20 ways to develop your imagination and creativity

20 ways to develop your imagination and creativity

Usually people associate creativity with artists, writers and actors. However, most life situations require creative approach and thinking out of the box. Imagination helps to solve many problems, to achieve success in personal relationships and to increase the productivity and profitability of the business. However, in the development process, you can face the fact that you have run out of ideas.

There are 20 simple ways to develop your creative skills and find new ideas from everywhere:
1. Try to write or draw with your opposite hand. Make written notes, dial phone numbers, slice meat by other hand. As you know, each arm is controlled by opposite hemisphere of your brain, so you can activate your brain in different way and see the world in other colors.
2. While placing napkins on the dining table, fold them in some unusual fancy shapes.
3. When sitting in the traffic jam, notice the license plates of nearby cars, add the numbers in your mind, square the result and then divide it by seven.
4. Cut out some pictures from magazines or newspapers and separate them from their captions. Mix them all and randomly spread captions to pictures. Do you see something interesting? Is there an idea for a new caption or a funny caricature?
5. Divide complex problems on sub-tasks and make lists of them.
6. The next time you travel into an unfamiliar city, do not bring a map. Read the traffic signs and try to determine which local resident you can ask for directions.
7. Carry a pencil and paper everywhere. While sitting on the subway, in the waiting room of your doctor, etc., try to draw everything you see, not necessarily to paint a picture for a museum. For example, sketch a coffee pot on a tissue. Draw a chair in the margin of the magazine. Try to sketch objects spatial perspective.
8. Satisfy your curiosity. If you are interested in something, search for how-tos in the internet, look in the guides, ask someone!
9. Start learning a foreign language.
10. Try new food products every fourth visit to the grocery store. Just put in your shopping cart products that you haven't bought yet.
11. Consider any advertisement in a magazine or newspaper. What would you improve in a graphic design? Come up with a new advertising slogan or suggest the better commercial name for this product.
12. Try to measure food volume with your eyes when cooking.
13. Map out your goals and make a plan of actions for the next five years. Think of something serious: your career, rearing your child, growing a garden or buying a new house.
14. Learn how to play games that require strategy, such as bridge, chess or poker.
15. Change your usual route to work. Measure the time and compare it to the time you usually spent.
16. Open the dictionary and randomly select a word. Try to make a pun, an anagram, or a point of the funny story.
17. Read as much as you can, watch movies and go to plays. Analyze the behavior of characters, try to put yourself in their shoes and think how you would behave in their situation.
18. Be attentive and sharp. Try to notice every detail, whether it is an unusual color combination on a banner advertising or a violin sound from a street musician. Observe and distinguish a variety of smells.
19. Compose tales and fables and try to illustrate them. Give real objects unrealistic features of color, shape, volume, etc.
20. Imagine what it would be like if dinosaurs, some of the plants or animals came to life again? The point of this activity is to learn how to represent something impossible and unreal. Offer it to your friends, record and compare your stories.

There are 20 simple ways to develop your creative skills and find new ideas from everywhere:

1. Try to write or draw with your opposite hand. Make written notes, dial phone numbers, slice meat by other hand. As you know, arm is controlled by opposite hemisphere of your brain, so you can activate your brain in different way and see the world in other colors.
2. While placing napkins on the dining table, fold them in some unusual fancy shapes.
3. When sitting in the traffic jam, notice the license plates of nearby cars, add the numbers in your mind, square the result and then divide it by seven.
4. Cut out some pictures from magazines or newspapers and separate them from their captions. Mix them all and randomly spread captions to pictures. Do you see something interesting? Is there an idea for a new caption or a funny caricature?
5. Divide complex problems on sub-tasks and make lists of them.
6. The next time you travel into an unfamiliar city, do not bring a map. Read the traffic signs and try to determine which local resident you can ask for directions.
7. Carry a pencil and paper everywhere. While sitting on the subway, in the waiting room of your doctor, etc., try to draw everything you see, not necessarily to paint a picture for a museum. For example, sketch a coffee pot on a tissue. Draw a chair in the margin of the magazine. Try to sketch objects spatial perspective.
8. Satisfy your curiosity. If you are interested in something, search for how-tos in the internet, look in the guides, ask someone!
9. Start learning a foreign language.
10. Try new food products every fourth visit to the grocery store. Just put in your shopping cart products that you haven't bought yet.
11. Consider any advertisement in a magazine or newspaper. What would you improve in a graphic design? Come up with a new advertising slogan or suggest the better commercial name for this product.
12. Try to measure food volume with your eyes when cooking.
13. Map out your goals and make a plan of actions for the next five years. Think of something serious: your career, rearing your child, growing a garden or buying a new house.
14. Learn how to play games that require strategy, such as bridge, chess or poker.
15. Change your usual route to work. Measure the time and compare it to the time you usually spent.
16. Open the dictionary and randomly select a word. Try to make a pun, an anagram, or a point of the funny story.
17. Read as much as you can, watch movies and go to plays. Analyze the behavior of characters, try to put yourself in their shoes and think how you would behave in their situation.
18. Be attentive and sharp. Try to notice every detail, whether it is an unusual color combination on a banner advertising or a violin sound from a street musician. Observe and distinguish a variety of smells.
19. Compose tales and fables and try to illustrate them. Give real objects unrealistic features of color, shape, volume, etc.
20. Imagine what it would be like if dinosaurs, some of the plants or animals came to life again? The point of this activity is to learn how to represent something impossible and unreal. Offer it to your friends, record and compare your stories.

I recently visited the Universal Studios situated at the National arts theatre comlex in Lagos. Here I saw a large number of those I can call "Artists in training" expressing themselves while under the tutilage of some masterful hands of Mr Josh Nmesioronye and Mr Ejor Walace.

It is nice today to see such numbers wanting to proudly wear the artistic robe as compared to the situation in the 70's and through to the 90's when Fine Arts was considered by majority of the public a career for the educational misfit. Nigerians now know better.

Mr Josh Nmesioronye teachinga student.

The universl Studios is headed by veteran Artists in Mr Bunmi Babatunde and Mr Abiodun Olaku. This informal school fills the void created in the art educational curriculum while motivating and encouraging many of us established artists to strive and lend our quota in whatever manner to the uplifting of the cultural and creative location of Nigerian arts.
                                                                                  

Grace Ighavbota

Sanya Gbemileke

Opaleye Adeola

Here are a couple of students who I felt stood out During the visit.

                                                                                                                                                       

                                                                                      

NEW PAINTING

                                                                 NEW PAINTING

He who must run.

EVENTS

The Guild of Professional Fine Artists of Nigeria recently welcomed its new members into the association. It was hosted by one of its trustees. The following pictures are snippets of the occasion.

PAINTING OF THE WEEK

Abiodun Olaku is one of Nigeria's greatest pride when it comes to the art of painting. He graduated from the well known Yaba college of technology and is revered for his landscape paintings which are examples of the perfection he teaches to many of the students who throng to his studio yearly in the hope of learning his technic and imbibing his philosophy about art in general.

His works are in many homes in Nigeria and abroad. He has had his solo exhibitions and numerous Group exhibitions. An erudite scholar who is very firm in his beliefs but also very ameable and aproachable. He is a very active member of the society of Nigerian artist{SNA) and the guild of professional fine artists of Nigeria (GFA)

gender statements

curves

                              MENTORING TIME

I have had many requests from young and aspiring fine artist who are willing for me to teach them to paint like i do. Most times I take it as a compliment but I also find it odd that a lot of up and coming artist still do not understand the fundamentals and spirit behind being creative.
Creativity in its various forms are expression which are gifts from God and are meant to be shared with humanity in general and the artist is a unique vessel to bring this to the world. The nature and approach of each artist is manifested in their different technic and signature. By signature I mean the constants observed in the paintings of individual artist. For example, the way brush strokes are laid and layered, preferences for some particular colors and sizes, plus a lot of other variables that we might not be able to discuss here.
Now, teaching anyone to paint like I paint is no problem, but even if I am able to find that one prodigy that finally is able to paint like me, what good have I done him. He will forever live in the shadows of Sam Ebohon.

 My point is this, you can observe and study anybody’s paintings. You can even go ahead and use his technic in achieving your objective but you must not lose your soul in the process. Your soul is what makes you who you are and it must be the greatest catalyst of your creative process. You can have bits and pieces of inspiration from the works of those you admire and would want to emulate (as we know that there is nothing new under the sun) but in the end it must be you that the viewer sees whenever they look at your work.
I believe every creative work is actually an experiment.. That is why we are expected to improve with each work we do. With this you will discover more of your abilities and capabilities every day. This is the way I started.

You can do it too.

I expect your reactions.

Sam Ebohon     

Navigating the Art World: An Introduction

Navigating the Art World: An Introduction

Share on facebookShare on twitterShare on emailShare on printMore Sharing Services83

As astounding as this may seem, there's a structure and a protocol to the art world, and to the gallery system in particular; it's a system that's been in place pretty much as long as galleries have been around, and one that's not about to change. So the quicker you learn the basics, the more time, effort, money and especially heartache you'll save when searching for galleries that are right for your art. The good news is that once you understand how things work, you can purposefully and effectively make your way through artland in order to get where you want to go, wherever that may be.

You see, artists proceed from exhibit to exhibit and gallery to gallery during the course of their careers in entirely orderly and predictable manners; nothing is random. There are always reasons why certain artists and certain kinds of art end up at certain galleries, institutions, museums and other established art venues. Likewise, art careers advance step-by-step, deliberately, incrementally and over extended periods of time. Sure, an occasional art star materializes suddenly out of nowhere, but this is by far the exception rather than the rule. And even these occasional materializations become orderly and predictable once the surprise wears off.

Just like in any other profession, artists early in their careers have to begin at the beginning, and in the art world that means showing your art pretty much anywhere anyone will have you. The only criteria at this point is that no matter where you show your art, be sure that some segment of the general population will see it, especially people who have never seen it before. Possible venues include coffee shops, restaurants, furniture showrooms, fashion boutiques, hair salons, lobbies of commercial buildings, renting an exhibition space with artist friends, private viewings at someone's home or apartment, juried or non-juried shows, open studios, and anywhere else you can get warm bodies through the door-- that's the key. Not only does this provide experience and feedback in terms of seeing how others react to your art, but it also maximizes the number of people who'll have opportunities to see it. And the more people who see your art, the greater the chances that someone will tell someone will tell someone, and one of those someone's might own a gallery or know someone who owns a gallery and like your art enough to either want to make contact with you or convince someone else to contact you. That's how gallery shows often originate.

Admittedly, those of you who've graduated from art school have an edge on the competition, at least during the early stages of your careers, meaning that during the course of your studies, you've likely been exposed to local gallery owners, critics, curators, collectors and other notable members of the art community-- so you kind of know who's who. Learning your area art scene geography is one of the great benefits of a formal art education, but it doesn't mean any of these people are going to do anything for you, and it sure doesn't mean you can walk into Triple A Fine Arts and get yourself a show just because you met the owner once. You've got to work your way up the ladder just like everyone else, but at least you know where to find the ladder.

Those of you who've acquired your art-making skills outside the academic realm (and there are tons of you too) can circumvent this logistical disadvantage simply by immersing yourself in your local art communities. Go to gallery openings, museum shows (especially for local or regional art and artists), talks, tours, open studios and other known art hangouts. Openings are especially good because you get to see large numbers of art people all at once. Don't go to one or two events and think you've done your duty; go to plenty and keep on going. You can either talk to people or not while you're there, although talking is better. Either way, the upshot of repeatedly seeing and being seen is that (a) you begin to see the same people over and over again, (b) sooner or later you find out who they are, (c) sooner or later they find out who you are, (d) conversations eventually break out, (e) you share information, and (f) you eventually figure out how to navigate the art scene just like everybody else.

Perhaps an even greater benefit in addition to becoming known in the area is that you demonstrate your desire to participate and get involved and in so doing, show that you're serious about becoming successful as an artist and committed to doing whatever's necessary to achieve that end. So many artists think all they have to do is send emails, social network, carpet-bomb local or regional galleries asking for shows, email art people inviting them to look at their websites, make occasional calls or visits to galleries, and generally invest minimal time and effort to get their art out into the public. They think all they have to do is hunker down in the studio and that opportunities for exposure will mysteriously ultimately appear out of nowhere. This "If I make it, they will come" approach to getting shows is guaranteed not to get you anywhere fast, and in fact, will likely get you nowhere at all. There is no easy solution and no substitute for getting yourself and your art out in public, frequenting local art venues and events, and meeting as many people as possible along the way-- wherever and whenever you can.

So let's say you advance from the "show anything anywhere" phase to participating in a handful of group shows at decent local galleries to maybe getting a solo show or two at entry-level galleries that specialize in emerging artists to maybe even having your art favorably received by the local community. Now even a successful show or two does not mean you're ready to approach the best galleries in town. As in the non-art world, you don't go directly from stock clerk to head of the company or from being a local bar band to getting a gig at Madison Square Garden. You progress step-by-step and show-by-show; that's how artists get known. Are you beginning to see how this hierarchy works? Excellent.

For those of you who need a little more in the way of explanation, let's take a moment to examine how and why the best galleries in town come to show the artists they do. To begin with, these galleries do not randomly select artists who happen to walk through the door or make contact in other more casual ways like by email, mail or phone (hardly any galleries anywhere do that). They don't even select artists based solely on whether they like the art or even on how good it is. That's the shocking part-- your art can be really good-- I mean really really good-- and prominent galleries will not show you no matter what. Why? In order to show at such a gallery you and your art have to be a total match. The quality of your art is only one step in the process. There's also your resume, your reputation, your accomplishments, your profile and standing in the art community, how you are to work with, your previous sales history, the quality of critical reviews of your past shows, and much more.

Simply put, the best galleries show the best artists. That's why they're the best galleries. Who are the best artists, you ask? They're artists who've proven themselves over time, who started at the beginning showing wherever they could, painstakingly building their resumes one line at a time, establishing consistent track records of successful shows, convincing those who count that they're committed to making art, favorably impressing the curators and critics, demonstrating that they're capable of doing what's expected when it's expected, selling well, selling consistently, and so on and so forth ad infinitum. In short, they're artists with firmly established reputations. And here's the important part-- they established those reputations themselves. And here's the really important part-- galleries don't establish artists' reputations; they only enhance them. It's your job and yours alone to prove that your reputation is worth enhancing. And that's how the gallery system works.

Additional tips for getting yourself and your art out there:

* Make sure you get the word out about your shows in as many ways as possible including online art gallery and event calendars, websites that are relevant to your art, social networking pages, blogs, newspapers, and at physical locations where art people tend to congregate. Exposing your art to as many first-timers as possible is critical to your success.

* Get to know those in the art community who are most involved with your type of art. When you meet or get introduced to these people, go slow, take it easy and talk about whatever feels comfortable-- art or otherwise. Save the hard sell for later. Good relationships take time to develop.

* Intern or volunteer at local galleries or non-profit organizations that are involved with art similar to yours, or also at local museums. These are excellent ways to meet people and get involved with the local art community.

* Intern or volunteer to work with established artists whose art you like and respect