3 Ways to Trigger the Creative Process

3 Ways to Trigger the Creative Process always begins in the doing. Trusting the mystery and yourself is what making art and living life are all about.

The first really fun way to begin is to just paint. Use whatever paint you have on hand, watercolor, tempera, or acrylic. I know one who uses the house paint leftover from some room decor. Take 5 pieces of paper, one large and 4 smaller, and just paint each one with a different color. Add a little light and a little dark mixed into the main colors to get some tones for interest.

Then, cut the smaller sheets into shapes: squares, squiggles, circles, strips, and arrange them on the large sheet in patterns. Once you like it, glue them down. Instant original art!

3 Ways to Trigger the creative process is a mystery!

A second play technique is to paint one large sheet with a cup of strong tea or even hot chocolate. The second will smell heavenly! This creates a beautiful, natural sepia tone background.

Next, gather some leaves, sticks, pods, or flowers from the garden, and lay them on the paper. In addition, have some overlap and crossover pieces in different directions. See how the shapes carry your eye around the sheet.

When you like what you see, either trace around them or draw outlines of them in the pleasing arrangement. You can just have it be a quality of line drawing as is, or you can color in some of the shapes with tones of pale greens, light blues, and golden browns. You will have made a one of a kind nature drawing.

A third way that I used to do with a woman’s group a long time ago, was to play some instrumental music, use a large sheet of paper, and just interpret the song in colored markers. Some markers bleed through so be aware! Work on wax paper.

Get your body into the motion and let the music carry your hand, arm, and body as you make the invisible visible. This is a fluid, surprising creation.

Once the music ends, tape it to a wall and stand back. What do you see in the shapes? It’s like finding dragons in clouds. Let your imagination flow. Also, turn the sheet in different directions, upside down, sideways, and see what appears. A friend of mine once saw a huge mermaid that changed her life. Outline it and color it in.

The next step is to look up the image or images and find every definition, explanation, and thought about it. In a journal, make a mind map. In one circle in the middle, write what you see. Then draw lines from it in all directions with words that describe it.

Try a flow of consciousness writing from the mind map. Fascinating connections are made from the subconscious to the life you’re living today.

Most of all, have fun with your art making and your life choices. Always go for the fun ones. Experiences are everything. Allow your art to touch your soul.

Connect at www.awegroup.net and let me know what you’d like more of in your art. Or tell me below how you Trigger Creativity in your life. What do you do to get the juices flowing? I’d love to know!