Literature repeats itself: classic tales and old myths are constantly referred to or retold in new stories. Have you ever noticed, for example, that Disney’s 1994 film The Lion King borrows much of its plot from Shakespeare’s Hamlet (written between 1599 and 1601)? Hamlet, in turn, was inspired by an ancient Scandinavian saga. Because so …
Picture the scene. You’ve the luxury of some spare time and you love reading. You long to dive into a book, featuring characters you care about and an absorbing plot. It’s why you pick up that novel – only to put it down a few hours later, nowhere near finishing. Not only that, when you …
Creative-writing classes might suggest to the mind a room of chairs and desks equipped with paper and pens or screens and notebooks. In other words, a set environment for a sedentary activity. But this doesn’t have to be the case. In fact, replacing a classroom session with an excursion into the open air can offer …
With different dimensions, height, shady crevices and even water features, rock gardens are a creative way to add colour, depth and interest to an outdoor space. Popular in the Victorian era and traditionally planted with alpines, they can also provide the perfect growing conditions for coastal plants, succulents and anything that requires excellent drainage. Sometimes …
Why does creativity bring joy? According to ancient Indian texts, the sacral chakra is one of the seven central energy points in the body. Located about four finger-widths below the belly button, it’s associated with the colour orange, pleasure and creativity. Its Sanskrit name, Svadhishthana, means ‘dwelling place of the Self’. What happens when your …
How can crafting help you to achieve focus and attention in a busy world? Craft is not just the final product or the how-it’s-made behind the objects in our day-to-day lives. It’s a continuing arc between past and present, a way of weaving together broadly gathered cultural influences, of keeping them alive and offering creatives …
What is the draw of people-watching for creatives? ‘If you’re people-watching, you see how it’s a story evolving in front of you,’ says London-based artist David Richardson, whose work captures the scenes unfolding in the capital’s public spaces, be that a fish market or outside the Houses of Parliament. ‘You notice more, too, when you …
Read moreHow people-watching can be used for artistic inspiration
How have reflections from water been used in the art of gardening? Small or large, man-made or natural, bodies of water have long been exploited for their reflective and kinetic qualities. When walking around a lake or gazing out at an ocean sunset, nature’s beauty can appear exemplified through reflections in water. Perhaps it’s for …
Read moreHow artists have been inspired by mirrors and reflections
Why are melodramatic people and art so often dismissed? Exaggerated, histrionic, over the top – a melodramatic person creates life in vibrant colours, for there is no incident too tiny to be symbolic of Great Things. Emotions are heartfelt and opinions expressed in extreme ways. And while this can be entertaining from a distance, up …
Read moreWhy embracing melodrama and big emotions can be healthy
How to identify an anti-hero Antiheroes can be any gender, but they must be the star of their show. As a principal character, they embody the opposite of what you’d expect. In fact, it’s these very qualities that drive their appeal. Antiheroes embody the shadow side of humanity. They’re the parts of ourselves we despise …
