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Agnès Albérola's avatar

Thank you. Your piece resonated with me as an older woman who is quite restless and often anxious in my pursuit of creativity. I atypically wonder if my artistic journey is better served by spending time perfecting skills, or digging deeper inside and enabling my hand/body to follow its more natural path on the blank surface. Both give me pleasure, but I am accomplished in neither. As for other examples of artistic journeys I think Bob Dylan is a good example of someone who felt trapped in an early definition of who he was as a musician, and broke through knowing that many of his fans would see it as a betrayal.

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Jun-Pierre Shiozawa's avatar

Thank you for your thoughts Agnès. I think that tension you describe of mastering skills and also finding one's own voice/approach is at the root of much of this creative exploring and searching. Sometimes the two can be opposed but also complimentary. I think the works created to progress in both ways are what can ultimately be seen as our creations, and they tell the story of our journeys and our growth. I think Dylan is a super example and someone that seemed to ever be restless and pushing himself. It's always interesting to hear how he describes the work he did as a younger man, almost like he considers it a different person entirely.

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Thea Lopatka's avatar

Jun,

Several observations you made and quotations you captured that I had to pull out for my own daily reflections.

Thank you for taking the time to craft this moment of reflection on the enduring potential of creativity to expand throughout our lifetime.

Looking forward to putting these thoughts into action in the year ahead. All the best to you and your family.

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Jun-Pierre Shiozawa's avatar

Thank you Thea for your kind words and thoughts! I always love our exchanges about how we approach our sketching (for example) again and again in different ways each time.

Sending big hugs to you and your family as well and all the best for the new year!

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