Picasso once said, “Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up.” Shelly Berc, one of the coordinators of The Creativity Workshop, reminded participants of this quote while introducing herself and the workshop to everyone. Picasso's response to this quote was that he never grew up. In other words, his imagination and creativity stayed strong with age. As children, our imaginations are constantly going wild. But with adulthood comes a fading of those imaginary dragons and faraway lands. It's sad really.
Shelley Berc, an educator and a writer, and Alejandro Fogel, an educator and an artist, are the leaders of this week full of outside-the-box thinking. "Creativity is transformation", declared Shelly and creativity needs three things: imagination, inspiration, and envisioning. With these tools, people can better put the right side of their brains to use. The right side of your brain loves risks, images, is imaginative, and chaotic. The left side takes all of that right-side stuff, interprets it, and decides what is safe and/or smart choices. For many people, with the insanity of work, data-driven thinking, and productivity at the forefront of most people's minds, the right side of the brain gets far less exercise. Thankfully, I make conscious choices to keep my right side active. I dabble in art classes, write here and there, and am always considering the possibilities that exist in the world. I put that right side of the brain to work often, but I'm hoping to acquire even more tools with this workshop.
Day 1 began with some relaxation and breathing exercises followed by a visualization activity. Shelly told a story while we laid down, closed our eyes, and imagined the tale. This tale included a call to action, a magical object, a wise old woman, a monster, and a heroic escape. She took us on a "hero's journey". Periodically through the telling of the story, Shelly had everyone pause and draw to put our visualizations into action.
Afterwards, we whisper-shared with partners. It was fascinating to see other people's interpretations of the same oral story. Oddly, this exercise conjured up striking memories and I've found myself exceptionally emotional feeling with memories of my grandparents and parents consuming me. It's really the first time since my parents died that I have slowed down, relaxed, and really kind of soaked in it. For the last year, I have been my typical busy-bee self constantly on the go and moving at about 100 mph. This workshop is forcing me to slow my mind.
After a short break, Alejandro led us in an activity called Automatic Drawing. Here, we closed our eyes and drew lines on a blank sheet of paper as fast as we could for several minutes. Then, we examined the pictures and looked for shapes. Using our erasers, we discovered new images inside of our seemingly mess of a paper. Rather than a mess of scribbles, I was able to discover hidden gems and see the art from a different perspective.
I had no idea what to expect coming into this workshop, but I am finding every word these people say to be exceptionally fascinating. I'm learning, discovering, and creating. Over the years, I feel I've sharpened my craft as a teacher and have become a rather effective educator. However, I often feel boring, monotonous, and generally disregard different learning styles because of the enormous pressure I feel to produce high test scores. I'm not sure what the future holds for me professionally, but I do know that to feel truly successful and fulfilled, I have to find a way to let my students be more creative and have more fun while learning. School feels dry and I know quite a few students who don't love showing up every day, so it would really be something if I could add some spark to the imaginations of these young people and ignite a passion for learning.
Shelley Berc, an educator and a writer, and Alejandro Fogel, an educator and an artist, are the leaders of this week full of outside-the-box thinking. "Creativity is transformation", declared Shelly and creativity needs three things: imagination, inspiration, and envisioning. With these tools, people can better put the right side of their brains to use. The right side of your brain loves risks, images, is imaginative, and chaotic. The left side takes all of that right-side stuff, interprets it, and decides what is safe and/or smart choices. For many people, with the insanity of work, data-driven thinking, and productivity at the forefront of most people's minds, the right side of the brain gets far less exercise. Thankfully, I make conscious choices to keep my right side active. I dabble in art classes, write here and there, and am always considering the possibilities that exist in the world. I put that right side of the brain to work often, but I'm hoping to acquire even more tools with this workshop.
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| The monster! |
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| My magical object |
After a short break, Alejandro led us in an activity called Automatic Drawing. Here, we closed our eyes and drew lines on a blank sheet of paper as fast as we could for several minutes. Then, we examined the pictures and looked for shapes. Using our erasers, we discovered new images inside of our seemingly mess of a paper. Rather than a mess of scribbles, I was able to discover hidden gems and see the art from a different perspective.
I had no idea what to expect coming into this workshop, but I am finding every word these people say to be exceptionally fascinating. I'm learning, discovering, and creating. Over the years, I feel I've sharpened my craft as a teacher and have become a rather effective educator. However, I often feel boring, monotonous, and generally disregard different learning styles because of the enormous pressure I feel to produce high test scores. I'm not sure what the future holds for me professionally, but I do know that to feel truly successful and fulfilled, I have to find a way to let my students be more creative and have more fun while learning. School feels dry and I know quite a few students who don't love showing up every day, so it would really be something if I could add some spark to the imaginations of these young people and ignite a passion for learning.
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