Wednesday, November 6, 2013

WIP Wednesday: Depression and Creation

If you read any of my last few posts, you'd know that I've been frittering about on the lower end of my emotional spectrum.  No fun.  Luckily it hasn't been a solid block of cloudy depression, but rather partially cloudy where I can still see the blue sky between.  Color me counting my blessings.

Anywho, I had a thought today about my brain and depression.  The first time I was seriously down logic became so clear.  I mean, I could look at a sudoku puzzle, regardless of difficulty, and the numbers would fall into place.  It was so odd that I remember my friends thinking I'd come up with some way of cheating the game.  It was the one thing that always made sense at a time where I had to remind myself what color the sky was and make sure the ribbon hiding the burns on my wrist was tied tightly.

Recently, my mind has been processing creatively much faster.  It's almost like the longer I stay down, the clearer designs become and the more I make.  For instance, I've been wanting to make a top-down ribbed hat where the ribbing actually starts in the crown of the hat.  The problem with that was, I couldn't figure out the mechanics or the count to make sure the ribs were evenly spaced.  That was until today.  The solution came like eyesignt upon waking. You know, foggy at first but then perfectly clear...

So I was thinking about the apparent link between depression and creation.  I don't know what the deal is with depression and clarity or selective clarity, but I am grateful that even when I feel crumbly and trampled emotionally, the melancholy still has a silver lining.  Does anyone else feel this way or find that depression can give way to awesome creations? Why is that? Can the creation be separated from the depression? Or are we artists really fated to juggle two...  Let me know what you think if you like.

Progress shot I shared on instagram <@nadiratani>
Anywho, you can't really see the ribbing because of the variegated yarn, but once I get it finished I'm going to recreate it with a solid color so you can fully experience the amazing-ness. :)


~Peace

2 comments:

  1. I think the two are definitely connected! When I feel like that, I write poetry that surprises even myself. My mind is looking for an outlet of some sort and puts all it's energy there.

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  2. I love the hat! I totally understand where you are coming from! Praise God you found your "silver lining"! Do "THEY" go hand in hand? eh, you know what the music artists say, their greatest inspiration comes from a low point in their life. I do think the AH-ha artsy epiphany can be accessed away from the low moments. with much practice and keen focus I think you can peel the two apart and take those new ideas with you on your way out of the fog. I'm saying this knowing that I am still working on it myself! lol but I know it can happen. some things happen organically without much of your own say-so so it's great that you can find inspiration even in the glum. :)

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