Be Alone with Yourself- Artist Development Time

My mother once said to me, “You learn something from anything, both good and bad.” I decided to go further with that thought  by adding, that you can also learn something from anyone both good or bad. I once read from a controversial artist that to improve upon their growth as an artist, they like to spend time alone. However, before they do they would ask their friends for (5) of their favorite books, music, painters, and films. Then they would use that mecca of creativity to learn, inspire, and cultivate their artistic spirit. I thought that was a wonderful, and brilliant idea. What a great way to provoke the mind into creative motivation. Many times on my own I go and research or read various blogs on various creative venues to spark that flame. Nonetheless this idea was so obvious to me. Many of us have access to worlds of creativity that we haven’t even touched on, only because we simply don’t ask.

Now, saying that an artist should be alone to develop his/her craft might seem like an obvious thing to do. That being said, think about how much time you actually get to be alone with yourself. 

If you grew up into a household like I did, there wasn’t really any alone time. I have many siblings, and we all shared a room, my childhood home was not a house, it is an apartment. Plus I come from a West African home. We are very expressive  and passionate when we speak, so it’s not always quiet. I was used to creating with noise.  Aside from small various moments in my life, the first time I experienced real silence was when I was studying at BADA in England, I had my own room, there no TV, no internet, and everyone that day seemed either to stay in their room or gone out into town.  It was the first time that I realized that I was in a completely silent room.  That moment was beautiful, I could hear my thoughts clearly, and for that period of just one hour I could really dig into myself as an artist. So I say to you, my fellow creative spirits, if you can, find a moment a day, or even an hour to be alone to  manifest yourself with your own artist development time (ADT). Here is my impromptu idea for the week: Try out my suggestion, dig into your already available plethora of creative knowledge with your friends by asking them for the their top five favorites, in the various creative outlets of your preference. Then take those suggestions and dig into them during your ADT.

“Artistic growth is, more than anything else, a refining of the sense of truthfulness. The stupid believe that to be truthful is easy: only the great artist knows how difficult it is. “

-Willa Cather