Creative Momentum - ONLINE Course
Taught by Christine Garvey
Christine Garvey is an artist and coach based in Austin, Texas. Her creative work has been recognized with a Fulbright Research Grant, an Austin Community Initiatives Award, and a Fellowship from Concordia University Montreal. Since 2010 she’s been a teaching artist and faculty member at various institutions, including the University of Texas at Austin, Florence University of the Arts, and Pioneer Works Center for Art and Innovation. She writes and speaks about ideas that impact artists, including scarcity and financial stability, and helps artists set goals and gain momentum in their creative practices. To find out more about her work visit: christine-garvey.com.
This class meets online via Zoom. Enrollment deadline is June 19th.
We all have creative baggage - things that get in the way and prevent us from making the work we need to make. In this online course, I’ll share techniques I’ve developed over the last 15 years that have helped me get out of my own way, and make my damn art.
You don’t need a BFA, MFA, or hell, a high school diploma to be an artist. But you do need a sustainable way to reflect on what you’re doing, dig deeper, and draw out your voice as an artist. Sometimes that requires a little help.
This 8-week course is for anyone who wants to take their creative work more seriously and learn something about themselves along the way. You’ll leave with greater insights into your working process, a small community of like-minded peers, and an actual process you can use to get out of a rut and get some momentum.
How it works:
Each week we’ll meet on a zoom conference call to talk about a specific challenge as it relates to your creative practice. The first half of the session will be a lecture on the concept and the second half will focus on self-reflection exercises and discussion. Each week you’ll leave with one specific goal that you will focus on for the week ahead to start making changes in your creative practice and building some momentum around your ideas.
Here’s what we’ll cover:
Week 1: Identifying your blocks
This weekwe’ll get clear on your creative blocks and what’s preventing you from making your work. Who do you believe gets to be an artist? What does being an artist mean? Where do those beliefs come from? We’ll use readings and writing exercises to reflect on these questions.
Week 2: Creating Protected Time
In week two we’ll talk about creating the conditions to work and clearing a path for new ideas. We’ll talk about focusing on habits vs. outcomes in your work, and define the ‘creative season you’re in.’ You’ll get started by setting up 1-hour mini work sessions so getting into the studio doesn’t feel like such a chore.
Week 3: Developing a Play Strategy
We’ll identify the way you like to play - how making things comes naturally to you. We’ll leverage that inclination to get you curious vs. critical and begin to trust yourself. We’ll identify where there is friction and create helpful constraints so that you connect studio-time to play-time.
Week 4: Making Things
With these healthy habits in place, week 4 will be about being generative. We’ll create art assignments that help you get out of your own way. You will make a bunch of work and be kept accountable.
Week 5: Identifying Authentic Fuel
What actually inspires you? Maybe it’s not something in the visual arts, but science fiction, philosophy, gardening or horror? We’ll look at what you’re curious about, WHY, and create some research tools that motivate you to dig into ideas that will nourish you.
Week 6: Reflecting on What You’re Doing
We’ll reflect via writing and conversation on what you’ve made and what is most interesting to you. We’ll focus on separating your self-worth from the results to help you manage your inner critic.
Week 7: Reflecting on What You’re Doing (Session II)
Session two of getting feedback + group conversations
Week 8: Sustaining Momentum
In our final conversation we’ll reflect on how to move forward after feedback. We’ll talk about the process we’ve put in place to develop momentum (i.e: Clear - Play - Fuel - Generate - Reflect ) We’ll talk about what to do when your next creative rut happens - which it inevitably will! And how to put supportive tools in place to keep you going.
