Would just like to commend Russell on his skills as an interviewer which seem to go largely unnoticed. He always gives his guests time and room to speak, his questions have depth, intelligence, inquisitiveness, he always comes prepared and injects comedy in at various points.
I have noticed the same yesterday as I watched the interview with Gervais. He really lets the guests speak and is very present all the time, while being in silence. I love him more and more and wished I could just spend an afternoon talking and listening to him:)
I feel he's a very respectful interviewer. He probes without crossing a line or being intrusive which for me make interviews hard to watch. I think he has a nice way of giving his opinion or questioning something without it being argumentative too. Nice to see an adult discussion :)
@@HappinessOrDeath no, he's not. Nobody is a 'natural', and THAT is the brilliant and lovely thing about it. It takes practice. Ask anybody who is capable of acting in such ways. :) ;) much love, stranger! Keep practicing, we are all capable of being ultra-present and compassionate! 💚
But if you don't have good taste you're sunk from the beginning, cause you have no rudder to steer by. So great to hear Liz put that crushing disappointment into words and call it normal and better yet be able to laugh about it (after having a NYT #1 best seller for 3 years, of course).
@@WillyJunior Mine too has been around 15 years (with dance) and the frustration has plauged me like a bad rash. I've had extremely BRIEF (which I suppose inspires us to continue) moments of joy, relief and breakthrough with it but it's mostly been frustration. I too am close...I guess skill-level and authentic expression (vision) have to be somewhat evenly matched and that just requires persistence, patience and practice. Keep going man 🙏🏼
I got goosebumps when she said that. It reminds me of my own perfectionism. Its hilarious that she has the same type of conversations i have with my own conscience. 😂However, i'm not so friendly. I need to grind me teeth, slam the chair into the floor a couple of times, say "I DONT GIVE. A. FUCK. SIT.", throw random things through the room, punch a few pillows, give myself few slaps on my cheeks, write, and then when i finish "SEE? NOBODY DIED!?." I'm 28 now, hopefully one day our relationship is better and we can have a laugh. :)
I tried making this same argument to my MFA committee. The fetishization of the “tortured artist” has absolutely become a badge of honor for aspiring creatives. It’s as if your worth is measured by the depth of your despair. It creates a horrible community to get involved with, as everyone is concerned about portraying the stereotype rather than enjoying the creative process. It’s worse too if you point this out. You’ll be labeled as shallow, and unrefined. Artists were once intellectuals that would dance with the muse and create visual metaphors that would assist people in navigating through life-it was about the art, not about playing the part of the “artist”.
Krishna's Puss True...it doesn’t bother me at all if artists want to put on a show and highlight their struggles and frustrations with the muse (that might be a major part of their work after all); my criticism was the culture that demands every artist do so in order to be taken seriously. Furthermore, it’s become more about the struggle than the work itself. This allows room for individuals to “act” rather than create anything substantial. After all, anyone can “struggle”, and when you remove the stipulation that the “struggle” must lead to something worthy of celebration, you get people leaving canvases blank and demanding respect (not saying everyone’s an actor-just that this creates an opportunity for people to take advantage of the situation). When they inevitably run into criticism, the argument is often that the public just doesn’t get them...that’s literally the definition of pretentious behavior. Focusing on the struggle shouldn’t be the point in most cases...most things worthy of celebration are born from struggle, but shouldn’t be overshadowed by it. When you’re listening to an orchestra, you better believe that each musician has put in hour after hour of work struggling to live up to the expectations of future callings, as well as self criticism...but during the concert you don’t see them standing up screaming at the crowd that they’ve suffered for their art-it’s self evident. I once met a guitarist that refused to learn how to play chords or sing on tune, and that was the point of his music. He hasn’t been signed by any music label and doesn’t expect to be (honestly much of his songs are difficult to sit through). He’s doing his own thing, which is cool. Many artists are like him, except that they demand celebration and lash out at criticism. It creates a world that’s celebrated by a few (individuals that run the art world), and criticized by the majority (the public). It creates a tough spot to be in, and it’s no wonder many artists are frustrated by the situation.
Krishna's Puss great input! I’ll look up some of his interviews. That’s my point though-just like Martin Creed, or the guitarist that doesn’t want to learn traditional methods-everyone should be allowed to pursue their “thing”. Some will be successful, like Martin, and others will have to evolve or just carry on doing as they please. My argument was that I should be allowed to do my thing as well. With instagram and other social media apps, the art world is becoming less closed by the day. This gives people more freedom as far as self expression is concerned. It’s been a great boost for more traditional artists that don’t fit the desired mold that’s expected by some individuals in the art world. Also, while Martin may not rely on the spectacle of the “tortured artist” to legitimize his work, many artists do, and this idea is also espoused by many university professors and faculty members unfortunately. Trust me lol.
Krishna's Puss like I said, most of what I’ve encountered was in a University setting. Usually the claim is also a response to criticism, or a way to try to avoid criticism as it suggests that their work is simply misunderstood. As such, I’m obviously not going to start naming people as their instagrams can easily be found and I’m not looking for anyone to ridicule anyone. Again, I’m not against tortured artists-I’m against the expectation of playing the role. I’m sorry that you experienced the opposite of what I encountered. I’m not for either outcome. I’ve worked as a professor (head of the 3D department) and I can tell you that the universities around here are riddled with said expectations, for the students and faculty alike. There are greater expectations about how well you pontificate about this or that (usually in the form of your artist statement), rather than the quality of your work. Are you trying to claim that the romanticization of the “tortured artist” doesn’t exist in the contemporary art world? Again, me naming individuals who identify with the stereotype will do very little for the conversation at hand-it won’t prove anything and may cause them issues. Naming a few individuals as “proof” that this exists is as nonsensical as naming a few individuals that don’t identify with the stereotype and claiming that it proves that it doesn’t exist.
"You can get addicted to a certain kind of sadness," wrote Gotye, in his hit song 'Somebody That I Used To Know,' and I think he was hinting at something we all know, deep down, and experience (to varying degrees). Like anything, there's a balance... being a tortured artist doesn't mean that you've elevated the state of torture above the art itself, but I certainly have met people who are that way. I remember, in a high school advanced art class, being in awe of some of the works of my classmates - and I told them so. Sometimes they'd respond with, "I hate my work," or something along those lines... and I never understood that, only because my work (I'm a composer / songwriter / essayist / artist) almost always brings me joy (even when its themes are dark). However, in general, rather than judge too much those who are tortured (or seem to embrace that relationship with art), I simply feel lucky that I have a grateful appreciation of my own work (since I know that not all do). Interestingly enough, the joy that art brings to me tends to be felt most strongly when that art is transforming something hard or sad or torturous into something beautiful. I often find beauty in that (not that I'm choosing those types of themes consciously, but I see my own patterns), and so a good portion of my work can come across as contemplative or sad or melancholy to the audience, even while I'm feeling incredible joy. In the end, I think art tends to arise when humans feel things strongly. And our brains seem to engage with things that are negative (and chew on them intellectually) more than things that are positive. So it's not surprising that works of art are more often built out of feelings of being ill-at-ease, melancholy, yearning, or whatnot... and that artists are thus perhaps slightly (?) more likely to be feeling this way, at least during the creative process, and perhaps even about the creative process itself.
Maybe when they are making it it is causing a sense of vulnerability, that comes from being on a journey...and the end result like the destination isn't necessarily the goal - but part of the whole.
Your videos during this “crisis” appear to be evolving into greater depths of sincerity and inquisitiveness. I really like how Gilbert challenges the notions of struggle and perfectionism as necessary to great art, or just the process. This video was very timely for me. Thank you
It totally has for me as well. Earlier this morning I was looking for books on the creative process after reading Steven Kings On Writing. Wasnt able to find what I was looking for until I came across this video. Love when that happens!
I love that he listens, so many interviewers are looking down at their clip boards and plotting the next question. You can tell from his questions that he actually LISTENED to the last answer.
I love when young children tell you a story. Especially when it starts off as recall and their eyes suddenly widen as they start adding a dragon to their shopping trip or a mermaid to their swimming lesson. I hear many people say don't tell lies or make things up and I think no please do! Keep that imagination forever
Then the adult opens themself up to creative possibilities. We all daydream a little I suppose. Thinking what you'd do with a lottery win or how it would be to live in another area. Just some adults act on their daydreams or work on making it realistic and others don't
@Toni Memetaj While not recognised officially there is a community of people who use the term maladaptive daydreaming, coined by profesor Eli Somer, to describe adults who comulsively daydream to an extent that their professional and social lives suffer.
Never stop anyone from daydreaming, i was a child now i am an adult. But i still hear the same ignorant shit. You are crazy, get a proper job, you're too sensitive,,,blah blah.
not a well thought-out thought though, people die even from text messages, books contain more words, Jewish, Native Americans and Africans will agree... Mein Kampf and the Bible have killed a couple...
I'm thinking of trying a guided acid trip to see if I reconnect with the creativity has been languishing since I recovered from my addictions. But I was warned- that experience can show you what can happen - if you commit put the work in...it's not a spontaneous change
Kat59 With whom would you do this guided trip with? Acid can go either way. What’s worrying is we can’t know if changes in the brain or trauma can trigger a bad trip. Tripping when younger with less trauma, I had a good time and felt that connectivity. Now? No. Now I will be anxious and have a bad trip regardless. I don’t know whether that’s because of changes in my brain (I have various conditions and disabilities, for example I have epilepsy and Tourette’s syndrome) or trauma I’ve had since, less naivety, medical trauma, the trauma of being assaulted etc. I FEEL I’ve gotten over these things, but can I ever really know? No I can’t. If you are feeling like your only choice to get back to it is drugs of most kinds, I’d argue that perhaps life, or this mystery she speaks of, is sending you in a new direction. I find writing so hard now, my short term memory is so terrible I find it hard to remember how I was feeling when I began, and it doesn’t feel right or cohesive. Instead of turning to something external I’ve tried to engage with the force that pushes me and us all in strange and unpredictable ways. I am still creative, but in a different way. I’ve made some (very humble) videos talking about my conditions, and I speak and work in advocacy and within service and I have found this to give me so much satisfaction within a different form of creativity. Creativity as well as everything else changes and grows. Look at Russell himself - I first discovered him via a show he made whilst on a lot of drugs called Re:Brand (RUclips it if you’ve not watched it, it’s very interesting especially to look back on the journey Russell’s made. This was pre mainstream fame) and watched him on TV for years doing stand up, then movies, then politics, and now he has this channel and podcast which is in complete opposite pursuit of the life he once lived but still channeling that creative force within him. Perhaps you won’t recapture this because you cannot and are no longer meant to, because you are not identical to the person you were then. Maybe explore how your creativity can be channelled in new and different ways, what you are seeking it for, etc before trying these drugs. In my experience, it is best to go into a trip relaxed and seeking nothing but the experience you will receive, rather than a desperation for something that will provide specific external results. It may be that the trip shows you that. But it may show you things you aren’t ready to see and hear and understand if you come out of it disappointed because you were focusing on the goal of getting back your previous form of creativity. Love and light xxx
I have found that people get really angry with you when you let things go a little easier or just not freak out over everything. I have my moments, but this "let it ride" attitude helped me not to be overly afraid of COVID. I can't control everything. I believe that God can (because I'm a Christian), but even those who share my beliefs are thoroughly frustrated when I say, "Oh, I did my best, then let that ride."
I love how she explains this. It's so true!! Being a writer and artist I find creativity to be a experience with the universe and the Divine. You have no name for it because your acting as a vessel, a conduit for it. Whether it's visions, dreams or whispers in your ear....stories and characters present themselves to you and offer you insight into other realities, other perspectives, and wonders. It is a mystery and it's a glance at infinity. You can ride the wave or take the offering in grace, and craft something with it. The whole idea of the muse in your head, or the deimon glimpsing over your shoulder steering you towards a end goal has some validity. Thank you for this conversation! 💜
Does anyone else struggle with knowing when you have hit the "this is good as I can do right now" threshold? Reminds me of a quote which has been attributed to da Vinci- "art is never finished, only abandoned".
As someone who repeatedly starts creative projects (because they are oozing out of me) and fails to complete them because they aren't "good enough", I really needed to take this in today. I've learned to be more self-accepting in the past few years but this really registered with me. Great clip, thank you.
Just to give my two cents on this; Ideas are almost like separate entities to us. They are channelled through us through creativity. To be creative you must be receptive. This is why good ideas come to you when you're falling alseep or in the shower. You're in a receptive state. Ideas come from the realm of dreams, the realm of the spirits, the astral realm. To understand more on this I really recommend you reading the initiate - some impressions of a great soul by 'his pupil'
I would say that ideas are not separate entities but they are concepts that form in your brain as a result of experience when several other existing ideas form a different pattern in your brain because your experience is unique and your unique neural pathways create this new idea from information that you have which is e.g. triggered by some meditative, receptive moment in the shower.
@@renaars I appreciate your rationalist perspective but practice self induced out of body experiences for a few years and get back to me. Creativity is literally channelling from the divine into the material. It sounds like a crackpot theory but research astral projection, the rabbit hole will be big enough to convince you of its validity. Once convinced it is real I urge you to practice it, anyone can do it, your inner life will unravel and blossom once you start spending your nights interacting with beings of light
Big Magic and Recovery are the only books that I have read more than once and they sit perpetually on my bedside table. I have bought Big Magic for 4 friends but more notably, I bought it for my writer friend the day after her Dad died. I was so scared that she would isolate herself from her art but I knew that she would need that relationship with her demon. We still talk about it 2 years later. I've been playing with a tattoo idea of the Trickster and The Martyr and the Court Lobster is my all-time favorite story. Thank you, thank you, thank you to Russell and Liz for your contributions and for FINALLY doing this podcast! You have saved and enriched the lives of people I love many times over, you are both living gold ❤️
".I dont want to die on the cross of perfectionism".Love what Elizabeth Gilbert has to say .I can only do the best I can .I love her honesty and humility.
"You are not the commander of, but you are in a relationship with." That is profound. Thanks for that perspective. I've never quite known how to put that into words. People, myself included, have applied this to a sort of magical thinking. You made it plain, easy to understand, and ...organic. Beautifully said.
As an artist I totally get what Elizabeth is saying. The whole process of creating art is quite a mystery for me, but a lovely one at that. When I’m in “the zone” it really is like I’m dancing with myself and my subconscious mind. I never really thought to much about it, but really is quite a unique experience and an enjoyable one at that. Art when I’m in the zone comes very quickly for me. I can finish a piece in about 2-3 hours. I always know I will eventually come up with a solution so I don’t beat myself up about the process, rather just enjoy the moment. But yes, the vessel is a good way of explaining it. Im very grateful to experience such a thing. Having said all that I was at war with creativity for a long time. I’m not exactly sure how I got out of that war. I think perhaps it was just a process of letting go and seeing where it will take me. That in itself was a battle between me and my subconscious mind and coming together in union. It was not something I purposely sort out it just sort of happened overtime.
Famous songwriter often say, they have no idea what their lyrics mean, whereas other writers and the public will all have strong opinions on the meaning of the lyrics. Is it the songwriter has a spark of inspiration from the divine which they can not explain... Do we all read into the lyrics what we want to see, or has the divine spoke to us through a language we understand.....
Thank you Russell. Watching the interview just now. Just saved my life. I mean literally just saved my life. As a lifelong artist musician and writer people and their judgment and degradation of me, made me feel like my addictions and self destructiveness was nothing more than a moral failing. I have mostly known that that was bullshit, and I suppose in my mind I could even articulate why, I'm fairly well read more well read than all of my friends, but I was never able to defend myself to them in an articulate way. I just took the accusations the punishment and the abandonment, hung my head and walked off into the shadows to die. I always knew I would die cold and alone, I would tell myself. I would physically punish myself, with self-harm in even more drug abuse, praying for death. I also came from a childhood of mental physical and sexual abuse, trauma that felt like it had ruined me. I will try one more time. People don't realize that God gave us heaven on Earth, that things don't have to be this way, that we don't have to rob, murder, kill and connive each other. That people have to oppress other people by demeaning them or by violent transgressions to feel they have power over them is a cancer in the world. Love one another.
Wow that bit where she describes her one normal happy relationship being with her writing is so so like mine with art and always turning to it for sanctuary is exactly what I have always done. Absolutely anyone who has creativeness inbuilt will relate to that and also to the mention of the feeling that it is just there and nothing to do with being deserved or hard won.
Very few people in my life are fully supportive of my creativity. My partner of 17 years doesn't understand my creativity and is scared of it. I have proven myself many times by deing creative with things she wants but it's still not enough for her to fully understand and support my full creative abilities. What's sad is after a while creativity dwindles down. You have to recognize that and bring your creativity back by ignoring others and get creating.
If you like and believe what she has to say (especially about how creativity is a group consciousness you can interact with) , look up Abraham hicks and listen to their talks. I have chills because Gilbert is so removed from that world and still is echoing their words, Much love !
Liz is such a glorious human. How we experience things so often comes down to our metaphors: our mindset structured into our language. Is it a war (strategy/plan of attack, winning!, pinning down an idea, admitting defeat), a dance (alone or co-created with another/many, a step answered by a step, finding your rhythm), or myriad other approaches? Her playfulness and humility feel like oxygen.
I've been writing since I was four and I've only just begun to understand the concept of letting thoughts flow and pass through you, to work in harmony with creativity rather than trying to shape it rigidly into one thing.
I'm sure this is the most engaged, receptive, rapt and HAPPY (like a carefree little boy happy) Russell, I've ever seen during an interview - like he's saying "yesss, this is what I wanted to know" 😍😍😍
A conversation between you two is a dream come true! Thank you wise ones for your gracious, loving, curious and delightful ways of dancing with the mystery! Love love love you!
I'm not a pagan, but as a musician and composer, it is something I always pick upon as well. When I am composing, complex and multilayered associations and emotions come out in the music that I can't fully understand myself, as the creator. It is a bizarre experience and it does often feel that inspiration and ideas almost come to me from some other place, oppose to from within me. Whether or not it is a mystical experience, or simply the inherent logic and patterns within a musical idea screaming to be fleshed out in a certain way, is another question. Much in the same way 2 + 2 = 4, sometimes creative exercises have that sort of logic to them that makes where they end up an inevitable outcome of their internal logic. That can often appear to the creator that the creation is taking on a life of its own, or has some form of external existence.
Do you feel that as you are composing, or more when you are at the final more analytical stage? For me it always seems quite nuts and bolts when I am in the initial creative stage, but when I step back from it is when I see the multilayered associations and emotions that I then have to process and normally have to edit to make it a cohesive listening experience.
@@tonedowne That may just be due to the differences in our personality. For me it is the opposite. The initial stage is the intuitive stage and then after comes my analysis of my intuitions, if that makes sense? I have always been very good at improvising and writing pieces on the spot. When the ideas come I am not really thinking about them, they just seem, to come out. It is a very odd experience, but as I said whether mystical or not is another question.
@@openmusic3904 I get that. For me the transcendental moments only come when I am performing or playing with good players. I call it "hearing Jimi". It feels like the top of my head flips open and I start channeling things from outside me. I think it's the adrenaline and sense of immediacy. It brings everything I can do into focus and gives it a narrative. But yeah, as a composer, I have to keep taking a step back to know what the music needs. Otherwise it tends to be disjointed or too utilitarian.
@@tonedowne I know that exact feeling you are describing. I also get it when I listen to composers such as Bach, or even more modern music, such as Tool. It is the sense of being in the presence of a great force of nature, like a mountain. Or something eternal and mysterious that you can't quite put into words. Synchronicity is probably the word, and being engaged in something overflowing with meaning. Some people refer to it as the 'third eye'....It is a very cool and exhilarating experience. But whether that is mystical, or deeply materialistic and explainable is still a mystery I suppose
Good comment. I feel that way too but also have trouble with working on a task to the end because I'm high in openness yet low in conscientiousness. How, do you think, does one find this balance, or is it too variable between individuals to have a correct answer?
Strongly disagree: routine is critical to enabling "the natural flow of" creativity. Eg...(music). Every day routine (do it). Rough production routine (write>arrange>mix>master.. FINISH). You can have a routine for writing. Eg... guitar, vocals, accoustic style, country style etc... Creativity requires boundaries and routine is a big boundry. You can be creative in and WITH the routine. Eg..Music example again... You can change up the writing routine. You can't write books if you only write a paragraph. You need to routinely write. Routine is critical, a routine of FINISHING is probably the most crucial thing.
That would completely depend on the routine and the individual -> your statement meaningless (but then, you're only here to promote your channel, as we all know, so whatever)
A creative mind is a still mind? who ever told you that? the greatest minds were the most creative minds and their thoughts sent them crazy, majority of them ended up becoming alcoholics like the great Alan Watts, druggies like Rockstars/Pop Stars/Celebrities or Authors such as Paulo Coelho, suicides like Kurt Cobain/Avicii, Self-inflict like Vincent Van Gough.. a true creative does not have a still mind regardless of what level of Yoga he may have reached or how wise the man may be (see Alan Watts).. a true creative has no control of their mind and they are in a constant battle.
i grew up absolutely loving russell's comedy but seeing him in a much better state of mind and making really insightful youtube content now is so wholesome and inspiring
i think this video is what ive been needing for the past 2 months. i been slowing down and being in a rut, and i knew i needed something to rejuvenate my spirit. i didnt know what it is, but now that ive seen this i know that this is what it was the whole time. thank you for sharing
She is so wise! This video made me feel more free. As an artist, I also struggle with perfectionism. But it is so much better to let go and do the next thing. Thank you for sharing!
Creativity should be a dance not a fight. I love that. I've been practicing more calm, focused, not so rushed artistry and it is so much more rewarding of an experience. Being okay with this moment I'm in, where I may not have the artistic career I've always dreamed of, but at least I am artistic. It's okay that I do not have these external things. I have my own spiritual connection to art. In the end that will matter more than a list of accolades. I connect with this woman.
@@mojopin70 No, I did not realize how pretentious I sounded to you and perhaps others, I'm aware of this now, thank you. The nature of my comment was rooted in my occult based beliefs regarding the spiritual nature of creativity specifically how when engage with creativity the mind becomes something of a wrestling match between reason and wild impulses. The dance of these two energies requires courage as all creativity tends to draw the artist inward threatening to overcome and destroy the various parts of the artists life, a good example of this is Kurt Cobain. Kurt was a man who was literally and publicly destroyed by his inability to manage his creative impulse, a man devoured by his Tiamat so to speak. As per the comment regarding ego, I didn't initiate this thread from a state of ego and I'm not responding from a place of ego either, as is the nature of all calm surfaces your observation is merely a reflection of an ugliness within yourself, a sort of rubber meets glue situation so to speak. (I thumb my nose cheekily)
It has a voracious appetite. It eats everything-- friendship, family. It kills me how much it eats. But I'll tell you something else. You feed it right, and it can be a beautiful thing....
Russell Brand, you've always had a huge spark of brilliance emanating from you, and it's refreshing to have been able to see you use that brilliance in so many various ways through the years. I'm grateful that you are who you are and that I've been lucky enough to have been alive during a time and place and state of technology that's allowed me to experience so much of you. Thanks for all you do, Russell. You're a beautiful person.
Lovely lady. It’s good enough, when to leave your writing or art alone. We can’t be perfect. When you realise this, things relax and you can channel that creativity you are given.
Elizabeth is 100% in the money here. Being in the blaze is not sustainable and it is the quickest way to burn out. You need space to be humble, to be of service to the craft, & to have room to play. Is never too late to learn this lesson as a creative. 🙏
I recently dropped out of school to pursue music. All my life, I've had diverse and deep tastes for music - I like everything from rock to jazz, from folk to some pop. I have always had such a deep love of music. Thing is, I never thought about pursuing it professionally until recently. I've always been told I was good at this instrument or that thing - my middle school band teacher always conplimented my saxophone playing. My high school choir teacher had such kind things to say. I mainly sing. Other than that, I play a little guitar and am learning piano. I am new to songwriting and am attempting to write my first E.P. And let me tell you, I completely feel what she is saying in this video: I know what good music sounds like to me, but I do not feel like my skills are up to creating it! It is so refreshing and freeing to hear her take on this dilemma: Just finish the thing to the best of your abilities. Don't freeze with perfectionism. Reminds me of something the great Leonard Cohen said. Paraphrasing slightly, it was something like, "Don't worry about making your creation perfect; the flaws are where the light gets in." Peace, and good luck creating, people.
Ive been having a war trying to write a book. Im in recovery alot of yrs. Bloody love you Russell and shes fabulous to listen too. This is very empowering. Thankyou Kel☆
OMG! Thank you for this interview, Russell & Elizabeth. I have been hanging on the cross of perfectionism and needed to absorb the words about giving as much as you've got in the moment. "This is the best I can do" - THANK YOU. Truly. I'm going to go finish the book now.
The ability to turn a negative into a positive is a RARE underappreciated gift. If you can do that, you LITERALLY have the ability to make the world a better place than what you found it in.
OMG- how is it that I am only hearing Liz Gilbert’s words two years after she spoke them on this interview? I wish I could talk to her directly! Kindred spirit.
as a young creative who is just beginning to feel the deep well of creativity, life, vibrancy and raw power within this hits deep. on so many levels. time for another listen!
mmmm. "A level of detachment." That's the law I have been focusing on the most in my 21 day Deepak Chopra program I'm currently involved and diving into. It's a delicate dance - because I usually manifest by specificity, intertwined with my intuition and imagination. But when it comes to my acting career and being attached to wanting a certain outcome soooo badly with it, and matching up with the clear picture I've had in my mind for decades, of course that, I realize, is an instance where my attraction to a goal is hurting me in the process. And the things that matter to me, but not as much in the spectrum of intensity for attaining the outcome I hope for - are these gifts! Where I put out the intention and then the universe just graciously surprises me with endless synchronicities are my daily blessings and cause such joy. I love these conversations. I've been experimenting with manifestation for years, upon realizing I would have a thought or say anything out loud and instantaneously, it would show up in my life. I knew it is a skill that we all have intrinsically within us. So you know what? I'm dedicating now that with my career, I will conduct myself with this same mind set - swap perfectionism with play, with love for being of service to offer what I can. Thank you
Yes yes yes! This is my never ending struggle as a perfectionist creative. I flip from one to the other until grinding to a halt, failing and doing something else to pass the time. Procrastination from the never ending pursuit or creative perfection. Really looking forward to this video!
I had never thought of creativity as being something an artist was at war with - I just always assumed that artists (and I’m including myself in here as I’m a writer) were/are extremely sensitive people and over sensitivity can cause all kinds of problems. At least that’s my experience. Maybe men do experience creativity differently- I had never thought about that. I just love Elizabeth Gilbert. I wish she lived next-door.
Love this! Challenging this incessant need for self-destruction in the search for creativity really reminds me of what David Lynch once said about the creative practice: "A lot of artists think that suffering is necessary, but in reality, any kind of suffering cramps the flow of creativity. [...] Happiness “in the doing” is so important. I always say it’s our life going by…. [With creativity flowing], ideas are easier to catch - and ideas that could take you out of “drudgery work” and lead you to some… fantastic things." Amen to that!
The War of Art by Steven Pressfield is a fascinating, easy read that addresses this topic as well! Loved it. One of those books that artists can always re-read and gain something new and incredibly valuable every time, or certainly an understanding, a reminder, of how to allow your creativity as an artist to flow or otherwise have its nature to be expressed through you never cease.
The thing is, its as simple as "you have to get out of your own way". Completely no thoughts or critisicing what you do. Like music, just go with the flow. But you cant play music unless you know basic scales. So like Miles davisd said, you gotta learn it all then forget it all. I think we should let go of the word God and Divine, its too misleading and has too much dogma attached. The Bhuddha said he was never anything other than a human man and let me tell you, there aint many of them on Earth, too many man vultures who are too scared to live and instead live off of others (money, selling, marketing... all that fake shit) Basically the hippies were and always are right. Lets create new systems... oh wait, we cant becasue were completely oppressed.. bummer, i suppose we just have to let it die, lets hope this corona is the death of the economy, certainly the beggining of the end. :)
Nah we just need to clean the bullshit and dogma surrounding the word God and the Divine and start using them again. No words can ever replace those. People start using "the universe/source" etc but it's just not as powerful, doesn't do the trick. We can't leave it nameless because it is a force and it is working through us, so we better name it.
ashleyispresent I agree with you. The original words have a strength and power. I’d like to see them cleansed of all negative associations. I can understand that some people feel uncomfortable using those words and it’s up to each person
Great that destroying the economy is good for your feelings, (someone who has no future prospects). but most people live in the real world, where the reason food gets stocked on shelves is because of the economy. The reason I live in a house is because of the economy. The reason I can do basically anything in the modern world is because of the economy. Although I sympathise with your view, 7.8 billion people cant be nomadic hunter gatherers. What your calling for is a mass genocide and not very smart either.
I think of creativity as letting myself tune into different (very quiet) vibrations that I have to listen to… I mainly express myself writing songs. Many sad, which are sometimes therapeutic to write, sometimes rowdy or funny. It feels like I put my feelings out and internalize at the same time. Several times, when I am quiet in my mind and “flow” thinking the song is “given” to me. I simply am writing it down. Where I get into trouble is when my ego tries to censor my “flow” it’s like it’s saying “well, I should think about this!” But, by putting away my ego, and listening to the vibration, I have enjoyed many creative experiences, and produced my best work…. Even though, sometimes when it’s given to me, even in my subconscious, I feel like I’m plagiarizing divine input.
I have never seen a picture of Elizabeth Gilbert before but the two of you captivated me from the first words.. thank you .. Its such an important and relevant discussion in this modern world of lost gods and creative idealisation. Thank you..
Creativity is purely intuitive. It's a muscle you flex when you practice being in the moment. It's also the same frequency as being in the "zone". I discovered this in a similar way, through intuition, I perfected it through music improv and improv theater. The missing factor between a creative intuitive and an engineering genius is simply an organizational mind, to relate "learned" functions and their relationships.
Surely it's just the subconscious mind that is creating. When I need to solve a problem or need a story to develop I ask my subconscious to give me an answer before I go to sleep and, within a day or two, it does just that. Sometimes I will tell myself the story in a lucid dream.
Its a nice way of looking at creativity....being connected to some kind of otherworldly power, feeding you new thoughts.... but as someone highly creative myself, I just don't think that's how it works. Being in creative mode, just requires your brain over time to be better at coming up with ideas, solutions and connecting dots to things you see around you... which forces adaption within the brain... a rewiring takes place so you become better at these tasks. Anyone can be highly creative in my opinion, most just don't pursue it with any degree of seriousness and dedication. Instead they choose to take the more passive route of consumption....which is not nearly as fulfilling a life lived.
When I was younger I felt like I was out of order or egotistical for feeling as if I were connected to God or some divine meaning when I painted.I was embarrassed to talk about it.I felt like I must be insane in some way.But that's how I felt then.I was a the vessel God used to paint with.God made the brush strokes with my hands holding my brushes. Cool!
@@jillfarquhar8399 ultimately it doesn't matter where you think it comes from, so long as you don't waste it and put good things out into the world that enriches the life's of those around you.
I dunno, for me the ego is the creative drive. When I lose the blind faith in my own ability to create something of value, I cant create anything at all. Good or bad. For me the tortured artist bit is the fight between feeding the ego enough to be able to create, which involves a bit of self obsessed narcissism/escapism, and being a responsible, rational human being with real world responsibilities. I flit from one to the other and feel guilty about both. Maybe it's just the price of making a living out of your passion.
I lean towards something similar. What we connect to when we are touched by art - a book, a piece of music, a painting etc. I believe is something inherently human that we all recognise. I like to think off it as “lived innocence”. For it to be created it requires artists to be playful, to become innocent again. It is different from the innocence of children’s play though. Otherwise all children would be fantastic artists. This one is hard earned. I think that is where this idea of the tortured artist comes from. But it is always the same thing we work towards: the overcoming of the self. I believe that, like children’s play, it is very serious business. But the torture comes in when we are not able to focus. That is the difference with kids play and adult play. When kids play they are always present and focussed. And paradoxically they are able to forget themselves: which is the artist’s dream.
Quite inspirational; also the comments here too! I have often marvelled at how the mind just receives a whole flow of words and ideas from ‘nowhere’! We have a lot to learn about quantum memory, and how a creative mind seems to automatically assemble our impulses and experiences from many sources into something amazingly usable. It seems to be similar with dreams; the night mind assembling many inputs from the day into a seemingly coherent visual story.
The most important thing for a creative mind is to know to PLAY. Be in the process of finding out the bullshit that is driving you away from your inner creative impulses. Start living like a nomade in a modern society. Don't consume the established. But create whats yet unestablished. And what feels true to your being.
I adore Liz Gilbert. Even though I have never met her in person, I consider her a mentor. I am a writer and independent filmmaker and her audio book Big Magic was my companion on a long road trip and I recommend it to all creative people. She is down to earth, talented and I love listening to her voice as well as reading her novels.
Love this! I run my music project with a very similar mindset. At first it was tough, and I would be very hard on myself. Now I’m really starting to love all aspects of my project. The end where she talks about getting to the next project is exactly how I feel as well. I have 108 original songs on my channel that I have written recorded and released over the years. And there’s no way that I would have done that without this sort of mindset. Creating is so exciting when you have the right balance of things going on.
Taking this as a sign from creator to finish my first book. It was directly addressed. Lol thank you. It's my birthday, this was my gift today. I found your video.
Here's another way to look at what she talks about in the first 3 minutes about being "pulled in different directions by characters". In life and as an artist you play many different roles. Making a distinction between them through labeling can help you gain greater control over your situation.
I’ve been evolving into this space. From sex, to relationships, work or play... you get the best I’ve got at the time. If I wasn’t sufficient, take it up with the universe.
Thank you so much of sharing your words and perspective during these changing times. One of my biggest goals in life is to cook a meal for you, to thank you for how much you inspired me when I was at my most broken, and to be able to sit down and have a conversation with you when this is all over. Take care and stay healthy my friend!
i love this SOOOO much...and what Joseph Campbell says about the artist diving down into the darkness and coming up with the pearl...artists will save us, we need them now like never before
Ever since watching about you in someone's video, I've never stopped seeking to learn from you more and more. You are our mentor. 'wish we had you in my country. Please be careful and stay safe.
Yes! When you know what good looks like but my abilities are not up to taste yet! Frustrating times in this arena now. Chasing perfection, I'm learning that imperfections are quite perfect x this lady is a breathe of fresh air thank you x
"An idea comes - and you see it, and you hear it, and you know it… We don't do anything without an idea. So they're beautiful gifts. And I always say, you desiring an idea is like a bait on a hook - you can pull them in." David Lynch
lmaooo I love your facial expression tuned into the camera. I bought the artist way. book yesterday. Its a journey going through these blocks and clearing those blocks daily.
Would just like to commend Russell on his skills as an interviewer which seem to go largely unnoticed. He always gives his guests time and room to speak, his questions have depth, intelligence, inquisitiveness, he always comes prepared and injects comedy in at various points.
and so much compassion!
I have noticed the same yesterday as I watched the interview with Gervais. He really lets the guests speak and is very present all the time, while being in silence. I love him more and more and wished I could just spend an afternoon talking and listening to him:)
He's a natural
I feel he's a very respectful interviewer. He probes without crossing a line or being intrusive which for me make interviews hard to watch. I think he has a nice way of giving his opinion or questioning something without it being argumentative too. Nice to see an adult discussion :)
@@HappinessOrDeath no, he's not. Nobody is a 'natural', and THAT is the brilliant and lovely thing about it. It takes practice. Ask anybody who is capable of acting in such ways. :) ;) much love, stranger! Keep practicing, we are all capable of being ultra-present and compassionate! 💚
"My abilities had not yet come up to my taste". Oh how I know this frustration so well...
Ancient Future Oh yes! Me too!
Snap.
I would say I'm 95% there and my god, it's been an insane, 15 year rollercoaster.
But if you don't have good taste you're sunk from the beginning, cause you have no rudder to steer by. So great to hear Liz put that crushing disappointment into words and call it normal and better yet be able to laugh about it (after having a NYT #1 best seller for 3 years, of course).
@@WillyJunior Mine too has been around 15 years (with dance) and the frustration has plauged me like a bad rash. I've had extremely BRIEF (which I suppose inspires us to continue) moments of joy, relief and breakthrough with it but it's mostly been frustration. I too am close...I guess skill-level and authentic expression (vision) have to be somewhat evenly matched and that just requires persistence, patience and practice. Keep going man 🙏🏼
" I'd rather finish and complete the book then die on the cross of perfectionism!" Wow that struck deep. I need a refrigerator magnet of that .
Umm... sticky note? Why so picky, sir? Just get er' dun. 🤠🙂👍
Yes
Agreed! I love this, too: ' Be brave enough to suck at something new'.
I got goosebumps when she said that. It reminds me of my own perfectionism. Its hilarious that she has the same type of conversations i have with my own conscience. 😂However, i'm not so friendly. I need to grind me teeth, slam the chair into the floor a couple of times, say "I DONT GIVE. A. FUCK. SIT.", throw random things through the room, punch a few pillows, give myself few slaps on my cheeks, write, and then when i finish "SEE? NOBODY DIED!?." I'm 28 now, hopefully one day our relationship is better and we can have a laugh. :)
This really grabbed my attention too!
I tried making this same argument to my MFA committee. The fetishization of the “tortured artist” has absolutely become a badge of honor for aspiring creatives. It’s as if your worth is measured by the depth of your despair. It creates a horrible community to get involved with, as everyone is concerned about portraying the stereotype rather than enjoying the creative process. It’s worse too if you point this out. You’ll be labeled as shallow, and unrefined. Artists were once intellectuals that would dance with the muse and create visual metaphors that would assist people in navigating through life-it was about the art, not about playing the part of the “artist”.
Krishna's Puss True...it doesn’t bother me at all if artists want to put on a show and highlight their struggles and frustrations with the muse (that might be a major part of their work after all); my criticism was the culture that demands every artist do so in order to be taken seriously. Furthermore, it’s become more about the struggle than the work itself. This allows room for individuals to “act” rather than create anything substantial. After all, anyone can “struggle”, and when you remove the stipulation that the “struggle” must lead to something worthy of celebration, you get people leaving canvases blank and demanding respect (not saying everyone’s an actor-just that this creates an opportunity for people to take advantage of the situation). When they inevitably run into criticism, the argument is often that the public just doesn’t get them...that’s literally the definition of pretentious behavior. Focusing on the struggle shouldn’t be the point in most cases...most things worthy of celebration are born from struggle, but shouldn’t be overshadowed by it. When you’re listening to an orchestra, you better believe that each musician has put in hour after hour of work struggling to live up to the expectations of future callings, as well as self criticism...but during the concert you don’t see them standing up screaming at the crowd that they’ve suffered for their art-it’s self evident. I once met a guitarist that refused to learn how to play chords or sing on tune, and that was the point of his music. He hasn’t been signed by any music label and doesn’t expect to be (honestly much of his songs are difficult to sit through). He’s doing his own thing, which is cool. Many artists are like him, except that they demand celebration and lash out at criticism. It creates a world that’s celebrated by a few (individuals that run the art world), and criticized by the majority (the public). It creates a tough spot to be in, and it’s no wonder many artists are frustrated by the situation.
Those same artists, of course, went through pain and struggles of their own.
New Thought yes, of course. The question is how much that should come into play when considering the work itself.
Krishna's Puss great input! I’ll look up some of his interviews. That’s my point though-just like Martin Creed, or the guitarist that doesn’t want to learn traditional methods-everyone should be allowed to pursue their “thing”. Some will be successful, like Martin, and others will have to evolve or just carry on doing as they please. My argument was that I should be allowed to do my thing as well. With instagram and other social media apps, the art world is becoming less closed by the day. This gives people more freedom as far as self expression is concerned. It’s been a great boost for more traditional artists that don’t fit the desired mold that’s expected by some individuals in the art world. Also, while Martin may not rely on the spectacle of the “tortured artist” to legitimize his work, many artists do, and this idea is also espoused by many university professors and faculty members unfortunately. Trust me lol.
Krishna's Puss like I said, most of what I’ve encountered was in a University setting. Usually the claim is also a response to criticism, or a way to try to avoid criticism as it suggests that their work is simply misunderstood. As such, I’m obviously not going to start naming people as their instagrams can easily be found and I’m not looking for anyone to ridicule anyone. Again, I’m not against tortured artists-I’m against the expectation of playing the role. I’m sorry that you experienced the opposite of what I encountered. I’m not for either outcome. I’ve worked as a professor (head of the 3D department) and I can tell you that the universities around here are riddled with said expectations, for the students and faculty alike. There are greater expectations about how well you pontificate about this or that (usually in the form of your artist statement), rather than the quality of your work. Are you trying to claim that the romanticization of the “tortured artist” doesn’t exist in the contemporary art world? Again, me naming individuals who identify with the stereotype will do very little for the conversation at hand-it won’t prove anything and may cause them issues. Naming a few individuals as “proof” that this exists is as nonsensical as naming a few individuals that don’t identify with the stereotype and claiming that it proves that it doesn’t exist.
"You can get addicted to a certain kind of sadness," wrote Gotye, in his hit song 'Somebody That I Used To Know,' and I think he was hinting at something we all know, deep down, and experience (to varying degrees).
Like anything, there's a balance... being a tortured artist doesn't mean that you've elevated the state of torture above the art itself, but I certainly have met people who are that way. I remember, in a high school advanced art class, being in awe of some of the works of my classmates - and I told them so. Sometimes they'd respond with, "I hate my work," or something along those lines... and I never understood that, only because my work (I'm a composer / songwriter / essayist / artist) almost always brings me joy (even when its themes are dark).
However, in general, rather than judge too much those who are tortured (or seem to embrace that relationship with art), I simply feel lucky that I have a grateful appreciation of my own work (since I know that not all do).
Interestingly enough, the joy that art brings to me tends to be felt most strongly when that art is transforming something hard or sad or torturous into something beautiful. I often find beauty in that (not that I'm choosing those types of themes consciously, but I see my own patterns), and so a good portion of my work can come across as contemplative or sad or melancholy to the audience, even while I'm feeling incredible joy.
In the end, I think art tends to arise when humans feel things strongly. And our brains seem to engage with things that are negative (and chew on them intellectually) more than things that are positive. So it's not surprising that works of art are more often built out of feelings of being ill-at-ease, melancholy, yearning, or whatnot... and that artists are thus perhaps slightly (?) more likely to be feeling this way, at least during the creative process, and perhaps even about the creative process itself.
Maybe when they are making it it is causing a sense of vulnerability, that comes from being on a journey...and the end result like the destination isn't necessarily the goal - but part of the whole.
Finding a positive vent, for ugly themes
Your videos during this “crisis” appear to be evolving into greater depths of sincerity and inquisitiveness. I really like how Gilbert challenges the notions of struggle and perfectionism as necessary to great art, or just the process. This video was very timely for me. Thank you
*Russel Brands most funny EVER 1 minute video. Pure brilliance, pure class.* 😂ruclips.net/video/2wTfWlwBW1s/видео.html
Indeed, the climate crisis needs creatives and people who dare to think differently!
It totally has for me as well. Earlier this morning I was looking for books on the creative process after reading Steven Kings On Writing. Wasnt able to find what I was looking for until I came across this video. Love when that happens!
Christopher Redding agree completely...came at a perfect time for me as well
I love that he listens, so many interviewers are looking down at their clip boards and plotting the next question. You can tell from his questions that he actually LISTENED to the last answer.
Never stop a child from daydreaming.... that is their creative juices flowing.
I love when young children tell you a story. Especially when it starts off as recall and their eyes suddenly widen as they start adding a dragon to their shopping trip or a mermaid to their swimming lesson.
I hear many people say don't tell lies or make things up and I think no please do! Keep that imagination forever
Then the adult opens themself up to creative possibilities. We all daydream a little I suppose. Thinking what you'd do with a lottery win or how it would be to live in another area. Just some adults act on their daydreams or work on making it realistic and others don't
@Toni Memetaj they call it "Peter pan syndrome"
At least that's what i was told. That's why they say "get your head out of the clouds"
@Toni Memetaj While not recognised officially there is a community of people who use the term maladaptive daydreaming, coined by profesor Eli Somer, to describe adults who comulsively daydream to an extent that their professional and social lives suffer.
Never stop anyone from daydreaming, i was a child now i am an adult. But i still hear the same ignorant shit. You are crazy, get a proper job, you're too sensitive,,,blah blah.
''No one is going to die from a book that has a 2-dimensional character...'' Thank you, this sets me free.
not a well thought-out thought though, people die even from text messages, books contain more words, Jewish, Native Americans and Africans will agree... Mein Kampf and the Bible have killed a couple...
@@gogoleateeste9630 The Quran and the Communist Manifest killed even more people.
I think in the correct context as in if you were writing a fictional character for a story wouldn't kill people
@@ironheadfm I'd go toward repurposing an old adage- 'books don't kill people, humans do'
@@ironheadfm fair to say, a book can kill
“I wish I had that level of detachment with everything in life because imagine how playfully you could engage”
I'm thinking of trying a guided acid trip to see if I reconnect with the creativity has been languishing since I recovered from my addictions. But I was warned- that experience can show you what can happen - if you commit put the work in...it's not a spontaneous change
Kat59 With whom would you do this guided trip with? Acid can go either way. What’s worrying is we can’t know if changes in the brain or trauma can trigger a bad trip. Tripping when younger with less trauma, I had a good time and felt that connectivity. Now? No. Now I will be anxious and have a bad trip regardless. I don’t know whether that’s because of changes in my brain (I have various conditions and disabilities, for example I have epilepsy and Tourette’s syndrome) or trauma I’ve had since, less naivety, medical trauma, the trauma of being assaulted etc. I FEEL I’ve gotten over these things, but can I ever really know? No I can’t. If you are feeling like your only choice to get back to it is drugs of most kinds, I’d argue that perhaps life, or this mystery she speaks of, is sending you in a new direction. I find writing so hard now, my short term memory is so terrible I find it hard to remember how I was feeling when I began, and it doesn’t feel right or cohesive. Instead of turning to something external I’ve tried to engage with the force that pushes me and us all in strange and unpredictable ways. I am still creative, but in a different way. I’ve made some (very humble) videos talking about my conditions, and I speak and work in advocacy and within service and I have found this to give me so much satisfaction within a different form of creativity. Creativity as well as everything else changes and grows. Look at Russell himself - I first discovered him via a show he made whilst on a lot of drugs called Re:Brand (RUclips it if you’ve not watched it, it’s very interesting especially to look back on the journey Russell’s made. This was pre mainstream fame) and watched him on TV for years doing stand up, then movies, then politics, and now he has this channel and podcast which is in complete opposite pursuit of the life he once lived but still channeling that creative force within him. Perhaps you won’t recapture this because you cannot and are no longer meant to, because you are not identical to the person you were then. Maybe explore how your creativity can be channelled in new and different ways, what you are seeking it for, etc before trying these drugs. In my experience, it is best to go into a trip relaxed and seeking nothing but the experience you will receive, rather than a desperation for something that will provide specific external results. It may be that the trip shows you that. But it may show you things you aren’t ready to see and hear and understand if you come out of it disappointed because you were focusing on the goal of getting back your previous form of creativity. Love and light xxx
Kat59 Also hi - former addict here too :)
@@crystalbethseizetheday8669 one day at a time... xo
I have found that people get really angry with you when you let things go a little easier or just not freak out over everything. I have my moments, but this "let it ride" attitude helped me not to be overly afraid of COVID. I can't control everything. I believe that God can (because I'm a Christian), but even those who share my beliefs are thoroughly frustrated when I say, "Oh, I did my best, then let that ride."
I love how she explains this. It's so true!! Being a writer and artist I find creativity to be a experience with the universe and the Divine. You have no name for it because your acting as a vessel, a conduit for it. Whether it's visions, dreams or whispers in your ear....stories and characters present themselves to you and offer you insight into other realities, other perspectives, and wonders.
It is a mystery and it's a glance at infinity. You can ride the wave or take the offering in grace, and craft something with it. The whole idea of the muse in your head, or the deimon glimpsing over your shoulder steering you towards a end goal has some validity. Thank you for this conversation! 💜
Does anyone else struggle with knowing when you have hit the "this is good as I can do right now" threshold? Reminds me of a quote which has been attributed to da Vinci- "art is never finished, only abandoned".
I felt this with my whole chest
As someone who repeatedly starts creative projects (because they are oozing out of me) and fails to complete them because they aren't "good enough", I really needed to take this in today. I've learned to be more self-accepting in the past few years but this really registered with me. Great clip, thank you.
Just to give my two cents on this;
Ideas are almost like separate entities to us. They are channelled through us through creativity. To be creative you must be receptive. This is why good ideas come to you when you're falling alseep or in the shower. You're in a receptive state.
Ideas come from the realm of dreams, the realm of the spirits, the astral realm.
To understand more on this I really recommend you reading the initiate - some impressions of a great soul by 'his pupil'
I would say that ideas are not separate entities but they are concepts that form in your brain as a result of experience when several other existing ideas form a different pattern in your brain because your experience is unique and your unique neural pathways create this new idea from information that you have which is e.g. triggered by some meditative, receptive moment in the shower.
@@renaars I appreciate your rationalist perspective but practice self induced out of body experiences for a few years and get back to me. Creativity is literally channelling from the divine into the material. It sounds like a crackpot theory but research astral projection, the rabbit hole will be big enough to convince you of its validity. Once convinced it is real I urge you to practice it, anyone can do it, your inner life will unravel and blossom once you start spending your nights interacting with beings of light
@@AaronLyons I hope I can rationally get out of myself and my ego :D
@@renaars does dmt count as rational?
Jokes aside; look into astral projection... its real. I wish others knew about it
Awesome 2 cents
Big Magic and Recovery are the only books that I have read more than once and they sit perpetually on my bedside table. I have bought Big Magic for 4 friends but more notably, I bought it for my writer friend the day after her Dad died. I was so scared that she would isolate herself from her art but I knew that she would need that relationship with her demon. We still talk about it 2 years later. I've been playing with a tattoo idea of the Trickster and The Martyr and the Court Lobster is my all-time favorite story. Thank you, thank you, thank you to Russell and Liz for your contributions and for FINALLY doing this podcast! You have saved and enriched the lives of people I love many times over, you are both living gold ❤️
".I dont want to die on the cross of perfectionism".Love what Elizabeth Gilbert has to say .I can only do the best I can .I love her honesty and humility.
"You are not the commander of, but you are in a relationship with." That is profound. Thanks for that perspective. I've never quite known how to put that into words. People, myself included, have applied this to a sort of magical thinking. You made it plain, easy to understand, and ...organic. Beautifully said.
As an artist I totally get what Elizabeth is saying. The whole process of creating art is quite a mystery for me, but a lovely one at that. When I’m in “the zone” it really is like I’m dancing with myself and my subconscious mind. I never really thought to much about it, but really is quite a unique experience and an enjoyable one at that. Art when I’m in the zone comes very quickly for me. I can finish a piece in about 2-3 hours. I always know I will eventually come up with a solution so I don’t beat myself up about the process, rather just enjoy the moment. But yes, the vessel is a good way of explaining it. Im very grateful to experience such a thing.
Having said all that I was at war with creativity for a long time. I’m not exactly sure how I got out of that war. I think perhaps it was just a process of letting go and seeing where it will take me. That in itself was a battle between me and my subconscious mind and coming together in union. It was not something I purposely sort out it just sort of happened overtime.
Famous songwriter often say, they have no idea what their lyrics mean, whereas other writers and the public will all have strong opinions on the meaning of the lyrics. Is it the songwriter has a spark of inspiration from the divine which they can not explain... Do we all read into the lyrics what we want to see, or has the divine spoke to us through a language we understand.....
Robert Loades that’s lovely ✨
If you understand yourself enough, you will know what your lyrics mean. It’s your subconscious speaking to you.
Thank you Russell. Watching the interview just now. Just saved my life. I mean literally just saved my life. As a lifelong artist musician and writer people and their judgment and degradation of me, made me feel like my addictions and self destructiveness was nothing more than a moral failing. I have mostly known that that was bullshit, and I suppose in my mind I could even articulate why, I'm fairly well read more well read than all of my friends, but I was never able to defend myself to them in an articulate way. I just took the accusations the punishment and the abandonment, hung my head and walked off into the shadows to die. I always knew I would die cold and alone, I would tell myself. I would physically punish myself, with self-harm in even more drug abuse, praying for death. I also came from a childhood of mental physical and sexual abuse, trauma that felt like it had ruined me. I will try one more time. People don't realize that God gave us heaven on Earth, that things don't have to be this way, that we don't have to rob, murder, kill and connive each other. That people have to oppress other people by demeaning them or by violent transgressions to feel they have power over them is a cancer in the world. Love one another.
Drug addiction is not a moral deficit. It is a medical and physiological condition.
A rare moment where the guest also has a decent microphone
Yeah, not like they're communicating from the other side - in the words of Adele
HELLO FROM THE OTHER SIDEEEEEE
Wow that bit where she describes her one normal happy relationship being with her writing is so so like mine with art and always turning to it for sanctuary is exactly what I have always done. Absolutely anyone who has creativeness inbuilt will relate to that and also to the mention of the feeling that it is just there and nothing to do with being deserved or hard won.
Very few people in my life are fully supportive of my creativity. My partner of 17 years doesn't understand my creativity and is scared of it. I have proven myself many times by deing creative with things she wants but it's still not enough for her to fully understand and support my full creative abilities. What's sad is after a while creativity dwindles down. You have to recognize that and bring your creativity back by ignoring others and get creating.
And cultivate Beginner's Mind. :)
If you like and believe what she has to say (especially about how creativity is a group consciousness you can interact with) , look up Abraham hicks and listen to their talks. I have chills because Gilbert is so removed from that world and still is echoing their words, Much love !
Russel and Elizabeth? Oh, best evening of this entire month
Liz is such a glorious human. How we experience things so often comes down to our metaphors: our mindset structured into our language. Is it a war (strategy/plan of attack, winning!, pinning down an idea, admitting defeat), a dance (alone or co-created with another/many, a step answered by a step, finding your rhythm), or myriad other approaches? Her playfulness and humility feel like oxygen.
Your childish and pure approach to your gift gave me tears of joy. Thanks a million for being you
Oh pleeeeease upload the entire interview, Russell, I cant see luminary from Spain and I admire her so much :((((
I second this
I've been writing since I was four and I've only just begun to understand the concept of letting thoughts flow and pass through you, to work in harmony with creativity rather than trying to shape it rigidly into one thing.
Same
I'm sure this is the most engaged, receptive, rapt and HAPPY (like a carefree little boy happy) Russell, I've ever seen during an interview - like he's saying "yesss, this is what I wanted to know" 😍😍😍
This is why so many celebrity artists say they are a 'vessel' with their work. thank you for shedding light on this 🙏
A conversation between you two is a dream come true! Thank you wise ones for your gracious, loving, curious and delightful ways of dancing with the mystery! Love love love you!
I'm not a pagan, but as a musician and composer, it is something I always pick upon as well. When I am composing, complex and multilayered associations and emotions come out in the music that I can't fully understand myself, as the creator. It is a bizarre experience and it does often feel that inspiration and ideas almost come to me from some other place, oppose to from within me.
Whether or not it is a mystical experience, or simply the inherent logic and patterns within a musical idea screaming to be fleshed out in a certain way, is another question. Much in the same way 2 + 2 = 4, sometimes creative exercises have that sort of logic to them that makes where they end up an inevitable outcome of their internal logic. That can often appear to the creator that the creation is taking on a life of its own, or has some form of external existence.
Do you feel that as you are composing, or more when you are at the final more analytical stage?
For me it always seems quite nuts and bolts when I am in the initial creative stage, but when I step back from it is when I see the multilayered associations and emotions that I then have to process and normally have to edit to make it a cohesive listening experience.
@@tonedowne That may just be due to the differences in our personality. For me it is the opposite. The initial stage is the intuitive stage and then after comes my analysis of my intuitions, if that makes sense?
I have always been very good at improvising and writing pieces on the spot. When the ideas come I am not really thinking about them, they just seem, to come out. It is a very odd experience, but as I said whether mystical or not is another question.
@@openmusic3904 I get that. For me the transcendental moments only come when I am performing or playing with good players. I call it "hearing Jimi". It feels like the top of my head flips open and I start channeling things from outside me.
I think it's the adrenaline and sense of immediacy. It brings everything I can do into focus and gives it a narrative.
But yeah, as a composer, I have to keep taking a step back to know what the music needs. Otherwise it tends to be disjointed or too utilitarian.
@@tonedowne I know that exact feeling you are describing. I also get it when I listen to composers such as Bach, or even more modern music, such as Tool. It is the sense of being in the presence of a great force of nature, like a mountain. Or something eternal and mysterious that you can't quite put into words. Synchronicity is probably the word, and being engaged in something overflowing with meaning. Some people refer to it as the 'third eye'....It is a very cool and exhilarating experience.
But whether that is mystical, or deeply materialistic and explainable is still a mystery I suppose
Elizabeth is a very mature individual, we definitely need more of her.
A creative mind is a still mind
Putting routine on creation is hindering the natural flow of the process
Good comment. I feel that way too but also have trouble with working on a task to the end because I'm high in openness yet low in conscientiousness. How, do you think, does one find this balance, or is it too variable between individuals to have a correct answer?
Strongly disagree: routine is critical to enabling "the natural flow of" creativity.
Eg...(music).
Every day routine (do it).
Rough production routine (write>arrange>mix>master.. FINISH).
You can have a routine for writing. Eg... guitar, vocals, accoustic style, country style etc...
Creativity requires boundaries and routine is a big boundry. You can be creative in and WITH the routine. Eg..Music example again... You can change up the writing routine.
You can't write books if you only write a paragraph. You need to routinely write.
Routine is critical, a routine of FINISHING is probably the most crucial thing.
That would completely depend on the routine and the individual -> your statement meaningless (but then, you're only here to promote your channel, as we all know, so whatever)
A creative mind is a still mind? who ever told you that? the greatest minds were the most creative minds and their thoughts sent them crazy, majority of them ended up becoming alcoholics like the great Alan Watts, druggies like Rockstars/Pop Stars/Celebrities or Authors such as Paulo Coelho, suicides like Kurt Cobain/Avicii, Self-inflict like Vincent Van Gough.. a true creative does not have a still mind regardless of what level of Yoga he may have reached or how wise the man may be (see Alan Watts).. a true creative has no control of their mind and they are in a constant battle.
THIS IS PROBABLY THE 50 COMMENT I SEE OF U.
i grew up absolutely loving russell's comedy but seeing him in a much better state of mind and making really insightful youtube content now is so wholesome and inspiring
i think this video is what ive been needing for the past 2 months. i been slowing down and being in a rut, and i knew i needed something to rejuvenate my spirit. i didnt know what it is, but now that ive seen this i know that this is what it was the whole time. thank you for sharing
She is so wise! This video made me feel more free. As an artist, I also struggle with perfectionism. But it is so much better to let go and do the next thing. Thank you for sharing!
Creativity should be a dance not a fight. I love that. I've been practicing more calm, focused, not so rushed artistry and it is so much more rewarding of an experience. Being okay with this moment I'm in, where I may not have the artistic career I've always dreamed of, but at least I am artistic. It's okay that I do not have these external things. I have my own spiritual connection to art. In the end that will matter more than a list of accolades. I connect with this woman.
This woman is tapping into the Marduk Tiamat paradigm, the well spring of creativity where the untamed spars with the courageous.
:D
Do you realise how pretentious you sound? This is your ego speaking.
@@mojopin70 No, I did not realize how pretentious I sounded to you and perhaps others, I'm aware of this now, thank you. The nature of my comment was rooted in my occult based beliefs regarding the spiritual nature of creativity specifically how when engage with creativity the mind becomes something of a wrestling match between reason and wild impulses. The dance of these two energies requires courage as all creativity tends to draw the artist inward threatening to overcome and destroy the various parts of the artists life, a good example of this is Kurt Cobain. Kurt was a man who was literally and publicly destroyed by his inability to manage his creative impulse, a man devoured by his Tiamat so to speak. As per the comment regarding ego, I didn't initiate this thread from a state of ego and I'm not responding from a place of ego either, as is the nature of all calm surfaces your observation is merely a reflection of an ugliness within yourself, a sort of rubber meets glue situation so to speak. (I thumb my nose cheekily)
It has a voracious appetite. It eats everything-- friendship, family. It kills me how much it eats. But I'll tell you something else. You feed it right, and it can be a beautiful thing....
So looking forward to the full podcast. As a writer I struggle with all of this daily.
Russell Brand, you've always had a huge spark of brilliance emanating from you, and it's refreshing to have been able to see you use that brilliance in so many various ways through the years. I'm grateful that you are who you are and that I've been lucky enough to have been alive during a time and place and state of technology that's allowed me to experience so much of you. Thanks for all you do, Russell. You're a beautiful person.
Lovely lady. It’s good enough, when to leave your writing or art alone. We can’t be perfect. When you realise this, things relax and you can channel that creativity you are given.
Me: Am I stoned?
Russell: *looks directly into camera
Russell: Do you feel stoned?
I loved her book "Big Magic" one of my favourite books in the past year and I read a book every week!
Elizabeth is 100% in the money here. Being in the blaze is not sustainable and it is the quickest way to burn out. You need space to be humble, to be of service to the craft, & to have room to play. Is never too late to learn this lesson as a creative. 🙏
I recently dropped out of school to pursue music. All my life, I've had diverse and deep tastes for music - I like everything from rock to jazz, from folk to some pop. I have always had such a deep love of music. Thing is, I never thought about pursuing it professionally until recently.
I've always been told I was good at this instrument or that thing - my middle school band teacher always conplimented my saxophone playing. My high school choir teacher had such kind things to say. I mainly sing. Other than that, I play a little guitar and am learning piano.
I am new to songwriting and am attempting to write my first E.P. And let me tell you, I completely feel what she is saying in this video: I know what good music sounds like to me, but I do not feel like my skills are up to creating it! It is so refreshing and freeing to hear her take on this dilemma: Just finish the thing to the best of your abilities. Don't freeze with perfectionism.
Reminds me of something the great Leonard Cohen said. Paraphrasing slightly, it was something like, "Don't worry about making your creation perfect; the flaws are where the light gets in."
Peace, and good luck creating, people.
Good Luck!
Ive been having a war trying to write a book. Im in recovery alot of yrs. Bloody love you Russell and shes fabulous to listen too. This is very empowering. Thankyou Kel☆
OMG! Thank you for this interview, Russell & Elizabeth. I have been hanging on the cross of perfectionism and needed to absorb the words about giving as much as you've got in the moment. "This is the best I can do" - THANK YOU. Truly. I'm going to go finish the book now.
The ability to turn a negative into a positive is a RARE underappreciated gift. If you can do that, you LITERALLY have the ability to make the world a better place than what you found it in.
This is how I live. Even when I’m alone I am not alone. Love
‘If you want me to write better books you might wanna bestow a little more talent on me for the next one’ gave me a big smile on a difficult evening
OMG- how is it that I am only hearing Liz Gilbert’s words two years after she spoke them on this interview? I wish I could talk to her directly! Kindred spirit.
as a young creative who is just beginning to feel the deep well of creativity, life, vibrancy and raw power within this hits deep. on so many levels. time for another listen!
She's my new hero. I love how she sees creativity. It's so pure. How it should be.
This is so true!! I feel this when I'm writing and recording my meditations; it's a really beautiful feeling 🧡
mmmm. "A level of detachment." That's the law I have been focusing on the most in my 21 day Deepak Chopra program I'm currently involved and diving into. It's a delicate dance - because I usually manifest by specificity, intertwined with my intuition and imagination. But when it comes to my acting career and being attached to wanting a certain outcome soooo badly with it, and matching up with the clear picture I've had in my mind for decades, of course that, I realize, is an instance where my attraction to a goal is hurting me in the process. And the things that matter to me, but not as much in the spectrum of intensity for attaining the outcome I hope for - are these gifts! Where I put out the intention and then the universe just graciously surprises me with endless synchronicities are my daily blessings and cause such joy. I love these conversations. I've been experimenting with manifestation for years, upon realizing I would have a thought or say anything out loud and instantaneously, it would show up in my life. I knew it is a skill that we all have intrinsically within us. So you know what? I'm dedicating now that with my career, I will conduct myself with this same mind set - swap perfectionism with play, with love for being of service to offer what I can. Thank you
You are a huge motivation during these times, thank you Russell!😊
7:27. I like that you take this turn in the conversation to discuss, a warped sense of love/creative happenings.
She has verbalized emotions every creator has struggled with 💙 I will learn to dance with creativity instead of battling with ego 🙏
Yes yes yes! This is my never ending struggle as a perfectionist creative. I flip from one to the other until grinding to a halt, failing and doing something else to pass the time. Procrastination from the never ending pursuit or creative perfection. Really looking forward to this video!
I had never thought of creativity as being something an artist was at war with - I just always assumed that artists (and I’m including myself in here as I’m a writer) were/are extremely sensitive people and over sensitivity can cause all kinds of problems. At least that’s my experience. Maybe men do experience creativity differently- I had never thought about that. I just love Elizabeth Gilbert. I wish she lived next-door.
I love this creativity series Russell is doing! So great to see his skills as an interviewer. Would love to hear him talk just on his own process too.
Love this! Challenging this incessant need for self-destruction in the search for creativity really reminds me of what David Lynch once said about the creative practice: "A lot of artists think that suffering is necessary, but in reality, any kind of suffering cramps the flow of creativity. [...] Happiness “in the doing” is so important. I always say it’s our life going by…. [With creativity flowing], ideas are easier to catch - and ideas that could take you out of “drudgery work” and lead you to some… fantastic things." Amen to that!
Literally clapping my hands in applause for this woman.
She’s awesome
The War of Art by Steven Pressfield is a fascinating, easy read that addresses this topic as well! Loved it. One of those books that artists can always re-read and gain something new and incredibly valuable every time, or certainly an understanding, a reminder, of how to allow your creativity as an artist to flow or otherwise have its nature to be expressed through you never cease.
The thing is, its as simple as "you have to get out of your own way". Completely no thoughts or critisicing what you do. Like music, just go with the flow. But you cant play music unless you know basic scales. So like Miles davisd said, you gotta learn it all then forget it all.
I think we should let go of the word God and Divine, its too misleading and has too much dogma attached. The Bhuddha said he was never anything other than a human man and let me tell you, there aint many of them on Earth, too many man vultures who are too scared to live and instead live off of others (money, selling, marketing... all that fake shit)
Basically the hippies were and always are right. Lets create new systems... oh wait, we cant becasue were completely oppressed.. bummer, i suppose we just have to let it die, lets hope this corona is the death of the economy, certainly the beggining of the end. :)
Nah we just need to clean the bullshit and dogma surrounding the word God and the Divine and start using them again. No words can ever replace those. People start using "the universe/source" etc but it's just not as powerful, doesn't do the trick. We can't leave it nameless because it is a force and it is working through us, so we better name it.
ashleyispresent I agree with you. The original words have a strength and power. I’d like to see them cleansed of all negative associations. I can understand that some people feel uncomfortable using those words and it’s up to each person
@@ashleyispresent use whatever word you want, mate
Great that destroying the economy is good for your feelings, (someone who has no future prospects). but most people live in the real world, where the reason food gets stocked on shelves is because of the economy. The reason I live in a house is because of the economy. The reason I can do basically anything in the modern world is because of the economy. Although I sympathise with your view, 7.8 billion people cant be nomadic hunter gatherers. What your calling for is a mass genocide and not very smart either.
@@crazyfrogracer2pro848 Permacultue mate. Check it out. Feeds and homes everyone, tried and tested, no need for currency. ;)
I've recently been put on medication which I feel is crushing my creative writing and art
Dr. AdamantiuM consult a naturopath
Lily Gazou or a good Ayurvedic practitioner or Traditional Chinese doctor
Yoga is also amazing :)
I think of creativity as letting myself tune into different (very quiet) vibrations that I have to listen to… I mainly express myself writing songs. Many sad, which are sometimes therapeutic to write, sometimes rowdy or funny. It feels like I put my feelings out and internalize at the same time. Several times, when I am quiet in my mind and “flow” thinking the song is “given” to me. I simply am writing it down. Where I get into trouble is when my ego tries to censor my “flow” it’s like it’s saying “well, I should think about this!” But, by putting away my ego, and listening to the vibration, I have enjoyed many creative experiences, and produced my best work…. Even though, sometimes when it’s given to me, even in my subconscious, I feel like I’m plagiarizing divine input.
I have never seen a picture of Elizabeth Gilbert before but the two of you captivated me from the first words.. thank you .. Its such an important and relevant discussion in this modern world of lost gods and creative idealisation. Thank you..
Creativity is purely intuitive.
It's a muscle you flex when you practice being in the moment. It's also the same frequency as being in the "zone".
I discovered this in a similar way, through intuition, I perfected it through music improv and improv theater.
The missing factor between a creative intuitive and an engineering genius is simply an organizational mind, to relate "learned" functions and their relationships.
Live by the sword die by the sword..The Art of fighting without fighting..these are wise words from very different teachers..
Russell is one of the reasons i started my own liveshow. Love you dude!
*Russel Brands most funny EVER 1 minute video. Pure brilliance, pure class.* 😂ruclips.net/video/2wTfWlwBW1s/видео.html
Surely it's just the subconscious mind that is creating. When I need to solve a problem or need a story to develop I ask my subconscious to give me an answer before I go to sleep and, within a day or two, it does just that. Sometimes I will tell myself the story in a lucid dream.
Its a nice way of looking at creativity....being connected to some kind of otherworldly power, feeding you new thoughts.... but as someone highly creative myself, I just don't think that's how it works. Being in creative mode, just requires your brain over time to be better at coming up with ideas, solutions and connecting dots to things you see around you... which forces adaption within the brain... a rewiring takes place so you become better at these tasks. Anyone can be highly creative in my opinion, most just don't pursue it with any degree of seriousness and dedication. Instead they choose to take the more passive route of consumption....which is not nearly as fulfilling a life lived.
When I was younger I felt like I was out of order or egotistical for feeling as if I were connected to God or some divine meaning when I painted.I was embarrassed to talk about it.I felt like I must be insane in some way.But that's how I felt then.I was a the vessel God used to paint with.God made the brush strokes with my hands holding my brushes.
Cool!
@@jillfarquhar8399 ultimately it doesn't matter where you think it comes from, so long as you don't waste it and put good things out into the world that enriches the life's of those around you.
I dunno, for me the ego is the creative drive. When I lose the blind faith in my own ability to create something of value, I cant create anything at all. Good or bad.
For me the tortured artist bit is the fight between feeding the ego enough to be able to create, which involves a bit of self obsessed narcissism/escapism, and being a responsible, rational human being with real world responsibilities.
I flit from one to the other and feel guilty about both.
Maybe it's just the price of making a living out of your passion.
I lean towards something similar. What we connect to when we are touched by art - a book, a piece of music, a painting etc. I believe is something inherently human that we all recognise. I like to think off it as “lived innocence”. For it to be created it requires artists to be playful, to become innocent again. It is different from the innocence of children’s play though. Otherwise all children would be fantastic artists. This one is hard earned. I think that is where this idea of the tortured artist comes from. But it is always the same thing we work towards: the overcoming of the self.
I believe that, like children’s play, it is very serious business. But the torture comes in when we are not able to focus. That is the difference with kids play and adult play. When kids play they are always present and focussed. And paradoxically they are able to forget themselves: which is the artist’s dream.
@@horsepony3136 Exactly. Very well put.
Sparkly, wonderful lady. 🙏💖✨
I would love to see Russell's creative expression again even though I love this direction he is on now.
Quite inspirational; also the comments here too! I have often marvelled at how the mind just receives a whole flow of words and ideas from ‘nowhere’! We have a lot to learn about quantum memory, and how a creative mind seems to automatically assemble our impulses and experiences from many sources into something amazingly usable. It seems to be similar with dreams; the night mind assembling many inputs from the day into a seemingly coherent visual story.
The most important thing for a creative mind is to know to PLAY.
Be in the process of finding out the bullshit that is driving you away from your inner creative impulses. Start living like a nomade in a modern society. Don't consume the established. But create whats yet unestablished. And what feels true to your being.
the best words any human being has ever spken about CREATIVITY. EVERY WORD SHE SAYS IS PURE GOLD.
Omg, this was so great! I have never met another artist who views creativity like this. I can't express how understood I feel right now.
I adore Liz Gilbert. Even though I have never met her in person, I consider her a mentor. I am a writer and independent filmmaker and her audio book Big Magic was my companion on a long road trip and I recommend it to all creative people. She is down to earth, talented and I love listening to her voice as well as reading her novels.
I LOVE THIS INTERVIEW! Thank you Russell and Elizabeth. So inspiring xo
Love this! I run my music project with a very similar mindset. At first it was tough, and I would be very hard on myself. Now I’m really starting to love all aspects of my project. The end where she talks about getting to the next project is exactly how I feel as well. I have 108 original songs on my channel that I have written recorded and released over the years. And there’s no way that I would have done that without this sort of mindset. Creating is so exciting when you have the right balance of things going on.
Taking this as a sign from creator to finish my first book. It was directly addressed. Lol thank you. It's my birthday, this was my gift today. I found your video.
Here's another way to look at what she talks about in the first 3 minutes about being "pulled in different directions by characters". In life and as an artist you play many different roles. Making a distinction between them through labeling can help you gain greater control over your situation.
I’ve been evolving into this space. From sex, to relationships, work or play... you get the best I’ve got at the time. If I wasn’t sufficient, take it up with the universe.
I can hear her and close my eyes, her voice is lovely!
Thank you so much of sharing your words and perspective during these changing times. One of my biggest goals in life is to cook a meal for you, to thank you for how much you inspired me when I was at my most broken, and to be able to sit down and have a conversation with you when this is all over. Take care and stay healthy my friend!
i love this SOOOO much...and what Joseph Campbell says about the artist diving down into the darkness and coming up with the pearl...artists will save us, we need them now like never before
She is such a joy -- thank you Russell for engaging her as you did . . .
Penny says: So glad I met and talked with Elizabeth in New Zealand. Made my year it did and keeps me writing too!
Luminary is not available/launched in Germany sadly.. Is there any other way to see the full podcast?!?!
Ever since watching about you in someone's video, I've never stopped seeking to learn from you more and more. You are our mentor. 'wish we had you in my country. Please be careful and stay safe.
Russell Brand...You and your offerings are the community that I was not born into. It is my privelege to be involved.
Yes! When you know what good looks like but my abilities are not up to taste yet! Frustrating times in this arena now. Chasing perfection, I'm learning that imperfections are quite perfect x this lady is a breathe of fresh air thank you x
"An idea comes - and you see it, and you hear it, and you know it… We don't do anything without an idea. So they're beautiful gifts. And I always say, you desiring an idea is like a bait on a hook - you can pull them in." David Lynch
You are winning my respect. I’m buying your book Russell. This woman is echoing my recent thoughts on my own art voice. Damn, I wanna dance now.
lmaooo I love your facial expression tuned into the camera. I bought the artist way. book yesterday. Its a journey going through these blocks and clearing those blocks daily.