Why I give space for art

What a crazy week! Last Sunday, my friend Andrea and I launched Inspiration System on Instagram. Two Saturdays in a row, I went to concerts. I’ve talked to more people about creativity in the last week than I have months.

What does this mean? It means I’ve got support behind me! I may be an introvert and may go months without seeing friends, but it’s an incredible feeling to know I’ve formed relationships with passionate people.

The creative life can be incredibly lonely, but support is easier to find than you may think.

Concerts remind me of this. Where else can you find a group of complete strangers all congregated together for the common goal of letting art live? Where the common goal is to stop thinking about the next thing and just give space for creativity?

Music in particular speaks to me because it reminds me I’m not alone. One day, I hope to give that message, just with a different medium. Maybe I’m starting this story right now.

As an INFJ creative, I like to say that a lot of my life exists in my head: my worries and wonders both have residence there. Art is a great way I express and release these thoughts and transform them into something new.

Once art has space, it lives beyond the artist. That’s both a terrifying and exciting event, whether it’s simply publishing the next post or exhibiting work for the first time.

By creating, art forms community.

That’s why artists need to let themselves work on their pieces. That’s why people talk about art. That’s why art is stimulating, shocking, and scary, often all at once.

More specifically? That’s why Andrea and I chose Instagram for our Inspiration System. Our creative project leverages a space that already exists in the hope of gathering fellow artists together to see the values of consistent work, so they too can create regularly.

By releasing art to the public, lessons are formed, by both the artist and audience. One way to define creativity is the process of making connections that didn’t exist before. Art may be an academic discipline, but its influence goes beyond study.

I’ll be honest, I debated publishing this post because I’ve found there’s a misconception that art can’t be systemized. That artists just have to wait for the right idea to “hit” them or “spark” them to do something, and that’s frankly not true.

Creative projects can be systemized, too, by giving time and space to work on them.

Maybe it’s as simple as waking up early to work on creativity, instead of just letting projects remain scribbles or seemingly mindless musings. Perhaps it’s meeting with a fellow creative regularly, to be inspired by each other’s ideas. Or consider attending environments that support creativity, like fairs, concerts, or museums.

It’s easy to play the comparison game, especially in the age where everyone can publish online. But isn’t that equally exciting, too? The resources it takes is an original idea, along with some change for a URL or a few minutes with a phone camera. Just because “everyone else” is creating doesn’t mean you can’t. It actually means the opposite: there’s a need for people like you. So give yourself permission and go create.

If you need help along the way, I am helping 19 people this year start or pivot their creative projects so they can keep creating good work and good lives. I’m helping these 19 folks for free. Fill out the form here to let me know what one project you’d like to work on this year.

And if you haven’t heard this in a while or maybe you need to hear this again: you’re doing a great job. You’re taking the first step to start creating. Now go and make something!