written March 8, 2020
Bluebonnets and longer days are here. I haven’t been back to the Hill Country, really, since I moved to Dallas more than ten years ago. I will be in Fredericksburg soon, gathering materials and painting and hiking among limestone bluffs. The situation with covid-19 throws all these plans into high relief: the risks associated with traveling juxtapose strangely against the sardonic fatalism that runs among Millenials. I figure that the parameters and goals of this trip are uniquely adapted for the circumstances: my plan was always social distance: I intend to meditate quietly among bluebonnets under a star studded sky, away from people so that I have space to think and create. I am eager to show my children the land and sky in Central Texas, and to revisit fond memories of cutting class at university to hike in the fresh, un-peopled air.
“Walk with me
In the gentle rain”
Since October last year, my schedule has been filled with shows, commissions, and appointments. I thrive on solitude, but I can’t pretend this sudden vacuum in my schedule isn’t weird. And, as someone prone to mental wanderings, I actually tend to be more productive when my schedule is packed. To combat my fondness for daydreams and my tendency to waste time in thought rather than action, I am trying hard to make schedules and goal setting a new habit.
In another lifetime, when dance and theater were my creative loves, I encountered the work of Twyla Tharp. I’ll admit this embarrassing fact: the first time her work made an impression on me was during an honors field trip in college, when I saw “Moving Out” (the Billy Joel musical) in Austin. Such is the way of collecting inspiration. The set design (with the live band suspended above the stage) and the dancing…The River of Dreams section moved me so much that I sought out other performances of Twyla Tharp’s work. Goodness, I thought, this woman does everything. She produces so much work, and so much of it is good work. And then I found her book.
There’s a lot of quotable material in The Creative Habit, but this stuck with me “Creativity is a habit, and the best creativity is a result of good work habits. That’s it in a nutshell.” As I’ve admitted, I am prone to daydreams and thinking about projects and ideas so much that I waste time. The idea of establishing a habit… of using inertia to help make things… really exploded in my mind. Another favorite quote, “Art is a vast democracy of habit.”
As we hunker down, many artists are stressed about income during quarantine, and most creative types (myself included) are focusing on output, trying to use this mandatory quiet to produce more work. I found that the wisdom in The Creative Habit helped me to focus my process. What tricks are you using to help get through this time of social distancing, when art shows and festivals and events are all on hold?
Enchanted Rock State Natural Area, Texas
Photo copyright 2020 Katrina Rasmussen
