As part of the ongoing photography challenge, I offer you my latest two throw-up-my-hands-what-do-I-do-with-this shots. These were taken inside an art museum (MOCA in Los Angeles), of an piece installed near the ceiling of a wide corridor, where the floor slopes like a gentle ramp, a passageway of sorts. When I walked through it, it […]

UPDATE As of March 2012, this book is no longer for sale. However it is on offer as a free promotional item at Bridget’s blog.Please check there for future developments. (post revised accordingly) It’s rare for me to become an affiliate mention an e-book product because so much of what is offered on the interwebs seems subpar.  When I […]

Creality Strikes

by Barbara Martin

in Creativity, Uncategorized

Have you ever worked on a creative project only to have it fall short in the execution stage? Of course, we all do!  Well, now we have a formal term and a scientific measurement scale for judging that kind of outcome: creality.  Best of all, the creality scale is not relegated to the negative end of […]

This is day seven of the week-long photography challenge.  For today’s photographic adventure,  I set out on a stroll through the neighborhood, enjoying the sunshine, snapping away at this and that without a specific goal in mind.  It felt like a good time to noodle around and try the photographical equivalent of doodling or playing to see what might […]

Day 6 of the weeklong photography challenge and I am happy to report that I seem to have hit a groove this evening. This might have happened because today was in essence an all-day Artist Date. (An Artist Date, as discussed in  creativity expert Julia Cameron’s book The Artist’s Way,  is a weekly date with yourself […]

This week’s photography challenge is killing my urge to take photographs: give me reason to rebel and I’m all over it!  On the other hand, my collage muscle cranked into gear and took off like a shot this morning.  Not that I am complaining, mind you. I think any creative endeavor is worthwhile and it all […]

The phrase “beginner mind” ran through my head this morning while I considered how to approach my photography challenge today — and what to post here on the blog in terms of relating the challenge to creativity.  Here’s the rub: Although I have taken thousands of photographs over the years, and sold hundreds of them, they […]

Showing Up to Create

by Barbara Martin

in Uncategorized

Today’s post is about showing up. I think Woody Allen is the one who is quoted as saying winning or success is 99% about showing up. (Or was that Charlie Sheen?) Nevermind, the point is I made a commitment to publish a photo or two each day during this week-long photography challenge and I am keeping […]

When you make art, be it writing or painting or photography or music, there is a temptation to compare your work to that of other artists. This inexplicable urge opens the mind to doubt and unhelpful questions. Comparing leads us down a dangerous path toward competition, envy, frustration, possibly despair.  If we entertain too many doubts and […]

Sometimes we let a dare get away from us. Does that ever happen to you?  It happened to me (again) today.  As a result, I will be showing some photographs during the coming week as part of a creativity challenge. I hope you enjoy them. If you’d like to show some photographs of your own, […]