Space is evolving. So is the
art. But also, the conversations are expanding. Who knew that a blank piece of
paper, crayons, and paint, along with a few snacks, could open the world of
possibility, creativity, and friendship? The craft of creating space for
community is unfolding organically, and it is beautiful. The Center for
Creativity and Community is embodying the relational nature of God and
reflecting the love of First Presbyterian Church.
The creative process is just that,
a process. It takes time, energy, and patience. The great artists didn’t become
great overnight. The painter Michelangelo was so engrossed in his
projects that he would go days, even weeks, without changing his clothes. A
quote often associated with the talented artist is “Critique by creating.”
The queen of poetry in the
twentieth century, Maya Angelou, would rent a hotel room for months to write
her poetry. She said, “To write, I lie across the bed so that this elbow is
absolutely encrusted at the end, just so rough with callouses. I never allow
the hotel people to change the bed, because I never sleep there. I stay until
twelve-thirty or one-thirty in the afternoon, and then I go home and try to
breathe; I look at the work around five; I have an orderly dinner—proper,
quiet, lovely dinner; and then I go back to work the next morning." Angelou understood energy.
The prodigy rapper, Chance the Rapper is one of the hardest working artists creating music today. Chance set
himself apart in the industry by being an artist who operated outside of the
mainstream system. His organic approach took creative patience that has
impacted the rap scene in a way, unlike any artist ever has. Up until his latest
release, Chance created his music for free. In 2017, Chance became the first streaming-only
album to ever receive a Grammy nomination. The patience paid off.
The commonality of all three
artists is that they took the time needed to create these gifts. The argument
can be made that these greats weren’t interested in being great, but to get out
the creativity that was planted within them. The idea of keeping it bottled up
was too high a risk to take. By sharing their light, they have made the world
brighter. From Beethoven to Cher, from Salvador Dali to Dolly Parton, from Chet
Lord-Remmert to Laura Elliott, from Lin-manuel Miranda to Julie Kasa, from
crocheters to crock-pot cooks, from the weekend crafter to the prolific
planter, and every artist in between, the importance of the creative process is
as necessary to living into their light as the very air they breathe.
The world needs your creativity.
The entirety of the story of God as found in our sacred text, The Bible, is
about God creating order, disorder, and then reorder, by and through the act of
creation. The process, like making a cake or writing a song, takes time,
attention to detail, trial, and error, as well as trust—not only in the process,
but also what we bring to the table.
The joy in creativity is found in
the community—which is the gift of we call faith!
And it is ever-evolving, always inviting, expanding to reorder the gift of creation!
