Hot off the press - i have made a series of small ink drawings to illustrate this wonderful book about Curiosity and the Focusing process written by Peter Gill The Way of Curiosity
I paint in watercolour (with ink, oil pastel and wax resist) Behind the quick expressive marks is much observation and i aim to distil my experiences in order to express something of the essence. Keeping things spontaneous helps me find my authentic voice Colette Cameron has over 25 years experience of devising and delivering creative workshops which has earned her a reputation as a skilled and compassionate tutor. She encourages a sense of curiosity and aliveness towards both the creative process and our lived experience of the world around us. From the words of a participant - “Colette is so inspiring - she has such a gentle, warm and encouraging approach you cannot fail to feel more confident and brave to try new things. She also is really good at teaching techniques which open up new ideas” Her approach to teaching reflects her artistic style - encouraging expressiveness, freedom to explore, and playfulness. She has an understanding of the psychology of creativity
The creative process is one of leaning into uncertainty. As we make friends with a sense of not knowing the outcomes (if we will succeed or fail with this or that project), we no longer need to hold tightly to a fixed outcome, and we gain the freedom to make mistakes, and to experiment. We start of notice that we have more choices, and so we become more agile, responsive, and intuitive.
As a recovered perfectionist i know how stifling it is to need to get things 'right', and not to make 'mistakes' and how critical voices can hold you back. In fact making and resolving mistakes can lead us to something far more interesting than what was intended, so that mistakes are a very welcome part of the creative process
It can help a great deal if we make friends with the parts of us that feel stuck or inadequate. The parts that aren't sure we're up to it, that don't like the uncertainty of the creative process, and that think it's too dangerous to try
Focusing Practitioner - I offer workshops which explore the theme of What holds us back from being more creative? and how to befriend our inner critics..
"Focusing is an awareness process – something you do internally – that is based on the idea that a certain kind of body sense called a “felt sense” can help us discover and follow the best next steps of our life" Anne Weiser Cornell