The art of balance.
One of my foibles is that I am triggered by dramatic exaggeration and tend to overcompensate by understating circumstances. And yet…. I can say with a joyfully theatrical tone, that discovering the practice of mindful art making has been completely life changing.
My life was already very full when I found artfulness. I was working long hours, we were under financial pressure, the relationships around me were complex and I was in therapy trying to make sense of it all. Emotionally, I was surviving rather than thriving.
Gradually, a creative practice emerged, and I continue to cultivate it.
The best way I can explain it is to say I draw an imaginary circle around my art space, step over the line, and leave everything else outside the circle. When I am in my circle, I put on my music, I play with colour, and my heart dances.
This is what I have discovered.
Doing the deep work of healing the mind and spirit is just like exercising the body; the spirit also needs to be nourished and replenished constantly so that it is strong enough for its purpose.
I have found that practising creativity mindfully gives me an escape from the world in a way that lifts me up, as compared to seeking distraction in passive or self-destructive pursuits.
And yet, it’s not always as straightforward as just picking up a paint brush. The concept of being mindful in creativity is substantial.
The mindfulness in practice includes intentionally bringing my mind back to being in the moment. It’s about engaging senses that seem less used as a responsible adult, such as enjoying the pleasing colours and textures before me, learning fun things, exploring with open curiosity, seeing nature with fresh eyes, taking risks, getting my hands messy, collecting treasure and feeling inspired by beauty.
Equally, it’s a continual learning to not make it about how much more talent I wish I had, how flawed the finished piece of work might be, how much money I want to spend on art supplies, how intimidating the art world is, how much harder I need to try, how many other productive things I should have been doing, and so on.
It is deeply worthwhile.
Curating beauty is now something I am more attuned to practice in a stolen moment and tuck away in my mind to benefit from later.
By exercising my mind and spirit with creativity, this muscle has grown stronger, and the fabric of my being is nourished. My spirit is lifted in these moments in a way that brings balance to the whole.
Creating is how I connect.
From the overflow of finding a more joyful way to connect with my spirit, I have found connection and belonging within the creative community.
Whimsy by Nature is a celebration of the mindful practice of art making. One of its points of difference is to not be that loud voice that comes from some sectors of the art community which reinforces the need to be better than you are. It flows from a place where connectedness and belonging come from being gentle and practising acceptance of ourselves.
I’d love for you to be inspired here to draw your own circle and for your heart to dance in it.
