“Creativity is an exploratory process to find the concealed material within.” -Rick Rubin
This week I found a book that helped me understand creativity more clearly, called “The Creative Act: A Way of Being” by Rick Rubin. I wanted to share it with all the artists here who might need this type of inspiration. Think of this as a conversation over coffee, I will be writing in my voice and just telling you about it and my thoughts related to creativity.
I have been lost in my work this week. I am starting to develop a flow. I feel different. I am listening more —to myself, and to this greater force in my work that moves me. It’s hard to ignore. It feels freeing to listen rather than doubt, but parts of me are still on shaky ground. The work is at point of growth, but it could all tumble if I am not careful. So I persist.
When I picked up this book, I had no idea who Rick Rubin was, although my first records in middle school were Hip-Hop records. It is interesting that this book found me at a pivotal time when I most needed it to continue on. It made me love the book even more, that I had no preconception of who Rubin was, and so if you don’t know who he is, it doesn’t matter.
Rubin talks about how creativity in art is like an unfolding we partake in — something we must become aware of to experience more fully. It has a purity to it-in caring about expression. I know what art is not — it is not a product. It is so much greater. I feel that in my heart — because art has saved me at pivotal times in my life. Rubin believes that the true success in art is not exterior, but interior — it is the success of the soul. He talks about purity in self-expression about letting go of all the voices of criticism, perhaps the most powerful of these is our own — and realizing these stem from our past. Letting these voices go is important.
Rubin believes Art is a way. The artist embodies a way of being, a way of interacting with the world, a way of being open, a way of looking within, a way of listening.
Rubin reminds us that art requires discipline, but it is also play. He explains that art can be though to move through phases of seeds, experimentation, crafting and completion.
He explains that art allows us to feel this overwhelming sense of connection; it opens a window into the subconscious and to other mysteries we do not understand. Writing helps me access parts of myself that were lost.
Rubin describes the spiritual nature of art, he puts into words this pure connection we feel when we create. Art connects us to universality. Reading this book is the first time I saw it explained on paper.
Art is a dance. We shift between being fully aware of what we are creating and then doubting what we are doing here in this place. We feel we don’t deserve it.
Rubin says,
“Talent is the ability to let ideas manifest themselves through you.”
So I manifest. And I hope you manifest too. The world needs art. Perhaps today more than ever.