Revive the Artist in You.

Pablo Picasso once said, “Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once we grow up.” Do you remember in kindergarten, when you finger-painted your paintings, or colored with crayons? Do you remember the feelings you felt when you picked out your favorite color and filled in the lines of your favorite coloring book? As a child you were probably more in tune with your imagination then you are now, everything seemed limitless then.

Wouldn’t you like to get back to that frame of mind? I find so much truth to what Picasso was saying, as adults, we tend to let “reality,” deter ourselves from reaching pure imagination. And imagination is a key ingredient to creativity, without it, creativity can be obsolete.  Therefore, how can you revive the artist in you? To start off might I suggest asking yourself this question; what type of artist were you as a child?

Did you perform in your school’s plays or dances? Did you like to paint? Where you the child that loved to sing or play an instrument? Did you love to write stories? As a child, one of my earliest and favorite creative hour moments that I could remember, was when I was in the 1st grade. My teacher Mrs. Defrise had my class write a story, and it could be anything we wanted to tell.  Then afterwards she would take our stories and re-write them for us in small little booklets, so we could illustrate them.  I remembered loving the process so much, I would always ask if I could write more than one story, and of course she let me.  I always had a few more little booklets, then the rest of the children in my class.  The best part was when I would bring them home to my mom. As I sat on her lap, she would read my story out loud to me, while turning the pages and looking at the illustrations that I had included. Here is this week’s impromptu idea: Be your child self. Grab a coloring book, read an old childhood book favorite, recall your favorite childhood memory, or make a painting with your hands.  Awaken your limitless imagination again.

“The imagination is a powerful tool. An artist can use it to show others the world as he sees it and to bring into his  dream of what the world could be.”
-David R. Becker