back and gives them a drink) Hey, you’ve got to keep your sound people happy even if they are just figments of your imagination.

Oooo and there it is. The touchstone of life. Yep, no need to go looking into thick, sneezy-dust-inducing textbooks or consort with demons to bargain your soul away, a person has everything they need to succeed in life within them. Just grab your equivalent of black quartz and rub the content of your day up against it like they did to test gold and silver.

Are you having a drab day? Well, that would be your fault. Sorry. It’s true. I don’t care if your boss is chewing you out, your belly is empty, your shoe has a hole in it, and you just put your foot in your mouth. A bad day is one to be laughed at. Look at your boss. Isn’t that expression priceless? Do they even realize that their eyebrow twitches like a caterpillar on acid? Your belly is grumbling? Well hey…welcome to the stomach orchestra, just watch out for that tuba. And doesn’t your toe just look like a little pig down there? Wonder if it can wiggle while it’s turning blue. Foot in mouth? Oh but that’s the best. It’s the lifeblood of comedy.

Perspective baby. Perspective.

Stuart asked specifically that I speak on the W’s of creativity: Who, what, where, and why.

What do I consider creative? Blowing spit bubbles. I’ve had hours a little bit of fun with this.

Where do I use creativity? When I rationalize that a cupcake will not blossom into a muffin top over my skinny jeans. Well that and my use of hair gel.

Who has inspired me? Everyone that I observe or come in contact with. Perspectives are so much fun to look at. I like to pick up the spectacles of others to see how they’re looking at things. Makes all these sort of disagreements that the world tends to have a little more funny and comprehensible. Well, truth be told, Bugs Bunny was a driving force there for a while. Sarcasm with a carrot? Classic.

Why is creativity important to me? Ever watch Pleasantville with William H. Macy? Look beyond the dialogue if it annoys you. Look at the imagery. Everything is black and white…everything looks idyllic and yet so much is missing: The truth of the struggle going on around them like the segregation, censorship…you get the picture. Leading a creative, (read colorful), life brings with it a heavy toll of understanding the spectrum of the human experience.

I guess that’s why so many creative people suffer from depression and why so many people avoid creativity, (whether subliminally or not). It’s easy to feel other’s experiences like a heavy blow and to keep everything black and white. It’s easy to try to avoid it altogether or to hold onto to it too heavily. Where’s the middle? Humor. But that’s just my opinion.

Creativity helps us enjoy life. And that is something that when I’m sitting there drawing my last breath is the wallpaper observation that Oscar Wilde left us with that I’ll be hanging onto:

“My wallpaper and I are fighting a duel to the death. One or the other of us has to go.”

Meanwhile, you can find me hanging out on Twitter under the tag @zencherry or at my blog: http://www.zencherry.wordpress.com . If you’re a NaNoWriMo participant, come on over and buddy up. I’m zencherry on there and we’ll paint that site red together. Okay, purple polka dots, your choice. J

Why Do You Do What You Hate? (Creativity Series)

Do not hire a man who does your work for money, but him who does it for love of it. ~Henry David Thoreau

A man’s work is nothing but this slow trek to rediscover, through the detours of art, those two or three great and simple images in whose presence his heart first opened. ~Albert Camus

I can’t imagine anything more worthwhile than doing what I most love. And they pay me for it. ~Edgar Winter

I met a woman on Halloween dressed in a witches’ costume. I complimented her outfit (no one else at the train station was wearing one) and we began to talk.

We were taking a train back to New York and she told me, in the course of our discussion, that she was very unhappy with her work and she wished that she could live a creative professional life. I had been telling her of all the things that I do to live a creative lifestyle. Yet, as much as she was agreeing that she should follow her muse, there was reluctance and, yes, fear, in all of her agreeing.

My father did a job for 26 years that he hated. It wore him down,  but…he had a family to take care of, and that was that.  This woman also was in a position that she did not like, that she said was soul killing, for well over 10 years. Even though I swore I would not do what my dad did, I got stuck in the money trap for 15 years;  due to being married and having  children  I needed to help support. But… I was unhappy every single day. That only changed when, in my mid-30′s, I quit my job and followed a burning desire.

A lot of people seem to think that the only time that they can do what they really love is when they retire. Why does that sound wrong to me? Why do we have to wait until we are older to enjoy what we do professionally? Who says we can’t enjoy what we do on a day-to-day basis right now, right here, in our own terms?

In this horrible economic time, people are more afraid than ever to leave the position that they already have. Yet, the security that many used to feel that they had in their pockets is slowly fading away. I feel that the structure of the secure position… The future of the workforce is changing, and we are not changing fast enough to meet the new demands. There are other alternatives out there: we just have to MAKE them work for us and change the paradigm of work.

I can speak about what it’s like to be a teaching artist today. If we do not alter the way that we approach our jobs, if we do not  take it to a new professional level, and if we are not treated as professionals, then we will get left behind. I love being a teaching artist. I also see that I have to change the way that I do things or have done things to survive.

Change is good, as long as we see it that way. As long as we are not afraid of it. As long as we accept the challenge of it and don’t let it overcome us. How we going to do this?

It takes a creative leap of faith.

What creative leap are you willing to take?

 

 

Why Creativity?

Nothing encourages creativity like the chance to fall flat on one’s face. ~James D. Finley

Creativity takes courage. ~Henri Matisse

Think left and think right and think low and think high. Oh, the thinks you can think up if only you try! ~Dr. Seuss

I live a creative life. I don’t think – no, I know – I would not be happy living any other way. I do not think in a linear way and I am not the most pragmatic of people. I have my anal/stubborn periods that keep me fixed and inflexible. I do try to work on that. It is not an easy lifestyle due to the fact that there is not always a lot of money in it. That makes it hard especially for people who are very concerned with security and providing for their families. Still, it is my feeling, and my opinion, that living a creative life is a great way to live.

Not everyone embraces this way of thinking. Many have trouble wrapping their heads around the concept of living a creative existence. That’s all fine and good, but why do they have to put judgment blocks and hamper the creative process? Albert Einstein, one of my favorite people to quote as you well know, said “Great spirits have always encountered opposition from mediocre minds.”

A number of corporations and businesses get locked down into the numbers game. Schools,  supposedly a hotbed for critical and creative thinking, or often anything but that. Too many school systems are playing the numbers game as well, although this has nothing to do with income but staying the course and remaining open. It has little to do, and very little regard, in what students are actually learning.

Over the next couple of weeks, I will be having some guest posts from people with various areas of education and business. They will be discussing what creativity is for them, and why creativity is important. To be fair, I would also like to find people with the opposing view. I really want to see both sides of the picture. What works for me does not always work for another. I understand that. What I’d like to try to do is put myself into other persons shoes.

I just hope that they would like to try my shoes on.

Photo by Ian Crowfeather

Have you tried to look through someone else’s POV?

Interview with the Writer: Faith Mortimer (#REN3)

One of the published writers who donated a book to the Rules of Three Blogfest is Faith Mortimer. What’s been wonderful about the blogfest already is being turned onto writers I have not had the privilege to experience before.

For Faith’s Bio, Click Here.

Faith Mortimer’s Website

Damyanti, Lisa, JC and I thought we’d thank the wonderful writers who offered their work as prizes by spreading the love in our various blogs via email interviews. To see all of our featured authors, CLICK HERE

Here is Faith’s answers:

1.            Tell us about the book you are donating.

Echoes of Life and Love; is a collection of six short stories. The topics cover romance, paranormal, mystery and murder

2.            Why are you donating a book to this blog fest?

I thought it was a nice thing to do. The organizer (ed: Lisa Vooght)  was polite to ask me and I thought it a good cause.

3.            Can you think of a genre, which is currently out of your comfort zone, but intrigues you enough to take up the challenge of writing in it?

I normally write either mystery and murder novels or action and adventure. As my previous novels all contain a certain amount of romance I have decided to now write a mystery romance. I’m well into it and hope to finish it this year for publication.

4.            Tell us a little bit about yourself.

I’m English and left-handed. I came to writing quite late in life (ahem) although I have always dabbled. I love good food, fine wines, diving, running and exploring. And of course reading and writing. I spend my time between England and Cyprus where we live most of the time. It’s quite a multi-cultural existence, and I love it.

5.            What are your views on Self-publishing Vs  Traditional publishing?

 

I remember reading about self-publishing and E Books about 3 years ago when all the ‘big’ names in publishing were saying e Books would not last. Oh Yeah? It’s exciting, I can control my own life and I’m answerable to no one.

I’m very excited about all the changes in publishing these days, because it means authors have direct access to their readers. It’s a fantastic time to be a writer.

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Interview with Talli Roland

Thank you Faith. I hope you all hop over to read all the entries for The Rule of Three BlogFest.  The link below will open up a list of all the writers participating (btw…we have 69 writers, not 59…don’t know how to fix it).