Top-10 Finger Painting Questions
Irreverently Answered...
Right now, name five things that prompt your creativity. What sets YOU free?
By Chris Dunmire
Spring is lauded as a time for new beginnings, and now that it's in full swing here in the Midwest I felt the need to fill in the blanks and revisit a piece I wrote about seasonal inspirations titled What Prompts Your Creativity?
Besides, on a day when many US citizens are taxed by 1040 (not EZ) Forms and filing for their annual returns, I figured one welcome tax break (for me anyway) is to have fun answering the spontaneity-inducing prompt-o-question from the article: "Right now, name five things that prompt your creativity. What sets YOU free?"
Here's my list for the week:
1. Dabbling with Finger Paints
After attending a 'Finger-Painting for Adults Playshop' last weekend, I've found my fingers eagerly scooping in and around little pots of paint all week (and writing some accompanying humor). I'm really committed! For instance, just to have something for show-and-tell in this blog article, I stayed up to the wee morning hours last night playing around with mixed media for that rose-collage finger painting above. Fun! I've just rose to the occasion!
2. Susan Boyle Singing on 'Britain's Got Talent 2009'
If you haven't seen this 7-minute YouTube video clip from Britain's version of American Idol, I guarantee it will make you think twice about first impressions and give you courage to act on your creative dreams today. Update: See my special essay, A Tribute to 'Britain's Got Talent' Susan Boyle.
3a. Making Fiends Web Cartoon by Amy Winfrey
An irresistibly hilarious Webisode-based cartoon that has developed into the television series Making Fiends shown on Nicktoons Network.
3b. Nickelodeon's 'The Mighty B!'
The Mighty B! animated series is themed around San Francisco-based Bessie Higgenbottom the Honeybee scout (voiced by Amy Poehler), and is a riot of fun. Bessie's adventures involve trying to earn various scout merit badges with the support of a cast of characters including Happy, a torn-eared dog, her imaginary friend named Finger, and valley-girlish co-scout Portia Gibbons.
4. Jill Badonsky's 'Awe-manac' Creative Crash Course
This kaizen-musist (www.kaizenmuse.com) is always entertaining me with useful, helpful, and instructional information about the creative process. In this two-part column, Jill splices and spices together some cool info cut from her new book: The Awe-manac: A Daily Dose of Wonder.
Why was it cut? She she says, "My editor wisely limited The Awe-manac to 400 pages. Kindly she allowed me to break that limit and the book is 449 and rather heavy at that. However, if she had published all I had written, the book would have been, oh, around 3,504 pages." She just cracks me up.
Journal Bliss by Violette
5. Violette's New 'Journal Bliss' Book
My favorite eccentric Canadian artist, Violette (www.violette.ca), has just published a book: Journal Bliss: Creative Prompts
to Unleash Your Inner Eccentric (North Light). Ever since our 2005 interview I knew she had tons of surprises in store for us. See some exclusive excerpts from Violette's Journal Bliss on Creativity Portal! •
© 2009 Chris Dunmire www.chrisdunmire.com. All rights reserved. |
