207 a feature of WCSH Channel 6 (Portland Maine’s NBC affiliate) recently visited our family. We shared thoughts and stories about living together creatively. (I really appreciate the very personal touch they took when they made this video.)
My new book Process details the many aspects of my creative process.
I hope you’ll find it to be useful as well as interesting.
“An artist’s creations come out of far more than the activities in their primary medium. How artist’s get there is, perhaps, just as important as where they arrive. This is the creative process rather than the creative product. That’s what this book is about.
John Paul Caponigro details many aspects of his creative process – color, composition, drawing, iphoneography, writing and more. He shows how each discipline and different modes of operating with them contribute to the completion of finished works of art. The resulting synergy is stimulating, enriching, and enlivening. Instead of a technical book that shows you how to write, draw, and photograph, this books shows you how seemingly separate disciplines and creations combine dynamically to form a single creative process that results in a life’s work.
Above all, this book reveals that the creative process is a process of exploration, a journey of discovery that offers many insights along the way and never ends. You’ll be inspired to try these activities yourself, practicing them in your own ways for your own purposes, as you progress on your own creative journey.”
Preview Process here.
Preview all of my books here.
Veteran National Geographic photographer Sam Abell offers a look inside the heart and mind of a master photographer.
Then go behind the scenes and hear Sam Abell talk about his career, what inspires and influences his work, and his most memorable adventures.
View more photographer’s videos here.
Neil Gaiman offers sage advice delivered with humility and humor to the graduating class of the University of Arts and us.
Find more Creativity Videos here.
“Creativity is not a talent. It is a way of operating.” – John Cleese
Among the many gems John Cleese shares, he outlines “The 5 factors that you can arrange to make your lives more creative.”
1 – Space
“You can’t become playful, and therefore creative, if you’re under your usual pressures.”
2 – Time
“It’s not enough to create space; you have to create your space for a specific period of time.”
3 – Time
“Give your mind as long as possible to come up with something original.”
4 – Confidence
“Nothing will stop you being creative so effectively as the fear of making a mistake.”
5 – Humor
“The main evolutionary significance of humor is that it gets us from the closed mode to the open mode quicker than anything else.”
View more creativity videos by John Cleese here.
View more creativity videos here.
Learn more with my creativity resources.
Learn more in my creativity workshops.
I’ll be presenting a free lecture sponsored by Canon today at 2pm hosted by the The Center for Photographic Art in Carmel, California.
In this two hour event I’ll present a series of short lectures including a version of my TED talk You’re More Creative Than You Think You Are (above).
Find out more about the event here.
Learn more in my workshop Illuminating Creativity.
During my recent South Africa Photo Safari (sponsored by NIK) in Mala Mala, South Africa, I spent several days photographing African wildlife. We saw all of the big five (lion, leopard, elephant, rhino, cape buffalo) and many other animals. It was the first time I made a concerted effort to make finished wildlife photographs. I gained an increased appreciation for how moments of peak action (or lack thereof) can make or break some photographs. I made many competent photographs, but only one that I felt began to have an inspired quality. I suspected I would have no intention of using these kinds of images professionally – and confirmed this. But, these images rekindled an old flame.
Making these images reminded me of the many hours I spent drawing animals. I quickly discovered that for what I wanted to depict, portraits weren’t enough, interaction and context were necessary. I was interested in how people, of many eras and cultures, react psychologically to animals and to the archetypal ideas of animals we share. One of my favorite essays is about an animal – the snake. Psychologist James Hillman’s A Snake Is Not A Symbol (from the book Dream Animals.) has an enormous amount to offer about how we respond to images of animals. He suggests we reanimate images, especially those we encounter in dreams, through an extended inner dialog with them.
Days later, after making these images, during which my guide repeatedly warned me about the potential for finding hidden snakes, I had a dream about a snake, which was very important to me personally. For me, it was one more in a long line of dreams about snakes. It’s fascinating to see how inner material resurfaces during the creative process and what we can do to stimulate and work with this process.
What images could you make to help you reconnect with and develop important material in your inner life?
Read More
Musician and researcher Charles Limb wondered how the brain works during musical improvisation — so he put jazz musicians and rappers in an fMRI to find out. What he and his team found has deep implications for our understanding of creativity of all kinds.
Find more creativity videos here.
Elizabeth Gilbert muses on the impossible things we expect from artists and geniuses — and shares the radical idea that, instead of the rare person “being” a genius, all of us “have” a genius. It’s a funny, personal and surprisingly moving talk.
Find more creativity videos here.
Learn more with my creativity ebooks here.
5 Ways To Listen Better – Julian Treasure
4 Ways Sound Affects Us – Julian Treasure
Sound Health In 8 Steps – Julian Treasure
In our louder and louder world, says sound expert Julian Treasure, “We are losing our listening.” In this short, fascinating talk, Treasure shares five ways to re-tune your ears for conscious listening — to other people and the world around you.
View more creativity videos here.
Read more in my creativity ebooks.
Learn more in my creativity workshops.
