Creativity is an elusive concept. What is considered to be or accepted as 'Art' is increasingly subjective in Post Modernist thought. The 'product' of creativity, art, cannot be clearly defined. One man's art is another man's poison. Similarly, creativity is an elusive concept. Fontana writes that it is unclear whether it can be taught or learned; or whether one is born with the capacity to be creative. Creativity involves working out solutions to problems, it involves thinking laterally. Furthermore, Fontana points out that being creative, involves giving a 'fresh twist to that which is already known'. I would argue further that this can be applied self knowledge which exists in the individual at different levels. Different schools of thought, experts and the ordinary man in the street would argue whether the final products of 'art in health workshops' have artistic merit.
However, one thing is certain. The act of creation is one that happens in the present moment. It demands a relationship in the present between the creator and the artefact. This artefact is then a container for what its maker has to express in the moment. How can this creativity, more specifically creative writing contribute to the individual's health and well being. In playgroup, watching children make and create it is possible to see how engrossed they are in the creative process; whether it is painting, writing, making music. The 'I did that' moment of pride at the end of the process is palpable. Hardly any child can throw a pot, paint a beloved object, person or pet without a sense of achievement. How many children have not sighed with relief and grinned broadly at the delivery of a one line speech in front of an audience. Coincidentally, as I write, a children's art workshop is ending next door. The problem for the facilitator is actually in drawing the activities to a close. The class is loud, enthusiastic and clamouring for more. Judging from the sound, creativity then is also pleasurable!
In common with Rose Flint, Kiehl in his 2005 essay points out that poetry is 'the voice of the Soul'. In effect that poetry gives expression and makes conscious what is unconscious. Furthermore, it facilitates change and growth albeit at different rates and degrees. We can only change when we are ready and willing to and the conditions are right. This is why our creative writing must be preserved carefully. Revisiting our writing on the page, allows us temporal and physical space to hold that which we are unable to be aware of or understand at the time but are able to recognise later. Only then can we evaluate the extent of our personal growth, and distinguish anew what our unconscious is trying to express, in order to make sense of it and change. Writing about depression Kiehl suggests, 'that the depressive state creates a glass cage for the subject, where you look, but cannot touch or be touched.' I would argue further that depression gags a person making it difficult either to be touched by words or to articulate their state of being. He also traces the imagery of constricted space and describes the quality of darkness in the writings of clinically depressed people. Kiehl points out that 'the perceived outer world mirrors the internal emptiness' in texts. Furthermore, most people at some times in their lives ask the same questions articulated by depressed people and documented by Kiehl.
As human beings, we have an innate desire to make connections with others and to make sense of our existence. Julia Cameron points out that 'writing is an act of connection' connecting the writer first to self and then to the world.' Furthermore, as in Flint and Kiehl, Cameron explicitly makes all creative writing a spiritual activity. She writes that creative writing is a 'form of prayer and meditation connecting us to our own insights… bringing clarity… and grounding.' Words give us the power to name our world and to make it our own. It demands questions of us and gives us a fresh, framed perspective with which to examine ourselves and our world. It provides grounding and truth for us.
Writing, then, can contribute to our health and well being. It allows us to focus on the present moment in a pleasurable way. It is therapeutic because it brings to light self knowledge and hidden strengths. Writing allows us to recognise and grapple with those aspects of ourselves that perhaps we would prefer to keep hidden. It allows us to express difficult emotions where the process and product provide a safe container for these emotions. Creative writing is an activity that can be facilitated within groups. As we make connections with ourselves, it becomes possible for us to connect with others and to the world. It is a method with which we can express our delight with the natural world and express our confusion as we learn that the world and our lives offer no guarantees. Moreover, our writing becomes a testament of our experiences.
Anne Phillips
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