No need to be artistic,
or even creative.
It’s about the process, not the product.
It’s about expression.
Creative Exploration is a term I use to describe my approach for using the creative process to explore feelings, ideas, and questions. I believe creativity has a way of cutting through the layers of white noise that cover up what we truly know deep inside ourselves. It has the ability to access those parts of ourselves that don’t easily show themselves through alternate routes. Creativity can take the same question we’ve asked over and over again, and by turning it slightly, shine light on it from a new angle and shift the perspective.
When this happens, a space is created where truths are discovered, and buried wisdom is unearthed. This sacred space gives us a potential to find clarity and healing. And it can be a powerful tool.
There is something about using our hands to express the ideas in our minds that opens doors into our deepest selves. The creative process can keep our brains occupied while our hands and eyes lead expeditions into our souls. When the body is involved in the process, a tactile memory is formed that is imprinted on our skin in a way that soaks past our superficial layers. It creates something that we carry in our fingertips. What we experience becomes embedded in our DNA. It is integrated into our core.
When we use the creative process to explore our soul and psyche, we have the potential to leave behind objects that become touchstones. Our experience then has a tangible relic in the world. It is a physical manifestation that marks a moment in our lives, marks a discovery we made, marks an insight we had, marks a question we asked. These touchstones create a conscious memory of what we experience. They have the ability to transport us back in time to a specific moment when we discovered a truth, or when something which seemed hazy sharpened around the edges. Life has a way of encouraging us to forget what we already know by filling our mind and soul with so much clutter that the truth, wisdom and clarity that reside there become buried. These touchstones can be like breadcrumbs leading us back home – the home where our whole selves still exist.
And sometimes our breadcrumbs can also guide others along the way. The road maps that we create for ourselves have the potential to show pathways to others on their own journeys. Sharing our experiences and insights can ignite a spark in others that may lead to the slow-burning flame of self-discovery.
With awareness comes choice. When we are governed by unconscious beliefs, our choices are made for us. It is only by unearthing those unconscious beliefs and dragging them to the surface, that we can examine them for what they truly are. When they are invited into the conscious mind, we then have the choice whether we want to keep certain beliefs or discard them.
Creative Exploration doesn’t provide a final answer that makes everything magically tidy. But it can illuminate a path, and isn’t a path a good place to begin a journey?
Photos by Calla Gentiles & Hannah Gentiles Photography