Websites
Books
"Art" (just what is it?)
Polymer as an "inferior" medium
Formative teachers/others
Creativity & Inspiration
..........more Inspiration
Spreading the word
Finding time to clay
Critiquing, criticism
Shows/Demos (& Fear)

Creativity, getting Inspiration, & "Art"
(various opinions)

. . . I too appreciate all the discussion that has taken place (on this topic). I understand the POV of all involved. Again, I really appreciate everyone expressing, very openly, their opinion, and hope that no one feels hurt by the different opinions that people have. I have to say that there is nothing that I love more than a great discussion where people feel free to express themselves without fear of intimidation and loss of respect.(I've worked in both kinds of environments, believe me the open and free to express environment is far better for the soul of the individual and the team). celeste

Websites

Julia’s "why clay"? (vs. painting/drawing, etc.)
http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/Lofts/3722/whyclay.html
Jacqueline Gikow's list of things to do/pay attention to in order to be creative
http://home.nyc.rr.com/ateliergikow/Evryday_dreams/create.html
Creativity, teachers (esp. for children)
http://family.go.com/features/family_1998_03/famf/famf38creativity/famf38creativity.html (7 pgs)

info, exercises, tests ...to allow you to" identify your own character traits and develop a better understanding of yourself using the creative process"
http://www.writedesignonline.com/assignments/charactertraits.htm#characteristics

Victoria (Tory) Hughes now has workshops on creativity and creating one's most fulfilling life, which is called MindMoves.
...she defines mindmoves as the "choices and actions that that get us more of what we do want, and help us let go of what we don’t want (whether it's for our art or business, etc.) ... these can be physical actions like changing the way we do or make things, emotional decisions, mental adjustments, spiritual connections ... they happen when we observe our normal behaviour, and then identify and take action to be more of who we know we are. "
http://www.mindmoves.org

magazines and books: mainly tole painting books by "Cute As A Button", "Pipsqueak"etc. ( I sculpt 1-3" people and selected animals). One of the BEST books is one by James Christensen named "A Journey of the Imagination". There is sooo much for the eye to see.

"Art"
--what is it? (opinions)

What is Art? Folks have gotten Masters degrees, even Doctorates, by coming up with high-sounding answers to that question.
At one point, the majority view was that Art was an endless re-creation of the Masters' work. In other words, only things which looked like that which had come before counted as Art.
Then there was the school of thought that said that Art could NOT be anything like that which had come before. Suddenly, nothing could be Art if it was representational.
For a brief time, 'Conceptual Art' was big,...that the idea is more important than the Art object itself, and that Art was meant to force the viewer to see the entire world in a new light, the world itself as Art.
While this might have had possibilities, the ways in which the students explored it was sad. One such piece was ice cubes melting in a bowl. It was boring. Today, you can find many individuals trying impress a jaded Art world with wild ideas.
The Classic definition of Art was that which had to do with Truth and/or Beauty. Byrd

(* great, very condensed characteristics of the various art movements/artists in Western history
http://www.dartmouth.edu/~matc/math5.pattern/lesson8art.html)

MLBee poses the question "What is art anyway?". I think a case could be made that art is creation that pushes beyond the obvious. . .

In my old women's groups, one of the most valuable things I learned was that when one person puts forth an of-course-this-is-the-way-it-is statement, most of the others don't agree but are afraid of getting pummeled by the strong person, unsure of how to express their disagreement or thoughts, or just assume that most of the others must agree because they're not disagreeing.
What we learned to do was to go around the circle and ask (require) each person to actually express their ideas --it was always a revelation to see the breadth of relevant things people had to say, as well as that most of them didn't agree with the original speaker! When this happens over and over, it really makes you think. . . DB

. . .The way I see it, art has three purposes: to inspire us, to act as a a form of personal expression, and to enhance the quality of life esthetically. Art can encompass any, or all three of these aspects. Lisa P.
(see also the rest of Lisa P's comments in paragraph just below)

polymer clay as a legitimate "art" medium... just "plastic"

Do artists not use anything they can get their hands on and apply the creative process with it ?

There are two things to consider when people react to polymer clay items as "just plastic" or "just for kids."
....the material itself
....what has been done with that material by a person

For polymer clay, those things have often been mixed together in people's minds as well.
...Most "art" materials are just ordinary things from the earth (mud, rocks, plants, plus animal products, etc.)...over time, most of those have been considered lesser or ordinary materials (unless a way has just been discovered to make them into a different form, etc....then they rise in stature).
...However, what can be done with any of those materials varies widely, and eventually is the best defintion for what is "of value," etc.
For example, a child or unskilled person may use the finest materials (e.g., ceramic clay, oil paint, gold, etc.)but produce something less "artistic" or "meaningful" with it
...On the other hand, someone with more artistic sensibilities can use virtually any material to make "art" (e.g., found objects; paper and paper mash; plastics like solid acrylics and cast resins, acrylic paint, polymer clays; etc.).... even degradable materials can be used for art which will last only a short time a la ______, and even some otherwise "objectionable materials can be made into "art.". What counts is what's done with the material or items, how they're put together, or what they allude to and the meaning they have and how well those things are accomplished. In art circles, often a new way of doing one of those things is considered "important art," but often it takes awhile for those techniques/materials to be "taken seriously."

Tommie Howell's article on the validity of polymer as an artistic medium
http://www.geocities.com/polyzine/december2000/issues.html

(The way I see it, art has three purposes:
...to inspire us... to act as a a form of personal expression... and to enhance the quality of life esthetically. Art can encompass any or all three of these aspects.)
........What I am curious to know, is when did there become an "official list of materials" qualified to accomplish these results?
And, more importantly, who is the supremely qualified individual(s) who made this determination for the rest of us?
...Thank goodness we are all individuals and that we all view the world through different eyes. Otherwise we would all be creating the same thing over and over and over again, making artistic expression pointless.
...Do children use polymer clay as a creative medium? Of course! . . . Do hobbyists and crafters use polymer clay as a creative medium? Of course.. . . Does these facts negate polymer clay as an art medium? Well let's ask.
...Do fine artists use polymer clay to create works of art that exhibit in museums around the world? Yes, of course.. . . Do some people's polymer clay artwork command enough money, enabling them to make a living solely on the basis of their artwork? Yes, of course!
...Also polymer clay has a huge base of end users. . . . Does the fact that people enjoy polymer clay on a hobby level negate it's value as an art medium? I pity the close-minded individual who thinks so.
. . . And is the work of hobbyists and crafters valueless simply because it doesn't fit into some elistist idea of what is art?... Lisa P.

Where oh where did this idea that the medium is what makes art get started?
...Leonardo DaVinci used pencil for his many drawings - so does that mean only his oil paintings are considered art, and the many drawings he did was only "kids stuff?" Terri

uh hum....gee...aren't "ceramics" JUST DIRT?!? . . . or better yet...just 'MUD'?!?
...before Polymer Clay I was a huge fan of 'ceramics' and was a 'mudbaby' so I am not 'knocking' the medium ...I'm just making a point. Kim in MI

some other examples
....cave wall paintings (many definitely considered "art") were made from ground-up plants and rocks, plus spit in many cases
... fresco paints were often made from egg yolks or egg whites... sometimes with honey or milk or water
....oil paints are made from ground up and boiled nuts and seeds, etc., plus stuff that trees use to heal themselves (pine resin)
....marble and stone are just pretty rocks
....scrimshaw is just scratching on the tooth of a large mammal with a knife/pin
....natural pigments are ground-up or pulverized plants and rocks... many dyes are synethic
....some paints are pigments with animal parts as binders

All art mediums have had to battle the perception that they were not fine art at some point in time. At one time, e.g., oil paintings and bronze and marble sculptures were the only "true" art from.
(techniques)...drawing was just a means of planning, printmaking was just a means of getting multiples out there, watercolor was a medium for little old ladies to pass the tiime. And of course the crafts, jewelry, pottery, woodworking, etc. were not considered in the league of fine art.
.... All that of course has changed, but it took a long, long time. (And of course there are still people who question it today.)
But look at the work in the fine art museums today and you will see all those mediums and types.
....Also, it use to be cut and dried as to what was a painting and what was scuplture per se. Now those lines are blurred too. It is not so easy to identify based on what it is made of. A sculpture can be made of rags and a painting can be made of toothpaste. ocartteacher

"PLASTIC"
Polymers are chains of molecules; loosely speaking, anything sticky is a polymer.
Amber, that most "organic" of gems, is the quintessential polymer. Jet
...(fossilized coal) is organic. Want to get excited about polymers? . . James L's page all about polymers, carbon, polymer clay, the stuff-of-life!, etc.
http://www.akrobiz.com/polymer_clay/polymer.html

May I submit this tiny tidbit. ALL plastics are organic.
Plastic is made with and from petroleum. Petroleum is a variable substance created through the decompostion of plant and animal matter under not fully understood conditions of heat, pressure, and time. It is not a mineral, it is an organic substance.
It cannot be produced artificially in quantity, and must then be derived from the same organic substances producing the natural product.
...Think about it, "earth clay" is constructed from earth dug ingredients. Polymer clay is also constructed from deeper dug earth ingredients. Its base is a petroleum product made from ancient dinosaurs.
The ingredients are manipulated various ways. . . . So are the ingredients of porcelain, etc. Dotty in CA

Acrylic paint is pigment suspended in a polymer emulsion. Acrylic paint was not immediately accepted as a fine art medium. The first acrylic paints were created for industry use (think house paint) and the pigments used were not the stable (non-fading) ones used in fine art. Artists who were seeking a faster drying medium (oil paint dries very slowly) began to experiment with the new paints. They slowly gained exceptance and art material manufacturers responded by creating acrylic paints with high grade pigments.. . . As for jewelry, Bakelite jewelry from the early part of this century is very collectable, obviously durable and very much made from a polymer.
Just as there are differences in the quality and endurance of metals, there are differences in the quality of polymers. Polymer clays such as Premo and Fimo are closer to Bakelite than they are to cheap plastic spider rings out of the gum machine (although I am a sucker for those also!) Val

Only once have I had to resort to the following ...my point was to illustrate that just because it's synthetic, it's not bad.
...A vendor at a show said she couldn't accept my work as "art" or as anything she wanted to own because it was plastic.
Even after showing her the books I take with me to each show (New Clay, etc) and describing techniques, etc., she was still very negative.
..So in extreme self-defense, I asked her about the earthen clay she used -- removing something from the earth, pretty invasive, eh?
..... And the wood her husband used to make furniture -- doing his part for deforestation?
......Oh, metal-based artwork -- strip mining!
......Natural dyes -- how about disposing of the heavy metals necessary to set the dye?

Do artists not use other media which aren't so directly taken from the earth? (besides acrylic paint)
....what about "computer-generated" art?
.... polyester fibers and fabrics?
.... found objects of all kinds?. . . etc., etc.

If anyone says to me "Hey, isn't that plastic?"
I inform them that actually it's a unique kind of "clay" (which it is). . . . All of a sudden they are interested. Maybe we should play up the CLAY aspect. That might make it sound more "artsy". Robin

definitions:
..."clay" (from: "to stick together, glue, mud"):
a firm, fine-grained earth, which is "plastic" when wet (earth clay). . .or any substance which can be used in the same way ----paper clay, polymer clay, bread clay, etc.
..."plastic" & "plasticity"....that which is capable of continuous and permanent change of shape in any direction without breaking apart;
. . . moldable, pliable . . . and various compounds with these characteristics
...the "plastic arts" . . .arts producing works to be viewed as sculpture, architecture, painting, and the graphic arts, as distinguished from those involving writing or composing, as music or literature

I think enlightening artists who work in other medias is truly important... any time you get a chance! Whenever you're at a show for instance. Try not to react badly to a negative reaction to the *plastic* comments. Geeesh.... you can almost always find something negative to say about ANY media if you think about it. Turn it back on them. WE have no need to be defensive of our work, just cause THEY get offensive. We have so much to be proud of... let's get out there and tell it!
...Use your enthusiasm for our media to your advantage. When someone takes a shot at the clay... turn the sheer light of your love of the media on them.
Let some of those artists know what goes into building a complicated piece... the design process, the bakings, the shapings, the inclusions, the texturing & detailing, the amature building, the sanding & buffing... don't let them leave thinking you wad up a piece of clay, throw it in a toaster oven, and presto, you're done. We put every bit as much of our creative selves into our work as the rest of them do. Way more in some cases!
...Talk about the versatility of the medium! Almost every other media out there has natural limitations. Paint... you can only paint with. Stained Glass... is a very hard planed media. Even Hot Glass has limits... as does stone... or basketweaving... wood... all other medias. They have limitations in either form, shape or effect. OUR media has no limitations... not that I've found yet anyway. We can work tiny... or huge. We can work in 3d or on a single plane. We can PAINT with our media.... as seen by Byrds work... can painters build a sculpture with their paint? I think not. We can simulate virtually any surface detail or texture.
We can add other media to ours in more ways than any other artist out there has the ability to!! If we can think of something we want to have happen with the clay... we can FIND a way to make it happen! Oh golly, there's just nothing we can't do with our chosen media. ...Joanie

Show some really upscale polymer work
..... The book 400 Polymer Clay Designs: A Collection of Dyamic & Colorful Contemporary Work (400 individual pieces of upscale polymer eye candy collected into one book by Suzanne Tourtillott)
(......see more re this in Business > Negative Reactions to Polymer Clay)

I am an artist who works in many mediums. One of my favorites is pencil, but pencil is way down the totem pole. The art world is full of (snobbery) about mediums, such as: Works on paper not as well thought of as oil on canvas. Colored pencil not as good as watercolor or oil, but better than pencil. Art created on a computer isn't really art. "Original" prints are better than other prints. There is even snobishness within mediums: watercolor purists sneer at those who use white paint instead of the white of the paper! Jan C.
...You will always find elitists in the art field who put down the mediums others use. Oil painters look down on water colorists. Metal sculptures cast aspersions on clay sculptures. Pen and ink artists have distain for cartoonists. And yet all of these take practice, skill, patience, and an artistic and creative nature...Dotty in Ca
~One thing that we each can do is to try to eliminate any prejudices we might hold ourselves, or tendency to be judgemental - about how others choose to use pc, or the quality (or quantity) of their work. Everyone's creative work deserves respect, whether or not it appeals to our individual taste or standards. And if someone chooses to make more than one of an item - is their work no longer valid? What's the difference between that and prints? Are lithographs, woodcuts, or bronze scuptures where more than one is produced no longer art? No boundaries! Jan C

exclusion ...snobbery in the polymer community
....no matter how much anyone could feel polymer is exclusively for "artists" only (...sometimes it may be necessary to) quietly remind some that oil paints (or any paints), for example, are available to every level of painter, and that polymer clay should also be available to every level of artist as well .....polymer helps many people enjoy their spare time and enriches their lives .... maybe some of them will even grow up into "artists"!

some gender considerations?

. . . THAT (expereience) reminds me of the fact that I went to 13 years of strict Catholic schools where they made all the educational decisions for you and told you that art was "foolishness". Couple that with parents who made all your educational decisions for you and thought art was "foolishness" and what you end up with is a person who didn't know, on her own, what she wanted to be even though she attended college several times. So, (now that the kids are gone and years) later this person found out that she's wild about arts and crafts, and am looking forward to retirement within the next 5-6 years when I can "play" all the time! Valerie in Chicago

My Grandmother was a professional artist. The medium in which she worked was First Graders, and she was worked for over 40 years in the public school system---she took her raw materials and she polished the good points, pruned the behaviors that didn't fit, and placed all the separate bits where they could best make use of all potentials, moving things about until it "fit"---not just to some preordained pattern, but to an organic and growthful entity of its own. Her classrooms were studios of movement and color, with pictures and words everywhere, and always changing to fit new work and the needs of the workers/workees ...
Art is not in the $300 set of Winsor -Newton oilpaints....it is everywhere, if you will but notice. I saw Grandma take a walk with me once, finding a piece of treebark and two bittersweet berries. She turned it into an alligator. It even had teeth!
. . . it taught me more about Seeing and Doing Art than any amount of formal "Art Training" in school ever did. Though I have taken some valuable rendering technique classes in college.... but almost ALL of what I have learned has been outside of formal "school". My three years of college, studying theatre design, taught me alot, much of which I still use even tho I'm no longer in "The Theatuh, Dahling". But I went TO LEARN STUFF, not for the degree... I quit and opened a store with the money. And got a real education in Business! I've never looked back with regret, still don't have that BFA, and refuse to see it as a "waste" as someone once called it--I went to college to learn, and I did.
I also learned alot in my summer job as a carnival talker on the Midways of Fairs and Carnivals---how to sell to crowds, how to work a crowd, how to last in the sun day after day....I use that in trade shows and such these days.
And I learned a lot as the artist in residence at A local bead/import store in my hometown...how to deal with customers, how to make change, how to bag things so they don't break, how to string beads with no "tails" at the end...how to make stuff and sell it...
You can take EVERYTHING you have ever learned and apply it in some way to the business at hand...and the more you know, the better chance you have of doing business long term. Use what you have, cross-pollinate using all areas of your expertise and brain storage.
DO NOT ALLOW MENTAL BARRIERS....if you are open to learning new things, it sure helps! When I go out, I try to leave my pre-concieved notions at home....I don't see the Hardware Store as ONLY a place to buy a nail and fix the step. There are texture things there! color thingies! pokey-pulley bits and stuff to cover, and....well, you know. Don't limit yourself to what you think you know about something. Find the little child you were, and PLAY! IMAGINE! It's not only OK, it's absolutely neccessary. Sarajane Helm

Creativity & Inspiration
(what are they & where do you get them?)
(not very organized, and lo-ong)

(....for using creativity to deal with loss, death, personal issues, stress, emotional trauma, etc., see Disabilities > Emotional...)

"Out beyond ideas of wrong doing and right doing there is a field. I'll meet you there." Rumi

"If you compare yourself with others you may become vain and bitter; for there will always be greater and lesser persons than yourself.  "Desirata"

Remember: a thing is only a *failure* if you give up & don't try again .... in the meantime, it was an *experiment* that needed more work :> ..patsy

The truth is that our finest moments are most likely to occur when we are feeling deeply uncomfortable, unhappy, or unfulfilled. For it is only in such moments, propelled by our discomfort, that we are likely to step out of our ruts and start searching for different ways or truer answers. --Scott Peck

Reading things like this (creativity information) really gets me going.
. . . . . It has helped me tremendously just to "face my fears" and learn that other people go through the same sort of things...Kellie
...They make me think of things I hadn't thought of before.
...and they also put me in "groove" of creativity . . . and from there, it seems more possible to do.

(I strongly want to emphasize this point though, I am not good example of rest of the world) . . . there are plenty of people who learn better with imitating.
....some can read the instructions from books, and others have to take classes to understand the same thing.
....some need seven years to achieve results similar to what other seem to get in two hours, etc.
...we are not one person, although we usually seem to think we are so similar.
But there are millions of others out there, and if we really want to introduce our common love polymer clay to them, I think we have to realize there is not one holy truth in this (subject ).

I'm interested in the designing methods people use. . . How do people come up with patterns, etc.? . . . Mavis
. . . (WARNING, LONG!) ...What a great question! This subject is really interesting to me and I've thought about it a lot. Actually, I think your question is really two, potentially overlapping questions (one requiring "con-vergent" methods, the other "di-vergent" ... in other words, trying to figure out a particular pattern, vs. how people "design" something new).
Anyway, here are some of the things that I've noticed (all IMHO), first re the divergent method:
---different personalities go about it different ways: Some people are inherently able to focus intensely on what is directly in front of them, and some are too aware of their surroundings/other responsibilities/etc. to do that easily (or it may happen to them only intermittently, though they can always *learn* to do it better). Having this intense focus is essential to "play."
When you focus intently over a period of time, it's also more likely that you'll actually spend enough time just sticking with it to allow some of the next things to happen, especially in that fertile period beyond the beginning stages.
---some people are able to "momentum-stop" more easily than others (again, I think this can be learned). In other words, there is a lot of momentum happening when you're working on a particular item or specific way of doing a technique; you have a "goal" in mind, and your brain wants to focus on the goal for lots of reasons (to avoid getting lost or diverted, to get it done in reasonable time, and to have success and not feel dumb and unsatisfied). However, the problem with that (which does serve very well in certain other things in life or art) is that it's very hard to *stop that momentum, and redirect* if some little interesting thing or variation pops up. For most of us, those tiny ideas barely niggle at our minds before *immediately* getting tossed away and completely forgotten; they're slippery as heck. (After all, that's how we "learn"...by paying attention to relevant things and ignoring all the other flotsam and jetsam that's coming at our brains.) Some people though will be able to stop and explore the new idea right then... possibly because they're easily distracted genetically, or because they've come to understand why it's important, and know that it can be a path to getting in touch with their creative abilities, or maybe for other reasons too. (Some combination of the two probably works best in regular Life.)
---Simply having a lot of experience with a subject can free up the brain to encounter other possibilities too. That's one reason that some people like to work "in series." With every new beginning in the series, they will explore something slightly different about a thing they're now very familiar with. . . which leads to "evolution."
---Other things that can help with fresh ideas are going out into the world after you've spent a lot of time thinking about a topic or problem. Other things "out there" can spark a fresh (if seemingly unrelated) way to go about or think about the topic or problem. Again, those ideas have to be respected for the potential helpful gifts they are, or they'll just float away.
Similar to this is cross-pollination from other hobbies/interests/work. *Loads* of new ideas in clay have come from similar techniques or generalizations from quilting, metalwork of all kinds, weaving/knitting, rubberstamping, glass work, pottery, printing, photography, collage, even cooking or gardening, you name it! If you're very familiar with another field, these new associations might come to you easily, but you can always go on a systematic hunt for them too. (Dream images can also be fertile ground whether you simply use something you've dreamed, or you actually "request" an image or pointer from your dream by simply thinking about the subject before sleeping and *intending* it to happen. . . dreams are *your own* personal creations/vocabulary in the first place!)
---Another of my favorite ways to get good ideas is also a freebie . . .that is, mistakes I make. One kind of mistake can happen when you're actually working with clay, make a boo-boo, and say hey, that's pretty cool, I think I'll do that on purpose from now on. But another kind happens for me when I misunderstand something someone else has said, and think o-o-o, that's a cool idea! When I realize that they didn't actually say what I thought they said (!), and that my brain had seen the cool thing immediately, I can then explore it entirely on my own --and perhaps even name it after myself <g>.
---Yet another freebie is noticing two things that are accidentally in physical proximity to each other which go together well or suggest something between themselves. This could include noticing that some bits you cut off a cane and tossed aside actually have an interesting pattern, or that some of the colors in your laundry pile aren't ones you'd usually put together, but really set each other off.
---Because there can be so many of these ideas when you begin to become aware of them, some people like to keep a notebook in which they jot down a few words or simple drawings about the little inspirations they've had but couldn't pursue at the moment. Those are great for just thumbing through later too, as long as the descriptions are sufficient to remember them by! ...lol (been there, done that).
---curiosity and/or rebellion: some people have a lot of natural curiosity or maybe even rebellion that makes them want to know how something works, or keeps them from ever accepting the status quo easily (I'm lumping those two only for convenience).
---learning the vocabulary and concepts for something. Some people have had art, architecture, or other design training which makes them aware of certain ways of looking at and categorizing things; and some people learn these things by discovering them on their own...or some combination of those plus listening to or discussing them with other people. Those categories (like line, proportion, structure, weight, color schemes, schools of thought or art movements through the years, etc.) can be a jump start to having "different" ideas in the first place, or for knowing how to decide what it is you don't like about something and possibly how to fix it, for example.
Most of the things I've mentioned so far are more in the di-vergent realm than the "con-vergent" (trying to sit down and figure out a particular pattern, for example) though there's overlap. In the case of trying to reproduce something, what you're trying to do is bring a number of things you know *together* for one goal, to con-verge them. In the other situations, it's more like how to generalize or go outward. (Some other analytical concepts that come to mind re all this are synthesis, de-composition, and analysis, versus linkage, connections, free association and com-position.)
BTW, people for whom math is easy do have an advantage in figuring out or coming up in the first place with certain patterns or techniques, but that ability isn't totally limiting. (I'm not a math person, for example, even though I find it interesting, but I am a pretty good figurer-outer; however with my quilting I noticed I didn't really want to do the math-heavy stuff either).
---There's loads of other ways to be creative in clay or other mediums though.
(I haven't even mentioned the "organic" types, who may be on yet another wavelength .) Gotta stop though ...that was quite a spew. I'm sure there are many other ways to talk about all this . . . what does everyone else think?? Diane B.

**for an article about those who "bloom" early and those who bloom later and some diff's between them, see near bottom of page (in purple)

Lateral thinking is about moving sideways when working on a problem to try different perceptions, different concepts and different points of entry. The term covers a variety of methods including provocations to get us out of the usual line of thought.
****For example: Granny is sitting knitting, and three year old Susan is upsetting Granny by playing with the wool. One parent suggests putting Susan into the playpen. The other parent suggests it might be a better idea to put Granny in the playpen to protect her from Susan. A "lateral" answer . . .creativity . . . MtnDews

Creative activity could be described as a type of learning process where teacher and pupil are located in the same individual.
--Arthur Koestler (1905-1983)

>. . . the things I make don't come out like I wanted. . . <
LOLOL... welcome to the world <bg>
....There are two basic ways to deal with that kind of thing.
You can do as many "artists" do, and simply follow the lead of what happens --without a hard-and-fast replica in your mind and intention of exactly what you want the item to look like.... think of it as a journey of exploration, serendipity and discovery rather than hanging everything on producing an item (IOW, learn to enjoy the process rather than just the end product to show off). Most of us have trouble doing that, but if you give yourself permission to explore that side of creativity as a sort of "lesson," it'll be easier... plus you might well learn to like it or at least to take things from it that you can use later.
....The other thing is just to keep at it. Most people who get good at something do that because they keep practicing and exploring the same general thing for awhile. So if you're into figures, instead of trying to make a mermaid today and a replica of a cowboy boyfriend tomorrow, try making several small mermaids... each time you do one, you'll get better and quicker at the basic parts, but also your brain will begin to bump mermaid/scales/hair/etc ideas around against other things you're seeing every day and also over more time, beginning to come up with different ways to do things or directions to take it. When artists do that, it's called "working in series"... that's how they really get good, and get more "creative" with their theme. Diane B.

(Which type of clasp do I like best? I like either stretch material or toggle clasps, myself.)
.....How long did it take to find that out? Well, let's just say you start with what you think is the obvious and it could be days, weeks, months later you get hit with an 'ah ha!' Just like with many techniques you come up with...the more you do it, the more ideas you get.
When I feel stuck, I have to continuously say, now, I'm an artist here...anything is possible....how can I MAKE it happen? Just because there are 'clasps' out there, doesn't mean you/me/anyone can't come up with something new. Lori G.

(--Mike Buesseler’s IMHO on inspiration, creativity, etc.
http://www.polymerclaycentral.com/mikeb/imho.html
...."In my humble opinion".... everyone is familiar with the expression, and most polymer clay people are familiar with the cyber-acronym, IMHO. Most of what follows is IMHO.)
....When someone suggested that I write an article about polymer clay and art, my first reaction was, “What do I have to say that would inform anyone--about polymer clay, or anything else, for that matter? I have only been doing this for a few short years, and I’ve been doing it mostly by the seat of my pants.” Now, I DO know a few technical things about polymer clay, things I might say at a workshop or in a how-to article. But the truth is, just about everyone out there knows most of the same things. Many probably know more.
....People sometimes get the mistaken notion that because you happen to create something they find interesting or pretty, you have information unavailable to them, or perhaps, unavailable to any mortal man. I am almost prepared to believe this may be true of some artists. A couple I have met hinted at having God’s home phone number..... I can assure you, I DO NOT. And even if I did have the number, I would expect the line to be busy, or more likely, IMHO, God might be away on more important business.
....So what does “inform my art”? (I was asked this recently on a submission form for an exhibit. I wasn't even sure what the question meant when I read it...) Although I struggled to come up with a more “informed” answer for that questionnaire, I will tell you the plain, and perhaps, disappointing truth about me:
...My hands inform my art. I feel the clay and it speaks to my hands.
My near-sighted, and now presbyopic, eyes inform my art. I see apples, clouds, snakes, mountains, ferns, shadows on the wall, hummingbirds, stones, rivers, and they speak to my eyes.
The colors of clay speak to me, too. I get my information in the most ordinary way: through my senses.
. . . Ah, but what, you might ask, do I do with this information from the senses?....Get ready to be disappointed again... I fart around with it.
I’ve been farting around since long before I ever heard of Kurt Vonnegut, but here is what he wrote in Timequake:
“Listen:. We are here on Earth to fart around. Don’t let anybody tell you any different!”
So, we have Kurt Vonnegut’s permission--and you have mine, if you needed it--to fart around. I am pretty sure that farting around--with clay, or whatever--is what I am supposed to do. Otherwise, why would God have made me such a good fart-arounder?
..... So, I open my eyes, I open my hands, and I fart around with polymer clay in every way I can think of.... I cut it, I stretch it, I scratch it, I bend it, I roll it, I break it, I press it, I freeze it, I squeeze it, I rub it, I pull it, I push it, I bite it, I love it, I hate it.
....Farting around can LOOK like hard work. Once, I just took a big lump of clay, squeezed down hard until it took the shape of the inside of my hand and I baked it. My children will always know what my hand feels like, or at least they will know something about me that they could not have known in any other way. Perhaps they will pass it around at my funeral. "Boy, Dad sure knew how to fart around!"
....Every once in awhile my eyes, my hands, and the clay pull off something nice, something that reminds me of something else, or something I’ve never seen before. In that moment, I have the feeling of having added my own little harmony note to the chorus of beauty we live in. It is a nice feeling, considering that most of what we humans, including me, add to the chorus is noise.
....So, I agree with Mr. Vonnegut. We are here to fart around. I say it’s time to get busy. Mike Buesseler

Everytime I hear, "I didn't know you could do *that*!" I have to answer, "I didn't know you COULDN'T!" . . . If I think it can't be done, I don't do it! And so my triumphs have always come from blissful ignorance! lolol! Katie

Creativity can achieved differently by different individuals (this can be cause by genetic difference, or happen at a particular time or type of work, etc). There are lots of variables and combinations, but here are some:
.....some people seem to enjoy doing art or craft by proceeding step by step, without preconception, "guided" or stimulated to the next step by whatever is present and occuring to them as a possibility in the moment before... they often don't know where the piece will end up, and enjoy discovering where they're being lead, lost totally in a stream of consciousness (some of these may not even be interested or attached to the piece afterward)
.....others may have an original idea or image haunting their heads which they feel compelled to reproduce
.....others (particularly sopme beginners) may be trying to reproduce a particular thing they've seen
...the last two are goal-oriented as opposed to process-oriented, and may be constantly comparing what they're doing with a preconceived idea... the first two may be more traditional "artists," but there are many ways to be creative within the last option too

(my paintings, which are a totally right-brain function) evolve from a tangle of brushmarks, spills and splatters, randomly applied to the stretched canvas, obliterating the oppressive whitespace... I spend a lot of time viewing this grid from a distance, like staring at clouds or tree branches. Creatures emerge, morph, vanish and reappear. I try to hold on to the strongest ones and rough them in
.....a trance-like state usually comes on after a couple of hours of work, when the moral censor turns off and I enter the canvas — another world where I work feverishly, I have no sense of time, temperature or place. I am “through the looking glass” Everything flows.
...(with sculpture, form determines function)... a new object arrives and sparks an idea of what it will become
.....but I don't sketch out any ideas... instead I lay out the objects on the floor, adding and deleting until the piece evolves. Often the outcome is markedly different from what I had roughly envisioned.
...I also enjoy the mechanical challenge of building the piece and doing electrical wiring... (then) I am present and grounded. My left brain gets a good workout!
...drawing is somewhere between painting and sculpture. As with painting, I go into a meditative space but remain conscious of my environment. While it takes some time to re-enter the drawing each day, the process is faster than with painting, but not so immediate as the sculpture which engages instantly.. . Liz M
(please see Liz's wonderful creative work for more: http://www.lizland.com/TourGalleries.html )

Tory Hughes (5 guidelines): Start with what works. Choose your intention and stick with it. Allow experiments; there are no mistakes. Take care of your tools: body, mind, and spirit. Trust your intuition.

But I know what you're talking about: The Judge kicks in too soon; it's hard to play. Mine does, too, and it's something I've spent a lot of time trying to unlearn. I've found things that have helped (helped, not cured):
A couple of books, A Whack on the Side of the Head and A Kick in the Seat of the Pants. They helped me recognize the controlling behavior. Sherry

It sounds like you're feeling some anxiety, and Just Don't Let That Happen!!! Playing with clay is supposed to be just that--play.
..... What I love best about claying (besides the vibrant colors and the great tactile sensations) is the element of surprise it can bring. You might learn to relax and enjoy yourself more if you do a project or two that just unfolds spontaneously. . . . .Don't plan in advance what the finished piece will look like. (Just follow this little thing that occurs to you, then that little idea that occurs to you all the way. . . .you'd be surprised how many artists create this way.)
. . . Just mix some colors you like and start stacking them up, cutting, twisting, rolling in ways that just feel right at that moment. Add a little of this, a little of that. When you get something interesting, slice it, roll it, or cut it into slabs or chunks for pins, earrings, beads. Or if it looks like a design that will repeat in an interesting way, butt the slices together to cover a little jar or tin. The important thing is not to know what you're making until it's done. Chances are, you'll sit back and look at it and say "THAT'S SO COOL!" Suzanne

One of my proudest failures is a pair of beads that I made a few weeks ago. I was trying to make some beads that I saw in Jewelry Craft, following all the directions in the mag. The beads are really ugly, but in the meantime, I learned some new techniques, which led to some beautiful projects. I'm keeping the beads as a reminder: 

I find that I look to perfection too much--sometimes to the point where it becomes an obstacle to the creative effort itself. I need to allow myself the freedom to "fail," not only because one learns more from mistakes than from success, but also because mistakes often lead me somewhere delightfully unexpected.Trish

One of my favorite quotes is "Anything worth doing is worth doing badly." You have to start with "beginner's mind" and not get intimidated. . . I'm one of those who starts out by imitating. particularly in polymer clay, which has so many possibilities, I see something neat, and make a copy as close as I can get it to learn the technique. I'm doing Maureen Carlson's little kids right now from her book, six of them. I've learned her hand; how to make the mouths, eyes, etc. Now I have the techniques, I've done a little guy with a paper airplane and a politically correct Little Miss Muffet who is sharing her curds and whey with the spider. I wouldn't sell the copies, of course, but I learned a lot. For me, the first six were craft, eg, technique, the last two were still crafty, but more my own.

I'm convinced that the first step to being an artist isn't being a perfectionist. It's giving yourself permission to make cr__! Man, I've got some ugly stuff. I also have stuff I thought was beautiful at the time. ...And it's all ok..... I learned from the stuff that didn't work more than from the stuff that did. Nae
....An interviewer had asked me "what is the one bit of advice you would give to anyone starting out in polymer clay" ....after thinking about it, I came up with the conclusion that the best advice I could ever give would be - if you have an idea, don't give up on it. Because none of us get it right first time do we? And it sometimes takes many revisions and many times going "back to the drawing board" before we can get what is in our head to be represented by the clay. Emma
.... And those very rare times we do get it right first time, it's sheer luck :). Carla

Sometimes those mistakes turn out to be happy accidents where you come up with something entirely new. Celia

Someone commented to me once about how my work was always so wonderful. I told them it's mostly because I don't show off the rejects, just the good stuff. I have lots of orphans and oddballs ;). Celia
....for every half-decent thing made there are SO many rejects - for every technique I get nailed down and tweeked just right, there are SO many steps where I nearly just gave up trying! . . . . To me the fun is sometimes in NOT knowing how to do something - because getting down and dirty with the clay is where the fun and magic happens for me. But there sure are a LOT of casulties when I get into "experimentation" mode! Emma
...So don't be like me and feel like a lunkhead if you keep trying something you read about or saw on Carol Duvall and it's not working out the way it seems to work for someone else. There are a lot of paths to that thing you're seeing in your head.. . . Read some more and try something different to get where you want to go. Or try something that just pops into your head. Elizabeth
.....Boy, I go along with that. I can sit right next to someone and not get the same results! I just keep plugging along and I eventually get there by trial and error ...and lots of ERROR! Marty
...yah, that's me too. We can call it trial & error & error. . . . BUT, the errors can lead you off onto some totally new quest and down some pretty cool paths, can't they? I guess it's fortunate for me that they are numerous and frequent ;) Elizabeth

When I was in art school, I had a painting teacher named Maya Schock. She was a tiny, little, Oriental woman who was so dynamic and inspiring! She always told us to "dare to be lousy"......meaning take chamces and be bold. Sometimes it doesn't work, but when it does it's wonderful. I am inspired by her spirit even 30 years later. Sue

…if you could see my house you would know I live in Chaos. It seems the more work I do, the more STUFF I need to have around me. It's like what a zookeeper i saw on TV said once about a gorilla he was feeding. The gorilla threw the lettuces and apples all over his "home" and the zookeeper said he did that because he had to be constantly stimulated. "That's ME" I said to my son. Magazines, books, beads, fabric, website printouts all over the place. And yet when I sit down to work, the area just in front of me is all organized in my own fashion…Diane S.

The versatility of this stuff can make it difficult to see your own progress, because you can work in a dozen different techniques in a day. If you do, there isn't much of a linear progression of skills where you can see definite movement forward in the various qualities of the things you make.
.... It's more like a spider-web growing out in different directions at once, and in smaller increments that you might not be as likely to recognize and give yourself credit for. Elizabeth

Thinking about creativity, I often remember a thing I read years ago in an article about a best selling author. He said no matter what, every day he wrote ten pages. Sometimes the words just flowed, sometimes he was there for twelve or fourteen hours trying to force something onto the page. And there were times when he felt a great burst of creativity and felt he was writing prose that would last the ages.
The humbling thing was, that if he went back a week or so later and reread his work, he could almost never tell which pages had been written on which day. He had worked so long and hard at the disciplines of his craft and on good writing technique that even when he felt uninspired he could still produce good solid work.
I remember that on days when I really do not feel that I can produce anything. I have found that if I put in the time and effort, something still happens and often better than I thought. Sometimes just putting one foot in front of another can get you there.

. . .during the (polymer clay) Arrowmont conference. . . I wanted so badly to go, but it wasn't an option then. Finally, I decided the best way to deal with it was to do my own clay conference at home. I gave myself permission to spend as much time as possible claying for the duration of the conference. An "I'm not going to Arrowmont" swap had started up and I signed on. Now my story gets interesting because I swear it felt like the universe was trying to help me. . . . I was a woman on a mission! I lived polymer clay and especially Liquid Sculpey for most of my waking hours! The whole basis for everything I've done since then, a lot of my basic LS techniques, germinated in that window of time. So...you might want to try something like that. ...And the swap idea is still great. The work that was produced for that one was especially inspired.. Jody B.

That's me, Lori!... that's me-e!! I am exactly the same way, right down to the camera.
I have some theories about why I might be that way (baggage of needing to stay alert to surroundings/people, etc.), or it might just be genetic. I don't know about you, but I don't find many people who understand it when I try to explain. (It seems to me that the more typical "artistic" style is the ability to get really lost in one's own thinking, and get so used to being that way that it's hard to climb out.)
My style can be really frustrating but was much worse before I isolated just what was happening with me; now I can plan around it. The funny thing is that I can be completely tongue-tied and find myself facing a totally blank mind if I need to come up with something creative in the moment (if I haven't already thought about it and gotten ideas, that is).
YET, I can do what I call "percolating" really well . . . too well maybe! I'll begin by just putting something on my mental agenda; sooner or later I'll start to think of a few things or notice something in the environment that reminds me of something that reminds me of something which gives me a creative idea about the subject. This starts slowly, but then builds and builds until it's a gusher! (my best place for getting ideas is long showers or long drives, alone) The problem comes when "I'm finished" with the process of getting ideas. . . but unfortunately my brain is NOT done! It keeps spewing and spewing and I can't shut it off. Eventually enough other things crowd my mind that it does go away, but I'm always annoyed because I never met a neat idea or good piece of information I didn't like --but I don't want to have to go write about or do something with those overflow ideas.
. . . (I don't seem to have any problems delivering the ideas once I've gotten them though . I gave a demo on what can be done with a clay gun at our guild Clay Day yesterday, and talked for 3 straight hours about possibilities, with only a few actual demos . . . more on this later).Thanks for writing about this; it's nice to know there are others out there with the same M.O.! DianeB

I think of these slumps as a form of mental and spiritual pregnancy: something is growing, but it is still unknown, and maybe premature exposure would harm it. I believe in the Jungian idea of the unconscious mind as a real part of the self, the deep source of much that is profoundly valuable, but a part that is hidden from most of us. Dreamland. Inspirationland. Artland. So I try not to worry when I'm in a slump; for at least a while, I just pour some more good stuff in the hopper -- art books, mystery novels, swimming, movies, clay classes, walks in the country -- and give myself permission to take my time and gestate. Georgia

more specific ideas

The internet, books on any kind of art, geometric and floral patterns I see anywhere and on any scale, at work (I work at a paper co. and we have soooo many paper colors, sometimes I experiment by laying sheets together to get color combo ideas, or I just see 2 or 3 colored papers together in the scrap pile or in the trash that were cut together or just got together by accident, my old notebooks... I have a lot of project ideas that I forgot I wrote about, many of them were dreamed up at a time when I did not have enough experience with clay to be able to complete them, I'll go back to them and see if I know new techniques that could help me accomplish the projects or I simplify them, Cane ends & cool lookin baked scraps from old projects, sometimes I look at them 2 months later and see something there that I did not see before or I look at a flower petal cane and think...how can I morph this thing into something else? Laurie in MI
.....As I browse the internet, I capture images I like and put them into various folders on (my computer)...my main folder is called "Inspiration," and there are sub-folders underthat for things like "Plant," "Animal," "Wearable Art," "Vessels," "Geometric," "Cultura,l" and so on (your list would depend on your interests). Then when I'm stuck for an idea, I browse these folders and I'm off again. Kim K.

Reading all of your postings has been very inspiring. I think its fascinating to see all the different (and all the "in common" ways) that artists are inspired to become creative. I remember taking a week long class with Tory Hughes in Bennington--not only is she inspiring, but she infused all of us with the incredible, endless possibilities in the world around us.
She helped us to see color, texture, patterns and design in everything around us--from the shape of a dried pine cone to the pattern on the bottom of a sneaker. Many of us spent part of that week scouring the campus and nearby woods, scooping up interesting rocks, twigs, and discards that called to us.. But I can't help myself. I can find interest in the oddest of things. Some of my greatest inspirations come from walking around flea markets and picking up all sorts of odds and ends that either wind up in my work, shape, mold and affect it in some way. Byroni10

I still have my voice activated tape recorder and keep it by my bed, if anything strikes me through the night I just say it out loud and viola there it is in the morning! Barb

You just put another dilemma on my shoulders... I steal colors. I really take any color combination that is suitable for my moods and use it. I never have thought about any unmorality in there... I look at paintings, artists' complete works catalogs, sometimes postcard pictures of master works (they are useful, although not the type of "art" I would hang into my walls)
....I study them, try to see what is the thing that makes those colors work.
... I sometimes like to compare two painters with different styles but who seem to have similar taste of colors.... I label different use of colors --there are Dali-colors, Monet- colors, Picasso- colors. . .
... I steal. But I think stealing colors is pretty muchaccepted in artworld. Or am I missing a point, again....PöRRö

Rarely do I plan what the end result will look like....something just takes over and the piece happens (or not).
.... I would like to be able to plan more, but personally I just end up more frustrated. . MtnDews

I love the idea of taking something associated with a person (or place or idea) , then customizing it for the holidays (or any other occasion)...or mixing it with any other association (occupation, hobby, personal characteristic, geographical region, house)... (e.g., a dentist, railroad enhusiast, New Yorker, or baker ...who likes books, or who vacations in Alaska, or who likes to paint or work on cars ... or combine for a particular holiday or celebration)
... or taking one interest and mixing it with another (feminism, kids, 50th anniversary or turning-40 or 21, volunteering interests, colors from sports, etc.) Diane
.....my " Santa Flamingo" ornament was inspired by a neighbor who collects flamingo stuff.... I thought this might be something she didn't already have...I took a basic flamingo, added a Santa hat... added the beard (plus boots and wreath around neck). Laurel

... Sources of inspiration? Pretty much anything, although if I get "stuck" I tend to start leafing through mail order catalogues... I get inspired by color combinations and shapes. Because I cane, and not sculpt, I think I look at things with an eye toward illustration, so I sometimes find myself inspired by a book or poem or children's story. Canebake

Barker took some time to discuss the relative quality of 'success' for a creative person, depending on one's goal. He remembered a quote, "The three T's are most important to success: Taste, Talent, Tenacity. You need a minimum of two of these to make it." Li Gardiner

Creativity, like wisdom, often increases with age
WHILE SOME SHINE EARLY, OTHERS DO THEIR BEST WORK LATER
by David W. Galenson and Joshua Kotin, LA Times Feb 07

At 76, Clint Eastwood is making the best films of his career. "Letters From Iwo Jima'' has been nominated for four Academy Awards --including best picture and best director. (`"Flags of Our Fathers,'' which Eastwood also directed last year, received two nominations.) New York Times film critic A.O. Scott recently named him "the greatest living American filmmaker.'' Such accolades are the latest development in Eastwood's creative ascension. Two years ago, his ``Million Dollar Baby'' won best picture and best director, a repeat of his success with ``Unforgiven'' at age 62 -- his first Oscar after making movies for more than 20 years.
...Sculptor Louise Bourgeois is 95. This year, she will be honored with a retrospective at London's Tate Modern museum. In November, her "Spider,'' a sculpture she made at age 87, sold at auction for more than $4 million, the highest price ever paid for her work and among the highest ever paid for the work of a living sculptor.
... Is such creativity in old age rare?
...Eastwood and Bourgeois often are considered anomalies. Yet such career arcs --gradual improvements culminating in late achievements-- account for many of the most important contributions to the arts. That society does not generally recognize this fact suggests that many are missing a key concept about creativity.
... We often presume creativity is the domain of youth, that great artists are young geniuses, brash and brilliant iconoclasts. Arthur Rimbaud, Pablo Picasso, T.S. Eliot, Orson Welles, F. Scott Fitzgerald and Jasper Johns all revolutionized their artistic disciplines in their teens or 20s. Picasso created the first cubist paintings at 25, and Welles made "Citizen Kane'' at 25. These artists made dramatic, inspired discoveries based on important new ideas, which they often encapsulated in individual masterpieces.
....But there's another path to artistic success, one that doesn't rely on sudden flashes of insight but on the trial-and-error accumulation of knowledge that ultimately leads to novel manifestations of wisdom, and judgment. This is Eastwood's and Bourgeois' path --and it was the path for a host of other artists:
.......Titian and Rembrandt, Monet and Rodin, Frank Lloyd Wright and Le Corbusier, Mark Twain and Henry James, Robert Frost and Elizabeth Bishop, to name a few. Twain wrote "Tom Sawyer'' at 41 and bettered it with "Huckleberry Finn'' at 50; Wright completed Fallingwater at 72 and worked on the Guggenheim Museum until his death at 91.
...Paul Cezanne is the archetype of this kind of experimental innovator. After failing the entrance exam for the prestigious Ecole des Beaux-Arts, he left Paris frustrated by his inability to compete with the precocious young artists who congregated in the city's cafes. He formulated his artistic goal, of bringing solidity to Impressionism, only after age 30, then spent more than three decades in seclusion in his home in Aix, painstakingly developing his mature style, trying to represent the beauty of his native Provence. Finally, in his 60s, he created the masterpieces that influenced every important artist of the next generation.
...Frost also matured slowly. He dropped out of Dartmouth and then Harvard, and in his late 20s moved to a farm in rural New Hampshire. His poetic goal was to capture what he called the "sound of sense,'' the words and cadence of his neighbors' speech. He published his most famous poem, "Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening,'' at 49. At 63, Frost reflected that young people have flashes of insight, but "it is later in the dark of life that you see forms, constellations. And it is the constellations that are philosophy.''
...These two creative life cycles stem from differences in goals and methods. "Conceptual innovators'' aim to express new ideas or particular emotions. Their confidence and certainty allow them to achieve this quickly, often by radically breaking rules of disciplines they have just entered.
... In contrast, "experimental innovators'' try to describe what they see or hear. Their careers are quests for styles that capture the complexity and richness of the world they live in.
....The cost of ignoring Cezanne's example is tremendous --and not only for the arts. Our society prefers the simplicity and clarity of conceptual innovation in scholarship and business. Yet the conceptual Bill Gateses of the business world do not make the experimental Warren Buffetts less important.
...Recognizing important experimental work can be difficult; these contributions don't always come all at once. Experimental innovators often begin inauspiciously, so it's also dangerously easy to parlay judgments about early work into assumptions about entire careers.
....Perhaps the most important lesson is for experimental innovators themselves: Don't give up. There's time to do game-changing work after 30. Great innovators bloom in their 30s (Jackson Pollock), 40s (Virginia Woolf), 50s (Fyodor Dostoevsky), 60s (Cezanne), 70s (Eastwood) and 80s (Bourgeois). Who knows how many potential Cezannes we are currently losing? What if Eastwood had stopped directing at 52, after the critical failure of "Firefox,'' his 1982 film about a U.S. fighter pilot who steals a Soviet aircraft equipped with thought-controlled weapons?
.....DAVID W. GALENSON is an economist at the University of Chicago. JOSHUA KOTIN, a doctoral student in English at the University of Chicago, is editor of the Chicago Review. They wrote this article for the Los Angeles Times.

Spreading the Word

Sometimes the most influential thing we can do is to encourage others to keep trying....sometimes that returns to us as a blessing multiplied ten times.

Myself, I feel that most people that I have met who call themselves artists are very snobbish and unwilling to help a fellow artist out when they have a question. This may not Really be snobbery, rather that they themselves don't know the answer to the question posed, but it comes off with an air of elitism.
And they also seem to always have to describe everything in a philosophical way which to me is quite confusing, to say the least. When I talk to craftspersons, whether producing fine crafts or the more 'craft fair' crafters, they seem very willing to discuss their processes in a language that can be understood by a lay person as well as another craftsperson. I find this to be very appealling and enjoy their company very much.
I have got to believe that Britain is not as buried in kitsch hobby craft output as the US is! Sherry

The thing is, if they're not given encouragement to TRY they may never find out that they have the Talent OR the skills. Yes, maybe they'll find out they don't, and maybe alot of bad art will be made. But who hasn't made bad art?

I agree with this, but I would also like to add that much so-called "bad art" is satisfying, joyful, defining of self, etc., for the person who created it . . .
The important thing to me is that we all find a way to be involved in what we find interesting. Disdaining so-called "bad" art is a little like some people who say that heavy people shouldn't wear shorts or bathing suits in public because *they* don't think it's pleasing to the eye (or older people, or people who are handicapped --or generalize right down to anyone less-than-"perfect"). I want a beach where everyone is enjoying the wind, sun and activity to the utmost . So I feel that every person has the same right to be involved and to express themselves as every other person, and I think we should support everyone in enjoying, being willing to take chances, etc. (There's also what Ruebens might think about who looks good in bathing suits . . . cultural relativism-wise . . .) Diane B.

Re kits, even that involves some creativity":
--the *choosing* of the style/item that most represents "you" (an important thing for anyone to feel they have the *right* to do, and to be). Even though it's more of a multiple choice format than an essay :-), it often helps us all begin the process of sorting out what there *is* to be/choose.
(-- the figuring out of how to make sense of the directions --lots of creativity here sometimes!-- and learning that perseverance often yields real and unimagined results)
-- we don't all design our own clothes, or even make them, or create our own furniture, pots, houses, utensils, etc., yet we would be happy and supportive if someone we knew tried one of these things. . .
Let's foster having a great *journey*, valuing process as well as product at every stage. . . and also allow ourselves to recognize and identify with the frustrating, spottily-wonderful, sometimes insecure feelings that we've all had while muddling through this funny thing called life . . .
Sorry, needed to get that off my chest :-) . . . much better now ! (stepping down) Diane B.

FINDING TIME to CLAY

I am an early riser(4:30 to 7) but can't seem to find the right time to clay. Morning is ok, and midafternoon passes by so quick, I can't seem to keep up. Late afternoon is supper, clean-up, outside chores, etc. By the time I've gotten all those nightly things tucked away, it's nine oclock and I'm ready for bed again. Though midafternoon would probably be an ideal time to work, I find myself way-laid or encopassed into other things. And when things are going right, it's also the time for me to be doing outside work in lawn/pasture. Does anyone else out there have a scheduling problem?
It's hard to fit everything into one day. I find it hard to be creative when you're rushed. ;o/ This summer is going by way too fast, and I don't feel like I've made the most of my time so far! cowgirls85rule

One never FINDs time, one has to MAKE time.
I look at the clay as my work. I'm up around 7:30 and retire about 12:30. I put in eight hours a day, Monday through Friday, working with the clay or doing clay related activities (such as writing my clay book, going to classes, . Sometimes I switch hours and days, but I still work those 40 hours. If I went out of the home to work I would have to spend even more time in travel, so I use some of that time to do household chores. I do the rest of the chores during the same time that I would if I were working outside of the home. Major things are done on weekends, or whichever two days I allow myself to have off from the clay.
I used this same schedule when I was writing several of my five novels. When I was working full time outside the home I still managed to write two novels by spending an hour in the morning, part of my lunch hour, and another hour after dinner--every day. Weekends were for housework, research, and going to the movies, plays, out to dinner, etc.
Okay, so I'm not the worlds best housekeeper. But I'm not the worst either. I'm lucky because I don't like shopping at the mall. I don't belong to any clubs (except for the NPCG.) My kids are grown. My husband is retired (but working with me on the kaleidoscopes.)
I am not at all organized however. I GET organized about four times a year, and after that it deteriorates fairly fast. But I work well with a mess around me thank goodness. I certainly don't think that everyone should stick to such a schedule. But I do think that you need to commit a certain amount of time each day, and a no-less-than amount of time for each week, and stick to it. Get it to be a habit, one that you feel guilty about not following. Dotty in CA
For me it's very hard to make myself take time off. I think that's because I love working with the clay so much, as well as loving my writing. So I have to force myself at times. Kind of break the grip and run free. Once I'm away, I'm fine and enjoy what all I'm doing.
I actually have a minimum of work time that I plan for, but no maximum. I've been found working at 2 a.m. or later not realizing how late it is. I think it's actually very good if you are flexible with what hours or days you work. I just like to set that minimum. But it's not iron bound. Let one of my friends call and invite me to lunch, and off I go like a shot. Then I seem to automatically make up the time somewhere else such as late night, weekend, early morning, whatever.
And I do get my "down" times, when I just seem to wander around doing this and that, probably waiting for my creative well to fill up again. Sort of like writer's block. But fortunately, it doesn't last long. Dotty in CA

i'm retired and i'm going to bed when you're getting up!!! but i have much to do during my "day," too!! life has a way of getting in the way what with chores, interaction with animals and family and friends, errands and the like. i solve this by setting aside a day just for me. the chores will wait, the wife picks up the care for the animals that day, i don't answer the phone. i do crafts all through my waking cycle on that "day." it is also necessary for my mental and emotional well-being to just have that day dedicated to crafting. i am told i'm a nicer person if i'm allowed that time to create and play, to experiment and explore. besides, with several hours to work on things, i can get lots done and everyone likes the results! and if i don't take care of me, how can i take care of the others? so you might try it. set aside an afternoon once a week for just crafting. invite friends over to join you. they don't hafta clay, just a craft day. you'll be amazed how the crafting skills will begin to intertwine! Sunni

My studio schedule depends on what's going on that day. I'm "at work" at least eight hours a day, but they don't necessarily fall in the regular corporate hours. If I wanted to work from 9 to 5 I would have kept a full time job (well, or looked for a new one). Actually, I work more than an 8-hour day for myself. Some days I start before breakfast and then take a mid-morning break. Some days I work until I realize it's 4 o'clock and I haven't eaten anything. Some days I start at 10 and work until 9pm, eating all my meals at my computer or work table. And then there are those two o'clock in the morning days. Of course, I have days when I give up after about four hours or even less . . . Jacqueline

I usually work on the weekends- because that's when many of my classes are scheduled. My husband is a firefighter- so weekends are nothing special to us.... although if it's Saturday night and he's not working we're dancing!!! I wish I was as devoted and focused as Dotty...she gets a tremendous amount of work done. My focus gets blurred and I find myself doing too many different things. But that's part of life- learning what's important and finding ways to make it happen. Kathndolls

I agree, you seldom 'find time' for clay, you have to 'make time'. As for me, I suffer from terminal Puritain Work Ethic. I have to do chores and work during daylight hours, no doing fun stuff. (hmmm, maybe that's why I like gray days so much) So I get up around 7 am, feed dogs, hubby, cats, etc. do dishes, clean, run errands, teach (I teach private art lessons) round 6pm, we eat dinner. Then! it's time for the good stuff. I clay while hubby watches TV. Hubby retires around 9 or 10, then I chat while claying or clay or sometimes (gasp) read. I go to bed between 12 and 3. Luckily, I have a sleeping disorder and need very little sleep. But I do this 7 days a week. So if I clay between 7 and midnight, seven days a week, I get in approx 35 hours a week. Since most nights I really clay later than that, it works out as a full work week. Boring stuff, but you asked. -byrd

Scheduling time hasn't worked well for me. Something always seems to happen to keep me away. There is no such thing as just sitting in front of the TV for me. There is always clay in my hands when I watch. Do you have a TV tray that you could set your work on? A cupboard that you could stash a tile or piece of glass on? You could leave your current project on the tile or glass and stash it until you're ready. Or maybe if the dust bunnies aren't too bad under your bed, it could go there. Cover it with waxed paper until you're ready to take it out again. I've made one corner of the kitchen counter my work space and the clay stays there all the time. I've got the world's smallest kitchen...4 floor tiles from counter to counter and 9 from end to end. Just had to take the crock pot off the counter and move the toaster. Kim2

Dotty, this summer I am looking at my studio time in the same manner as you do. That is, it is my 'job' and I am spending 8 hours per day in the studio. I love it! First, because during that time, I am concentrating on the project at hand. There are no guilt feelings about 'I should be doing this or that'. At the end of the 8 hours, I 'go home'. Now is the time to get some exercise, cook dinner or clear/wash dishes (hubby cooks most of the time.) Do housework detail. Get ready for bed. Wow!! I am looking forward to keeping this schedule permanently...uh, 4 more years. Meantime, it keeps me getting up early and getting to bed at an earlier time (most nights.) Dianne C.

CRITIQUES-CRITICISM

All of us have made valid points about what is constructive criticism and what is just plain mean.
There are many things I made when I first started that I was very proud of, but looking back, I wouldn't want to show anyone. In learning techniques and color, what darkens during baking and consistency of the different clays. . . we MUST have less than perfect results or we learn nothing. If everything was a success, where is the incentive to learn? I have several canes in my scrap heap that qualify for an ugly cane contest, but I learned something from every one of them. I have baked representative slices from all of them so I can look back to see what did or didn't work. Especially things like contrast and how something will look when reduced.
Nothing is to be gained by nasty or rude comments except for hurting others' feelings and only people who have to build their own egos by making someone else look small need to do this. Every time one of us puts something up to share, we risk our egos, and we have the right to be proud of what we have created. As a newbie (I started March 2000), I am insecure when I show something I've made because we have a lot of talent in our guild. They wouldn't think of being unkind and many times have given me confidence in what I am trying to do. There is a big difference in "that is ugly" and "This is nice, but maybe if you tried...". Try to put yourself in the others' place when you say something. Off of soapbox for now. Kim

We are all beginners at some point in time. I don't go to ebay, but I've been in a number of swaps and I've seen a whole range of experience and talent. I appreciate all of it, to tell the truth. I hope we're here to support each polymer clay artist where she or he is, not to compare each other despite our differing levels of ability. It's difficult to share ourselves and our creations with a large group of relative strangers. We hope for encouragement and constructive criticism, if criticism is needed at all. I prefer suggestions myself. I think we're best when we don't judge each other, but instead lift each other up with the support we'd like to receive ourselves. We're all growing in our art and it's not good karma to stifle another's creativity and development with derogatory comments. Carol N.

Juries
(where is more?)

Jurying into art shows is indeed incomprehensible. When I was starting out as a potter and clay artist, I also began entering competitions. Although I had gone to graduate school in Arizona, I could not get accepted at a California show. On the other hand, I got accepted to almost every show I entered on the east coast! Finally, I looked closely at the judges and the styles accepted and realized I wasn't getting accepted on the left coast because my style was not "Californian." :-) My style has never been funky enough for that venue although I love some of the work from those artists. My style is more formal even when light-hearted, even when the juries change, and there are really regional differences in style and taste. Do what you want and find your own aesthetic "home." :-) Jacqueline G.
I agree with you 100%. Regional areas make a big difference. I live on the East coast, and I believe there are differences within this region as well. ...some things will sell super in coastal towns..ie fish boxes.. Pottery will sell well in the mountains. Same goes for juried shows..each show has a "flavor". Depending on what flavored area we are in..is whether we will be able to get into the show. BUT.. and this is a big butt.. not unlike my own.. I think shows that have been traditionally one way..are beginning to open up and become more varied. It's just something I've noticed through the past couple of years. I hope that it continues because it makes going to shows more interesting. Susan~

Shows/Demos & Fear

(Fear of Selling & Shows)...This fear of selling is something so common to most of us, AFAK. I just need to say something about rejection fears and art. Just my opinions, of ...
The fear of presenting our art or crafts may have something to do with our childhood and past as some psychologically orientated people say, but I prefer explaining it by the description of the creative process.
When one makes something, especially something totally unique that is their design and creation, the attitude and behaviour is so near the feeling of being a child: you are open, totally captivated by the "playing", you have visions that you are eager to try. The technical difficulties do not feel ones you can not overcome. You are learning every minute you are doing, creating, making. You are not thinking about who you are, or what you should be, or what others think about you. There is no room or time for dwelling in the past or worrying about the future. The present is so much, it needs so much attention and energy that you can not be anywhere else. You just have to, because probably you too have found that the only way to make something out of your soul and hands is to relax. And when you are relaxed, you are not thinking the way you normally think: with words.
And when the clay is finally ready for oven, you sort of wake up. You see something you have done and probably you are not totally aware how an earth that did come up. You just are proud and feel good. But when the time passes, while the clay bakes, you start to worry about the product. The results. This is the time when you become nervous: it all felt so good, but it can be ruined by wrong kind of baking. You want to get over this step as quick as you can. You want the clay to be hard, and you want to see it, feel it, get assured that something that was not there hours ago is there really. You don´t totally believe that the items you thought you made really are. This (IMO) is the natural suspicion that we have with everything: we need to see and touch, and see and touch more to get convinced about all the things in our life.
The clay is baked and you take it out. You immediately find the nasty critic inside you. Something could have been done better. Something is not right. You need to finnish your work. Sanding, buffing, warnishing. It´s not ready yet and you feel you are not able to do it. The feeling, IMO, comes from the slowness of the next parts of this process: it takes time to sand, to buff, to varnish. You have too much time for thoughts, and naturally they are thoughts that you feel you need to think. After all of that good feeling it is very natural to start to think negatively because we tend to think that good and bad should come as equal doses.
Then your work is ready. And the first people see it. It probably is your family or someone really close to you, your friend or loved neiborough. And they see what they see: just the work, not you, not your feelings. Even when they absolutely love the piece and make you a queen because you made it, you feel something is missing because you can not tell them what you experienced. And you are suspicious if they just love your stuff because they love you. And in the worst case you compare their admiration of your work to the times you have loved and admired your kids crafts because you are so darn proud your child has made them. You are not sure. And it starts to eat your confidence.
Then you sign up for a craft fair, and suddenly there are dozens of things you need to do before you are ready for the show. Even though you might have a good amount of things to sell, you need to think about all the rest. The booth; how do you present your craft/art work. You try to think what might be the best way to show them. What would look professional. What kind of packing materials to do. And what about all the rest of the needed things: the leaflets that tell about you etc. And you - even though you might have done this several times - are not really sure what ´´professional´´ booth and etc. might be in this particular show, and what kinds of solutions others have.
And then you realise there is competition... And that is the worst thought you might have: you start to think about all of those other artist that use silver, wood, ceramics etc. in their work. The materials you don´t know start to feel like something way out of your league. The things THEY have done seem things that you never could do. And as you can make polyclay you feel that is less. Because you can not do the other things. And there is time. Too much time. To think about all of it. And to start having second thoughts about your work. And you heard so many stories about unsuccessful craft fairs.
And you start to wonder if it is worth it. You want this to work, but... All the time, from the conditioning to the selling, you seem to have strong emotions. And in the end, when you really should feel ready, you just are so tired from all of the rollercoaster your thoughts and imagination have put you trough that you think there is something wrong with you because you think you are the only one feeling this way. The only insecure one. The only one who has so much difficulties on this. And you are ashamed of it, so much that you rarely have the courage to open your mouth and really tell people how hard it feels. And - as sad it is - so are most of the others too.
And so we have this art of acting strong and confident when entering those shows. All the other dozen people selling and putting up their booths have some kind of nervous feelings too. Maybe some have learned to cope with them better, and the long run of shows have made them realise that they can do it, and that their stuff sells. But then they are insecure about the finances: they probably make this for the living. It is their income. And in a way they too have all in stake there. And then there is that one person who seems to have all the confidence in the world, who just quickly sets up his/her booth and then seems to walk around with complete peace glowing from his/her face. And you wonder what is the secret of that kind of attitude, but have not the courage to ask what makes this person so sure and confident. And naturally you compare yourself to this person and fell less. It is only natural...
Ok. That was my explanation for the feelings. Do I have a solution ? Not a totally waterproof one, but some things I do when starting to doubt myself and my work and the justice of me selling my stuff to strangers.... I try to write up everything. I might not need the notes, but then again it is possible that I might. So I try to act like I liked recording the things I do...
I´ll finnish my pieces and then put them away. Maybe show them to the Mr. Right, but others have to wait. Two weeks is enough for me to forget the unnecessarily detailed memories of the feelings while making the piece. Then I take the pieces out of the closet. I don´t know about others work, but mine obviously gets better when put in the dark shelf for some days. To me this is a good way of both being honest about what I think about my work and to see the things that need to be changed in the future. And also a good way to get pleasantly surprised by my own creativity :-)
While I start to make the craftshow together I usually do the things most people do: make a list of things that need to be done and then do them. But if I find myself wondering about ´´am I going to succeed´´ or ´´are my works worth it´´ or ´´what do they think about me when they see my work´´ I try to stop there. And go to have some claying time. Even 10 minutes of mudplaying is better than 10 minutes of disbelief. If I am already in bed trying to sleep, I try to change the subject of thoughts by thinking about new designs instead of coming shows.
And most important thing: when the show really begins, I try to pump up my feelings by getting everything ready few days in advance.
Then I use the last day for playing with clay: doing all the things I did not have time to do before.
And also: when I sell my stuff I try to think of it as someone elses stuff. I just try to imagine it is one separate part of me that sells the stuff. Someone else than the artist. So if I fail selling, the artist inside me suffers no harm ! Phew... ...
Some shows sell well, some are total catastrophes. Things happen. People happen. There are wonderful customers, and then there are the hard ones that always seem to demand more than I can offer. There are bad shows. Bad days. But there also are good ones, and very good ones. Finding the right markets is hard. I still have not found the real goldmine, but at least I have some pretty decent ones. I just keep trying. PoRRo

~I have found that to "calm those nerves" and also have something to do those times when it is slow, I take some clay and demonstrate. It seems to draw people to your booth. At the last show we did, I actually had an individual come up to me asking a million questions. It seems that she wanted a hobby and thought that PC was the way to go. So I gave her a bunch of sites to visit, books to check out and vendors on-line. The second day she came back armed with several lists of what to buy and what not to buy. In the booth next to us a lady was doing watercolor sketches. She and her daughter, age 7, had tried to make napkin rings out of SIII, but they kept breaking. The daughter spent most of the second afternoon helping us to demonstrate. That show was not the best in the way of $, but was one of the best for making you feel good about your craft. The moral of this story is that even if things aren't selling, you can still get lots of ideas and encouragement, and maybe even start someone out in this wonderful medium. Just my two cents. Marciafirst

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