Csikszentmihalyi
I’d never heard of Csikszentmihalyi before. I thought I’d start off my blog again with the name of someone I certainly can’t pronounce!
I found this list on Austin Kleon’s website. Austin Kleon has recently released his fifth book which I haven’t yet bought but certainly will. I love his previous books, Steal Like an Artist, Show Your Work! and Keep Going. His first book is a set of blackout poems which I haven’t read yet. Perhaps I’ll buy that at the same time as his new one. But first I think I am going to re-read all three of the books listed - they are a wonderful reminder about acting as humans, living as an artist, and what that even is. I’ve read excerpts from his books at workshops, and have recommended them to so many people. I recommend them to you too!
Photo: Joanna Brown
Any way, this particular old newsletter post of his caught my eye recently. It is a list of “paradoxical traits” that seem to show up often in creative people. I am all for finding ways to see yourself in a different light and reading through this list is fascinating. I used to think that conflicting thoughts or ways of being were to be avoided, that to be truly adult you should be able to be a person of singular thoughts and homogenous in opinion - or to at least have a set opinion! I thought that to be whole was to be uniform, un-devided. But several years ago I had a rare flash of insight - what if this way of being was division but refraction?? We know a single beam of light is refracted into all the colours of the rainbow…why was I determined to keep myself small? (Which reminds me of this Adam J. Kurtz poster I have pinned to my workshop wall).
Anyway. On to the list. Are there any that should be added?
Creative people have a great deal of physical energy, but they’re also often quiet and at rest.
Creative people tend to be smart yet naive at the same time.
Creative people combine playfulness and discipline, or responsibility and irresponsibility.
Creative people alternate between imagination and fantasy, and a rooted sense of reality.
Creative people trend to be both extroverted and introverted.
Creative people are humble and proud at the same time.
Creative people, to an extent, escape rigid gender role stereotyping.
Creative people are both rebellious and conservative.
Most creative people are very passionate about their work, yet they can be extremely objective about it as well.
Creative people’s openness and sensitivity often exposes them to suffering and pain, yet also to a great deal of enjoyment.
Photo: Joanna Brown
As I’ve thought about this list the more I’ve realised that there are contrasts in how I dress and in the designs I like to create. As a human, I enjoy dressing more and more as a soft tomboy (can I claim that as a category? 😆), mixing straight lines and “masculine” shapes with something softer. And this contrast is found in my floral design…I enjoy mixing organic flow with harder, more structured shapes.
Sometimes you don’t realise what you’re doing, or that there was a pattern to your work, until someone inadvertently points it out.
Photo: Joanna Brown
Wonderful photos from a fun experimental session with Joanna Brown.