The Creative "i" - Defining Creativity

PART 1: Synopsis of the Interview (300 words max)

I interviewed my friend, Eileen, who is an actress currently working at the Sierra Repertory Theatre in California.  Through this interview, I realized that her relationship with creativity is largely emotional: “My creative process is very empathetic. I create because of what I feel. Whether it's a drawing, sculpture, or musical, I create because of how I am moved emotionally. If I don't feel it, I'm not being true to myself.”  I was fascinated by this honesty to herself sought in the emotions that emerge from her creativity.  Creativity, in her eyes, was also about joy: “I think creativity is the ability and joy in creating something.”  We talked about how joy does not necessarily mean happiness.  Instead, it is a freedom that the artist needs to find. 

She states that creativity is a form of expression. If it were not a part of our society, our freedom of speech would be limited. Creativity is a way to connect to others we would otherwise not have the chance to share our ideas with.  As expected, I asked her what fueled her creativity and she talked about the importance of other people molding her creative repertoire: “Wonderful people fuel me. Caring people fuel me. And emotionally connected stories fuel me.”  These wonderful people are not afraid to be wrong. People are creative because they feel the need.

To evaluate creativity, her “grade” would be given based on if a person’s enthusiasm for their material: “If they believe in it. If they have a clear message or a definitive point. And how pleasing the material is to them when finished.”  She realized, as we all do, that this was a murky answer to the question but stressed the importance of connectedness.

Finally, I want to end with her stunning words on the power of creativity: “Creativity is an escape. It can save people. It is a way to process the bad and make more good.”

PART 2: Summarize, in 200 words or less, how what you learned from the reading and interview relates to your own personal or professional life. What would you do to become more creative?

Eileen’s fuel for creativity was largely derived from empathy, which I know we will look at in a few weeks. Her creativity and those of others revolves around emotion and the importance of what we feel. It seems that she is in support of the “gut feeling” idea that we read about.  I appreciated that she recognized creativity as a release (which she labeled as “joy”), whether this be an inner peace, an emotional deep breath, or any other type of understanding that it can bring.

She was quick to note that though creativity is largely internal, it contributes to society around us.  We must be willing to boldly stand about what we feel and accept ourselves fully.  A truly creative person has the confidence to support their work under the eye of any critic. This is not to be confused with the arrogance that their art cannot be made even better.  We must use the world to learn of creativity and share our own in order to grow further and further down into the roots of it.

Sometimes we are under pressure or parameters to be creative, and cannot find the motivation to be creative.  I feel that from talking with Eileen she would simply respond, “look harder.”  If an artist is waiting for creativity to knock at their door, then they are ignoring countless other artists around them: “all knowledge begins in observation” (30).  In a crazy ever-changing world, let’s follow Eileen’s advice and together we can make more good.