one facet of living creatively is learning how to listen. to really, really listen. what do i mean by this? well, it’s easier than you might think. to me, the root of *everyday creativity is stemmed from seeing beauty (your very own perception of it, of course) in things around you. it’s finding art in life, but more specifically, the life you are living.
in other words, listening is simply another form of appreciation.
in my little orbit, appreciation is seeing the details. noticing the forms and lines in buildings as i drive past them, squinting my eyes at a plot of flowers and seeing them in paint. it’s the way that i feel like i’m in a favorite movie when my husband looks at me while we walk along the shore, hand in hand. it’s lots of things, it’s little things, some change everyday. it’s seeing the music in my life. it’s just the stopping and taking note, saying, now that is beautiful.
on the other end of the spectrum, you might find yourself stuck in a place where you find the arts as some kind of “extracurricular activity” or something of little importance. you might even find yourself being annoyed by the beauty that is surrounding your life. you might even walk right past it. how sad. don’t think this place exists? watch this experiment in context, perception and priorities and then honestly ask yourself, would you have stopped to listen?
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In his 2003 book, Timeless Beauty: In the Arts and Everyday Life, British author John Lane writes about the loss of the appreciation for beauty in the modern world. The experiment at L’Enfant Plaza may be symptomatic of that, he said — not because people didn’t have the capacity to understand beauty, but because it was irrelevant to them.
p.s. i think you would have stopped.
*everyday creativity – not the actual creative act itself, but the practice of introspection and awareness that can lead the possibilities wide open for solutions to be able to present themselves. artful living, mindfulness, gratitude.
I certainly hope I would have stopped. I went to 3rd st in Santa Monica and walked past many street performers. We did stop and watch and listen to some but didn’t want to stay too long because we couldn’t leave them any money. It was fun to see and hear them all. Kaden loves to dance to whatever music he hears.
what an excellent post Jenny. your words alone made me stop and think. then i clicked the link and read the article. unbelievable. i hope, so sincerely, that i would have been one who stopped. a good lesson to reflect on this Monday morning.
this post is so good, you know, like fresh roses you keep smelling because of all the beauty you feel like absorbing and infusing your life with…
This is something I have worked hard to cultivate in my life. An appriciation of a twist in the trunk and branches of a tree ect., my kids will tell you of how I point out “stupid” things a lot! But if I had a time crunch I may not have stopped. Sad isn’t it how sometimes we may not be able to enjoy the moment! I played the violin briefly and would have recognized his skill and artfullness and would have listened and enjoyed the snippet I heard as I went by. I would have hoped he was there when I came back and had time to stop and listen. But I would have kept moving if my task was important and I had to punch a time clock.
I read a quote recently on a plaque next to a lovely Windslow Homer oil painting that applies well here. “The ideal artist is he who knows everything, feels everything, experiences everything and retains his experience in a spirit of wonder and feeds upon it with creative lust.” George Bellows
I especially love the last, “retains it in a spirit of wonder and feeds upon it with creative lust.” At first I felt “know everything” was a tall order and not really nessasary. But then I remembered how much more enjoyment I would get out of going to Bath in England because I have read all of Jane Austens books. There are a lot of things we can love and wonder at withoout any knowledge about it, but with a little study we can enhance the experience ten fold.
Most of the people who stopped to listen to the violinist had a knowledge of violin performance that helped them to recognize how great he was, even out of his usual context. They already had a love for violin music and had gone out of their way to bring it into their lives, ie. the man who studied violin and the woman who had gone to the concert the night before. Although it is obvious by the reaction of the children that knowledge isn’t everything, thank goodness because there is sooo much I don’t know! But it helps.
There are a lot of things that block our enjoyment of beauty, sometimes it’s just our mind set of what we “think” is wonderous . My art teacher brought a book of Norman Rockwells paintings to show us in class. A couple of The students only liked impressionistic styles of painting and didn’t see any value in realistic paintings, were even a bit distainful of them, actually a lot distainful. Then the teacher pointed out his brilliant composiition, how he used color to guide your eye and give punch to where he wanted you to look closer, his beautiful skin tones and told us that in person you can really see his brush work. Add to that his wonderful skill of rendering great expressions and body movment and how his paintings often tell a story. The captured moment is alive! I haven’t heard them say, why not just take a picture” again.
Thanks for a wonderful reminder to watch for and be open to beauty everywhere!
Great post, Jenny. I went and read the article and boy, did it make me think. How many times have I seen something or heard something that resonated deeply, but didn’t stop to savour it? Many, many… Thanks for the reminder that I need to be more conscious of the beautiful moments in my life.
Good post. I especially like your last statement, “everyday creativity – not the actual creative act itself, but the practice of introspection and awareness that can lead the possibilities wide open for solutions to be able to present themselves. artful living, mindfulness, gratitude.” I try and remember to do this daily, too.
just new to your blog, but am really enjoying it.
especially appreciated this post. thank you.
thanks everyone, i really thought you would appreciate the article if you hadn’t seen it already.
i’m not perfect at “listening” but i try too, when it was really hard for me, i kept a little notebook and made notes. “things i love” & “beauty” and just jotted stuff down. i was always surprised, even at the most miserable of moments, how quickly those pages could fill up. !
xo