Get Unstuck

Paint Your Way Out  

Move Forward

“When we engage in what we are naturally suited to do, our work takes on the quality of play and it is play that stimulates creativity.” ~ Linda Naiman

 

How to get unstuck

Feeling stuck or a creative block, as some might call it, is something that happens to all of us in life, not only once but multiple times. It might feel like being isolated, paralyzed, not able to move forward or to come up with any novel ideas. This can be a scary place to be. It might be a sign that a change is about to happen. A change you are resisting out of fear of the unknown, or out of fear of being judged, or who knows. Change is scary. We know what we have. It’s comfortable even if it’s no longer working for us. It’s still something we are familiar with.

 

How to get in touch with your heart

Most of us deal with being stuck by thinking our way out of it. That’s what we have learned to do. But this thinking your way out often becomes a stubborn pattern following the same path over and over again. We don’t come up with any creative and innovative solutions anymore. We are stuck without even realizing it.

Eric Kandel wrote in The Age of Insight: “When we take the wrong approach to a problem, which happens often, we get nowhere by continuing to think about it. But if we refrain from thinking about the problem and distract ourselves… [we] transition from a rigid, convergent perspective to an associative, divergent perspective.”
In other words if you would tap into your creativity you open yourself up to seeing the problem with different eyes and come up with a fresh perspective. The problem is that most of us don’t see ourselves as creative. We don’t listen to our intuition. We are  not in touch with our heart anymore. Too much in our head because that’s what we have learned to trust.

 

What’s Intuition got to do with it?

When I explain what my creative program, working with paint and intuition, is all about without hesitation the immediate reaction is more often than not: “Oh, that’s not for me. I am not creative at all. I cannot even draw stick figures!” And that’s the end of it. For some reason most of us have this firm belief that we are not creative. In fact nothing could be further from the truth.
That’s so sad. If only you would give it another chance. It would open a whole new world for you. Believe it or not but we are all creative creatures and most of us unlearn to be creative. By reconnecting to your inner child you will learn not only that being creative is a whole lot of fun, but also that you are way more creative than you thought you were and that it will help you to see the world differently. My art students always tell me that learning to paint also taught them to see, to think differently.

 

The Creative Process

Exploring the creative process is the equivalent of deep, or focussed play as Carl Jung defines it. We learn by rolling up our sleeves and making things, even if what we make is crap or doodles or stacks of stones. The embodied creative mind lights up when the body is engaged in focused play. 

It takes all our attention. That’s how animals and, we as humans as well learn. Play teaches us how to deal with life. As adults we don’t play anymore. We don’t sing, or dance. We work and are pretty much bogged down by expectations and responsibilities. Most of us are way too busy to feel, see or hear, and are not in touch with our intuition anymore. In fact the big decisions we make in life are, without even realizing it, made with our intuition .

When was the last time you were in a silly mood, danced or bolted out a song? Art brings us in touch with our hearts and intuition again. All art forms will also teach us about who we really are, how we show up in the world, making us aware of the inner critic, that constant chatter in our heads, and teach us how to quiet that often negative voice, and open ways to free expression without judgment. Art will give us a different perspective on life and with that on our problems at hand. After a day of playing with various art forms you will feel accomplished, confident. Oh and your problems? You might have even found a solution, one that you haven’t thought of before.

 

Intuitive Painting

As an art instructor I work with paint, and as a coach I work with words, and also with paint. Intuitive Painting is all about free expression and working from within. Discovering your own creative voice. Natalie Rogers and her father Carl Rogers, the psychiatrist conducted workshops where they used not only paint but various art forms and called it the Creative Connection. Natalie discovered that every time you go from one art form to another you open even more.

 

Creativity

Creativity is the act of turning new and imaginative ideas into reality. Creativity is characterised by the ability to perceive the world in new ways, to find hidden patterns, to make connections between seemingly unrelated phenomena, and to generate solutions. You have to be free of fear and judgment to be able to create something new. 

If you feel it’s time to move forward in life, live up to your fullest potential and would like to learn more about our classes, workshops, retreats or coaching come to one of the Open Studio times or contact us for group or private sessions.

Stuck in your beliefs?

The Art Of Getting Unstuck

If you are wondering what Intuitive Painting can do for you:
LISTEN TO THIS TOUCHING TESTIMONIAL BY
Casey Clark, partner coach at Wholistic Woman Retreats, Frederick

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