Got another email from Claire today, asking if I am willing to take part in the research. She apologises for the delay and hopes that I will be able to take part. I thought that I had already agreed when I had given my telephone number. However I understand the need for thoroughness of approach. I now have another opportunity to consider whether I want to be part of the project.
Attached to the email is a set of guidance notes for those taking part in the research.
Before reading the guidance notes, I did have some vision of having to just talk to Claire on the telephone. But now see from her information for participants that the research will take the form of an interview at a place of my choice ‘ a community venue local to the participant‘. Its one – one and a half hours of interview. My name won’t appear on the final research paper and any names that I use will be changed. I didn’t expect it to be one and a half hours. There‘s no fee. I also have the problem of finding a suitable and appropriate place to host the interview. The interview is to be recorded so the place of interview needs to be somewhere quiet. But its entirely voluntary and I can back out at any time. I can say as little or as much as I like in response to questions.
I say yes. That is, I email her saying that I am willing to take part and that I understand that I’ll have to sign a form. I don’t mention anything at this stage about the venue for the interview or the time or date. I need time to think. Where would be a good place for something like that to happen?
Creativity in a Collapsing World Economy (2)
I think that in the world of visual art, the recession hit well before it hit the rest of the country. It can be viewed as a crisis. But on the other hand, it adds to the challenge when you have to juggle being creative with making ends meet.
Its easy to become despondent in the downturn. But I try to keep positive.
My advice to artists experiencing the recession? 1.Never give up. 2. Never become discouraged. 3. Streamline costs. 4. Pay off debts. 5. Cultivate calm. 6. Learn a new skill. 7. Have faith that art is needed now more than ever.
In terms of art work I’ve been completing outstanding projects rather than starting new ones. But I haven’t stopped being creative. I think about art a lot, plan work. I do something creative everyday. And then, of course, there’s this research into creativity project.
Creativity in a Collapsing World Economy (1)
Few are escaping the effects of the recession right now. How would you expect the economic downturn to affect the creative practice of visual artists in particular?
There are constant reports of how people are feeling the pinch. Extravagance and excess in spending is out. Frugality, mending and making do is in. People are definitely more stressed and keen to save money. This is the background to contemporary visual art. You would expect the visual arts to be deeply affected by the recession, for spending on visual arts to drop or to stop altogether.
For visual artists this translates as a drop in sales of their work and a big drop in income. Most of the visual artists I know struggle on a limited income which in the current crisis is now worth less. Opportunities like running art workshops have dried up. Many paid activities require a mass of form-filling and report writing to secure funding. Result: many artists are put off from applying for such funding such their skills lie in creating art work and not form filling or wordplay.
The overall result that you would expect from a recession, is for artists to be financially stricken, perhaps to the point where they cease their practice.
Even in a recession my brain still contain ideas for projects, painting, images. I went through a phase a few years back of gathering materials so that I have the materials. ((Need to get some purified linseed oil) I still get emails with offers and opportunities to take part in creative projects. But I am aware that the crunch is affecting my practice in other ways. There is anxiety, unpredictability, lack of funds. I am careful about how I use materials…
Talking about my creative experiences is not such an easy thing to do. On previous occasions where I have had to give talks about my art work I’ve had some kind of brief from a client and so I’ve been able to tailor the talk to their needs and expectations.
Most of the time I’ m so involved in the project, it’s taking all my energy and concentration to get it going, do it bring it to conclusion or whatever. The only people I can talk to about it are the other people I’m working with, or my immediate family. Part of my practice as a visual artist is spent in planning, then there’s the actual doing. Then there’s reflecting at the end of the activity in order to absorb what you’ve learned from the activity. In all this, there’s rarely much time to describe the experience, put it into lots of words…
I hear nothing more from the researcher, once I’ve emailed, agreeing to take part. And this is how it can be with arts projects, especially in the current climate. Everything is taking place in a climate of uncertainty. The reports on the news is that the economy is collapsing. This week world leaders will meet to discuss what they can do about the crisis… I reason that maybe the project has had its funding pulled or that maybe the researcher has had to organise and co-ordinate other parts of the research. On the other hand, three weeks is not a long time in the arts world.
Let me fill in a bit more background to this project. I’m a 2D visual artist living in London and I’ve been painting and drawing for much of my life.
What are my creative experiences? Well, they vary. I can recall activities which I have undertaken as a visual artist, fulfilled commissions, running or supporting art workshops for children and/or adults in schools or community settings, a stint as an artist in residence in a school and so on. I have taken part in real and virtual art exhibitions and am a member of various art organisations.
The invitation to take part in current research into creativity got me thinking about my own art practice and experiences. The more I thought about it, the more I thought that it might be a interesting project for me to do, that I might learn something from the experience. So, without waiting for the reply I emailed her with my phone number, saying that of course I would be willing to talk and that I could be contacted by email or phone.
After emailing her, agreeing to take part, I’m gripped with excitement by the idea of research into creativity. My mind continues to throw up questions. Isn’t creative work itself a kind of research into creativity? What kind of tests and experiments might you set up to look at something like creativity?
