Joy and Creativity

My theme this month is joy and creativity, and I've started to read a couple of books and set myself some practices.

1. Read the Creativity Book:

A few years ago I started but didn't finish this book by Eric Maisel (one of my favorite writers). The subtitle is "A Year's Worth of Inspiration and Guidance." Who doesn't want that? This seems like a good time to give it a second chance.

The introduction says to pick a creative project before you start the first section, something big, to work on for the next year. The book is a companion to this work, but not a step-by-step guide. Instead it will guide you to experience doing some odd activities that "amount to a creative education."

If this was anyone other than Eric Maisel, I'd drop this book like a hot potato, but I trust this guy.

So, I plan to start Section One on Thursday, and Thursday will be my Creativity Day for the next year. And my creative project is collage and mixed media art, for the Earth.

2. Read "Happier at Home":

The other book I picked up today is Happier at Home, by Gretchen Rubin (2012). I liked her other book, the Happiness Project (a kindred soul, who would make happiness a project!)

About this second book, she says, "This is the account of the strategies I used to feel more at home, at home." She explains that though some find happiness with adventures, she isn't an adventurous person (another way I resonate with her).

The first section is Preparation. She talks about what home is for her: a place of unconditional belonging, and the physical hub of her schedule. 

And she sets out the main premise for the project: To boost her happiness by experimenting with conscious actions (such as simplification and monthly adventures), and new thoughts (pay attention; experience the experience), and by noticing and appreciating the happiness she already has.

3. My own Home Happiness Project:

I realized, as I skimmed through Gretchen's book, that it wouldn't do for me to copy her approach. I'm not in the same phase of life, and I don't have a year to focus on the subject. Or maybe I do...

In any case, today I will make a short list of At Home resolutions to boost my happiness this month, and go from there:

1. Clean all the windows, inside and out.
2. Plant something nearly every day.
3. Work on my art at least 3 days a week.
4. Practice patience.

4. My collage work:

I started making collage and mixed media paintings this year, and have completed two. The first was a Valentine, and the second one, finished just recently, is a Garden.

Today I plan to start the third, a Landscape. The steps I will use:

1. Paint the under layer: On a large piece of watercolor paper, roll out a few colors that are in the medium and dark range, in uneven landscapy swaths. When these dry, add lighter areas.
2. Collage layer: Tear and glue on strips of papers, covering not quite half of the area, and using my intuition to decide which paint-parts to leave exposed. Consider the composition and the balance of light and darks.
3. Finishes: Add another paint layer and then drawing.