Part Two: Can you make art while biological and physiological needs are not being met?
In my previous post, I offered a brief outline of Maslow’s Hierarchy of needs and compared it to Pressfield’s War of Art. I ended the post with this proposal:
“This unusual time has caused many to revisit deficiencies that were thought to be satisfied in more comfortable times. I think it may be possible to work on creative stuff while under financial and emotional duress. My next few blog posts will address this from my perspective as I manage underemployment and my desire to advance my creative output. I plan to use The Theory of Human Motivation to help me understand my situation and, hopefully, help a reader or two simultaneously.
I will be examining where I can make changes in how I approach deficiency needs and work on actualization needs. How can I make better use of my time to create while trying to make ends meet?”
Update
Since writing that I have faced some medical issues and a car accident that couldn’t have come at a worse time. Co-pays and deductibles added to a fairly tight budget have been challenging. I know my situation is not unique and there are so many who are facing much more dire financial problems. The pandemic has made more people aware of financial inequities and how so many are only a few paychecks away from serious financial troubles.
Cracks In The Foundation
In my view, financial troubles have an impact on the foundational levels of the Hierarchy in major ways. Physiological and biological needs such as shelter, food, water, clothing, physical and mental health, are all impacted by lack of income or reduction in income. Safety needs such as a sense of threats to, or actual threats to, our physical and financial security also impact our foundational needs. When a foundation is weak or cracking, it is difficult to support all the things above it. This is true of a building, a sculpture, and our Hierarchy of Needs.
Sometimes, I Just Want To Go To Bed
While I am managing my particular experiences during these unusual times I have found my desire to make art fluctuating. There are times when I just want to go to bed and pull the covers over my head and sleep and, sometimes, this is the route I’ve taken to relieve a little stress. Other times I’ve tried to get my creative juices flowing by watching art documentaries or visiting artist YouTubers because during the lockdowns museums and galleries are closed until further notice. Still other times I try to take a walk or do something physical to get a few endorphins moving around in my body.
When I know I want to be creative or I feel I should be doing something creative I have found just starting and not having any expectations whatsoever works very well for me. In other words, I will start creating for the sake of creating without any thought about creating a finished, fully realized work of art and no intent to create a “masterpiece.” I’ll doodle or collage or draw on the computer or whatever. I don’t think there are any right or wrong ways to get started doing creative work (I’ll admit I like using analog materials over digital).
I’ve also found value in working with tools or styles outside of my comfort zone which allows for more freedom to silence my inner critic (what Pressfield might call Resistance) and quality expectations.
Food Or Art Supplies? Hmmmmm…
Art supplies are a big problem when you have little or no money to spare. Should I buy rice and dried beans and eat for a week or should I get a sheet of 100% cotton fiber, acid-free, pH-neutral watercolor paper? The smart bet is on the rice and beans. I can draw on almost any surface so I am not above using typing paper or even an old lined notebook as an art surface.
Pages form an inexpensive journal not intended for watercolors.
Pages form a small, inexpensive, journal not intended for watercolors or acrylics. Pen also bleeds through making those marks part of the pages before or after.
I am lucky to have a lot of crappy or nonprofessional grade art supplies lying around and the dollar store also stocks inexpensive, made for kids, pan watercolors, crayons, colored pencils, construction paper, and sketch paper so if I have a little money left after I get my rice and beans I might pop into the dollar store next to the market to get some art supplies. Will the work made with these materials last for centuries while hanging on the walls of the Louvre? I guess that’s up to the conservators. I’ll worry about my legacy later, concentrating on the here and now is usually the best place to focus our attention.
Art Is Good For You!
Science has shown that the very act of creating art can improve your health and help retain memory and stave off neurological decline. Creativity is also great therapy as it can relieve stress, help manage depression, and most importantly it is fun! All of these positives of creating can be seen as strengthening the Hierarchy’s foundational levels (AKA deficiency needs). As Megan Carleton, an art therapist at Massachusetts General Hospital, states, “It’s the process, not the product,” so there is no harm and potentially great benefits to creating no matter the quality of the supplies or the finished piece.
So doodle, dabble, and doddle away! Use supplies you already have and don’t stress about quality, focus on creating for cration’s sake. if you wanted to paint a frog and run out of green, crate a frog with colors you have. Why can’t there be a purple and orange frog? Use unconventional materials and tools to create.
Oh, One More Thing…
If you are wondering if using unconventional art materials is still art, consider the many examples of well-established and even ‘household name’ artists using everyday objects and unconventional supplies to create.
Please check out the examples and links below to help spark some ideas for you and your art:
Picasso
Georges Braque
Raoul Hausmann
Assemblage circa 1920
Joseph Cornell
More Inspiration:
25+ Works of Art Made Using Unusually Awesome Mediums
I also suggest looking at Google searches for Collage, Assemblage, Readymade, and Found Object art for more idea inspiration.
Coming Soon: Creativity and Love and Belongingness and Esteem levels of Maslow’s Hierarchy.
