Inside My Process: Inspiration
More often than not, it’s really just a claircognizant thing with me. In other words, I just know. That’s how inspiration works with me most of the time.
In other moments, it could be the lyrics of a song I’m listening to; the words of a particular speech given by a favorite speaker, author, or teacher of mine; an interesting, texture, or shape of something, or even the color of the aura of a thing. Also, works of other artists inspire me. Peter Lindbergh’s photography, Annie Leibovitz’s work, Irving Penn’s pictures, a random photography book in a bookstore — these things inspire me greatly. One practice I love to apply is to take the smallest element of a work that I admire and expand on it. For example, I will look at a work by Deanna Lawson, its rawness, its confidence in its being and standing as a piece of art, and Deanna’s simple yet striking style. Then, I take what resonate with me and I explore those thing within my own work: extreme confidence in my subject and themes; understanding that a minimalist approach is dope too, and ultimately, do my thing my way.
Lately, my energy has been extremely sensitive and vulnerable to spiritual interpretations, meanings, symbols, and readings. Thus, much of what has inspired me lately has been of a spiritual nature, which I’m noticing many of my latest works have represented. For example: Pisces Blue Moon, Energy Station, Aurora Scanning, and any of the pictures I’ve made in the First-Eye Seeing Gallery.
At bottom, it’s about vibrations and energy with me. I’m inspired by what moves me to action; what resonates within my soul; what sparks my alchemic creativity, and what speaks to the god in me. I recently made a picture that symbolizes exactly what I mean: Mimi ni langu.
If I may speak candidly, I am on a spiritual journey in this incarnation, or in other words, I’m on my life path and the beauty, folklore, joy, freedom, introspection, relationships, and wisdom that come with such a Master Eleven life path, really, I catch inspiration from myriad people, places, and things.
Even notions such as abundance, the higher self, breaking free, soul urge, destiny and fate, personality and nature—all these types of things that are pretty to think of can induce me to action. Ultimately, I act on whatever impulse comes into my awareness, no matter how big or small. However, I don’t blindly chase every creative download I get. I sit with it and then I see what visions about the idea I get. If Spirit, my First Eye, my Higher Self, the Universe, my Spirit Guides, and/or the Creator doesn’t give me any vision of substance, I simply let the idea go back into ether.
And then you get a creative download that the Creator, the Universe, and your Guides confirm in whatever method (by song, image, conversation, symbol, etc.) and you instantly know to follow that idea and work to manifest it’s expression.
Finding inspiration is one of the purest joys in the arts. It’s like a play date with the Universe where all you’re asked to do is stay open and receptive to whatever may come to you.
Easy ways to catch glimpses of inspiration are: spend time with loved ones and allow the conversations and stories to spark your creativity; spend time in nature; spend time alone, or spend time in a place that wasn’t previously on your radar, as the point is to spend time in an unfamiliar environment which will spark your creative senses to get outside comfort zones and routine ways of thinking. Push yourself to evolve.
