Findin’ Yer Muse

Baldassarre Peruzzi, Muses Dancing With Apollo

I’m preparing to attend another series of the Artists Way Graduate Group. This is a group of people who have completed one or more Artists Way courses and want to continue meeting with the tutor to work in more depth and on similar issues as set out in the AW book.

This is all about unlocking creativity, and developing ways and means of tapping into the creative wellspring. Many people, including myself, hear the word creativity and conclude it is for others: them what can draw, sing, write and so on. But it is for anyone who produces anything whatever in their lives. So that could be cooking, or mothering or making your friends laugh on a night out. These are all things which without you having done them would not have happened.

I found this a strange message to grapple with, but I realise that even the angst-ridden creation of costumes for daughter’s Halloween parties, and helping with playgroup (the best contraceptive going), are creative acts, even if they are judged not as good as ‘her next door’s’.

I'm going back a bit with these examples, but they came to mind when I think about my self-judged creative deficit, which once I got into full-time work, rather than full-time motherhood, with the consequent raised confidence, helped in a long journey into creativity and, most importantly, acceptance of creativity.

One of the benefits of attending a group on creativity is that everyone is supportive and does not allow self deprecating remarks to stand without challenge. This helps shift from “A’ canae dae it” to “oh, alright, maybe I could”.

Poets of a certain era, talked (interminably, usually) about their Muse; Rabbie too. Concentrating on the need for and the drive to create which is part of the human condition and should be celebrated in all of us. This is what the Artists Way is about and this is what attending a group is about – to locate and uncover and develop your vision. And not giving up and only having the mundane in your life or listening to those who would keep us tethered to the earth rather than let creativity soar – even if it’s just a wee blog!

Extract from:

The Vision

All in this mottie, misty clime,
I backward mused on wasted time,
How had I spent my youthful prime,
An’ done nae-thing,
But stringing blethers up in rhyme,
For fools to sing.

Had I to guid advice but harkit,
I might, by this, hae led a market,
Or strutted in a bank an’ clarkit.
My cash-account:
While here, half-mad, half-fed, half-sarkit,
Is a’ th’ amount.

Burns

Info about the Muses

http://www.paleothea.com/SortaSingles/Muses.html

http://ancienthistory.about.com/library/bl/bl_earthlymuses.htm

Find yer Muse with this quiz

http://quizfarm.com/quizzes/Style/cadenza7/which-of-the-greek-muses-are-you/

23rd feb update

The Smith Gallery in Stirling are hosting a talk on Burns and the rights of women. The poster has a picture of Burns an his muse.

http://www.smithartgallery.demon.co.uk/Robert%20Burns%20&%20the%20Rights%20of%20Women%20Poster.pdf