Just got back from ArtFest 2012 (an art retreat that was held in Port Townsend, Washington) and had a splendid time!

It was a week’s worth of inspiration and creativity for me – as I spent two days in Seattle before heading North.

It was a wonderful week!

I will be posting more later after I get settled…as I am a bit discombobulated right now – (I love saying that word) – which is usually the case transitioning from total immersion in art to the (sometimes harsh) transition back to the real world.

But I wanted to share some quick thoughts (highlights) from an article I read on the flight back.

…Nothing fuels the creative process like a spacious mind, an observant heart and the freedom to EXPRESS YOUR SELF…  this article (from Yoga Journal’s May issue) talks about the ‘breathing space’ we need in our minds in order to unleash our creativity.  “Creativity is actually the living, breathing essence of your Self”, says Sianna Sherman, an Anusara Yoga instructor who teaches internationally.  To tap into it you simply need to make space for it.

Some of those interviewed in the article were: Ann Patchett, novelist, who attributes her yoga practice to balancing the pressures of being a high-profile storyteller, and Jason Mraz, singer-songwriter, who says, yoga gave him ‘wings’ and directly contributed to his success when he took his asana practice on the road four years ago.  He is releasing a new album this month and says he wove the yogic theme of interconnection into numerous songs and even wrote a kirtan-inspired tune called ‘Everything is Sound”.

Kirtan seems to be the new word-of-the-day – I’ve seen it more than a couple of times recently.  Kirtan, which is ‘call and response chanting’ according to Wikipedia – is  a devotional tradition in India. Kirtan practice involves chanting hymns or mantras to the accompaniment of instruments; drums and hand cymbals.

Sounds interesting and right along with the thought process of ‘getting into the moment’ – perfect timing too, to put into practice after this past week!

There was quite a bit of unleashing going on at ArtFest…the above image was the beginning of a painting that was primarily done with my fingers and paint!

And allowing ourselves the opportunity to ‘play’ (and get messy!) is a great step in that direction!