So…. we’ve just looked at PASSION…. and this third “P”…. is just so much fun and so liberating!!!

“The real voyage of discovery consists of not seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes.”

Marcel Proust.

I can’t find new things if I don’t go looking. Pushing the boundaries of what is possible and how and what I want to say through my images requires that I be playful and try out things without judgement. For me – there is no right- no wrong. For me..it is just PLAYFUL experience.

I don’t want to create ‘ordinary’ images. I want to be fearless in diving in to exploring and expressing the rich experience that is my life; through my images and artworks; and actually every breath. I want to create ‘soulful’ images, which speak of my experience. As I have shared before, it is the process of this exploration and expression which is my teacher about me. What a wonderful way to learn by being PLAYFUL!

“Creative people are curious, flexible, persistent and independent with a tremendous spirit of adventure and a love of play.” (Henri Matisse)

Being PLAYFUL can only be stifled if I judge myself and I set up an expectation of what I want to achieve and then fear failing that anticipated outcome. I realised fear of failure stifles my creativity. If I am not happy with my results, that has then helped clarify what step to take next. I realised there is no such thing as failure if I use experience as my compass.

I realised
to just dive in to my child-like essence by ‘having a go’ at everything…. and letting my intuitive voice lead the way without tethering, scrutiny or condemnation.

I realised the time would reveal itself later when it was appropriate to appraise the results of my playfulness….and once again I used my intuition and observed my own visceral response to see whether the images or artwork I created, had an essence which continued to speak.

“Creativity is about play and a kind of willingness to go with your intuition. It’s crucial to an artist. If you know where you are going and what you are going to do, why do it? ” (Frank Gehry)

So how do I be playful? I actually don’t have much trouble with being playful, because through the sheer nature of my personality I am a very playful person; but I still made a conscious effort to do a few things… the first being breaking the rules.

Breaking the rules helped me break the boundaries which perhaps limited my creativity. Firstly however I had to know the rules. I researched and studied ‘rules’ of photography and art. I then wrote down all ‘my own rules’, (I will deal with this in a future post)…the characteristics and parameters which I used as my own subconscious boundaries I brought into my conscious awareness. I do this periodically so I don’t slip back into comfortable safe patterns which limit my exploration.

I then made a conscious decision to purposely NOT adhere to any of my learned rules, or the rules I had developed a habit of implementing. It is hard!! Creating images which don’t adhere to established rules is really difficult….and honestly… it isn’t the fact that I find that I have created an image which breaks the rules and then jump for joy and have a party; it is the fact that I become conscious of what I am doing which excites me.

I am actually being PRESENT whilst I am PLAYING. I realise I am connecting with my PASSION because I become excited and engrossed in having fun… even in the seriousness of being focussed and connecting with a quiet scene, I am often enjoying myself creating an expression of what I am feeling.  I love feeling a fire in my belly of something which I need to explore, play with and experience. I feel an incredible sense of freedom being able to try and experiment with anything which comes to me… because I’m not concerned with where I am going.

I experiment. I take risks. I try things on location. I try things in Photoshop. I play. I don’t worry about failing. I am fearless.

One of the other ways I play is to connect with the freedom of my physical form to express and connect –  especially in the natural landscape. This lovely quote by one of my many favourite poets – Kahil Gibran, expresses more eloquently than I could ever hope to; how I love to experience myself in the landscape and my connection within it.

“Forget not that the earth delights to feel your bare feet and the winds long to play with your hair.”

(Kahil Gibran)

Next post….the fourth “P”…. PRACTICE