Create: Day 16
April 16, 2011 
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Day 16
It’s green to glean.
John Chamberlain is famous for creating sculpture from old auto parts. Photo by Ser Amantio di Nicolao
As creatives, it’s natural to glean.
Writers steal snippets of conversation, and musicians find melodies in the pitch of an airplane’s roar. Visual artists glean in a more concrete way.
I’m inspired by “found art”…the art we discover by accident. I remember admiring an amazing sculpture: a beautiful branch mounted on a stand. The artist was wise enough not to mess with perfection.
On a vacation, I came across a sensual beach-bleached piece of wood and turned it into a necklace.
When I carted home a beat-up old record cabinet from the junk store, a paper flew out: an old newpaper clipping of a soldier with hopeful notes scrawled on the side about how to properly play adagio. I framed it.
The most striking ikebana (Japanese flower arrangement) display I’ve ever encountered was an arrangement of flowers inside rusted car parts.
What will you glean today? Is there trash that can be re-purposed ? Will you gather a phrase from eavesdropping on strangers? Will you convert a bad mood into an aggressive dance? It’s our job, I think, to transform everything. Even the most mundane.
Create Month 1
What to do so far:
In case you missed a day, the reminders below are clickable.
Have fun.
Be violent and original in your creative life.
Make collages (dream boards, vision boards).
Leave perfectionism behind.
Take risks by throwing out tons of ideas.
Set aside time every Sunday to work on art.
Moodle (going on an “artist date”) once a month on Saturdays (to start).
Make more time for creativity by ditching something else.
Schedule moodling (artist date) for next month.
Try setting a timer for 11 minutes for a fast, creative break.
Decide what you’d need in order to finish one of your shelved projects.
Join with other artists.
Practice for expertise, play for yourself.
On the Ides, I’d rather be ______.
Be green and glean.
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[...] artists. Practice for expertise, play for yourself. On the Ides, I’d rather be ______. Be green and glean. Incorporate your passions into your work. Share Create: Days 1-31 passion SOS: Day [...]
[...] other artists. Practice for expertise, play for yourself. On the Ides, I’d rather be ______. Be green and glean. Live your passions in your work. Protect your artist space. Customize creative habithacking. Good [...]
[...] other artists. Practice for expertise, play for yourself. On the Ides, I’d rather be ______. Be green and glean. Live your passions in your work. Protect your artist space. Customize creative habithacking. Good [...]