Why do we create? What is the motivation? I have a lot of friends in different forms of creative pursuits. I know painters, sculptors, dancers, actors, writers, photographers, jewelers, musicians, architects, and more. We all express creativity in different ways, but my question today is, “Why?” Why do we create?
One observation I have made is that we, as humanity, are all generative in nature. We create structures, offspring, poetry, waste, crops, etc. Anywhere you find life, you find creativity. With that in mind I would vantage to say that we create as a byproduct of life. Like CO2 is a byproduct of breathing, art is a byproduct of living. And while some may be more deliberate in their pursuit of creativity, we all still create.
I also believe that each person’s own perspective on purpose and faith come into play within this dialogue. I tend to subscribe to the old adage that an apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. It is my personal belief that we, as man, were created by a single God with intentionality. With that perspective, I believe that it is within our DNA to create. (Of course, that is simply my own view which makes up a single brush stroke within the painting of humanity.)
The one thing I do know for sure is that it is beyond my ability to avoid creativity. I find myself daydreaming about sculptures, paintings, custom cars, new furniture designs, lighting solutions, and more. Every napkin is a doorway into another dimension of thought and all I need to walk through it is a drawing utensil. I believe that many of you can relate. My hope is that we all continue to explore creativity and art. For whatever the reason, it is a driving desire that helps define us as humanity. Let’s Keep Creating!
I think that just sums it all up, I think we create because we choose to create… in a way, and in another way we don’t. We cant help it… there is this nagging itch that just keeps pestering you the more you ignore it. We create not because of a lack of a better idea, but because we were made to create… we just do. I get asked all the time “How in the world do you come up with this stuff?” and my response is… ” well, do you like it… I hope you enjoy it… I cant help it.” and I hope in some small way it will make that persons day just a little bit better, if even for a moment. – Rex
I think you’re right about human nature wanting to create things. I’ve noticed that creativity isn’t limited to the liberal arts. Examples I have noticed are one of my friends is religious in his pursuit of creating the ultimate stock portfolio. It’s completely foriegn to me, but it looks like a work of art that works for him. Another is creating fantasy football teams. Again, I have no idea what its all about, but one friend spends more time adjusting his team than I do making any piece of art.
Our eyes gravitate to beautiful things whether they be paintings, buildings, chairs, or fake football teams. If we are fortunate enough to be able to make beautiful things, then we may also gain recognition for being creative. This drives a whole other section of our existance; the ego. And that’s not a bad thing at all.
i agree with you, if i may i would also add that because we are created in the image of the creator, we creat, it is like fire in our bones.
I really like the ‘ground-up’ thinking in your response to “Why we create.” Too many of us have too many ‘top-down’ voices saying, “You should do this, you should(n’t) do that”, which kills the creative, child-like, searching spirit for the current/next creative venture.
As a curator, I feel the best art most oftentimes doesn’t “look like art”. The best art or creative output makes us see something fresh, something new, doesn’t even need to be 100% original, but an out-of-box, heartfelt addition into our daily lives.
Jonathan, I am in absolute agreement with your observation. I do think that everyone is driven to create something. I also believe that people find peace in creating whatever it is they were designed for. The painter who paints is happy. The coach who creates a team is happy, etc. (Of course I also believe there are degrees of satisfaction.) My hope is that each of us can find that creative release which satisfies us.
I agree that creative impulse lies within us. It is part and parcel in the human experience because we ourselves were created by the master creator to create. I don’t believe, however, that creative impulse naturally translates into creative expression. I believe desire for beauty is the motivation for creative expression. It is our innate creative ability coupled with our desire for beauty which produces creative expression. When motivation meets ability and is then coupled with the desire to create beauty one gets passion and passion is at the heart of all great creations. And it is beauty which inspires and ignites further creativity.
I was listening to Mako Fujimura on Thursday try and explain this to a group, that may not fully get it. He nailed many concepts on the head, but I think that this concept was so foreign that he had to really try and talk around it. It can really be explained by the unexplainable, which doesn’t register in the head, but the heart.
The desire of creating is from deep to deep.
This is where beauty is really found, and where substance exists in a palatable form,
that can be experienced with surges of joy, where truth sticks and is not moved,
and life is a mysterious wonder, while we line up with the desire that can’t be explained just
enjoyed.
“Inspiration is for amateurs. I just get to work.” — Chuck Close
I share this quote with students because too many times they (we) wait for inspiration. One can wait a lifetime for artistic inspiration and get nothing. I create art because I have to. I don’t know exactly why, but I am okay with that for now. We don’t have to know all the correct answers all of the time. Personally, I would guess that the underlying answer to the question changes rather frequently.
I’m not sure that creativity is so spiritual. Could it be that it is spawned by our desire to glorify self?
I really like the ‘ground-up’ thinking in your response to “Why we create.” Too many of us have too many ‘top-down’ voices saying, “You should do this, you should(n’t) do that”, which kills the creative, child-like, searching spirit for the current/next creative venture.
As a curator, I feel the best art most oftentimes doesn’t “look like art”. The best art or creative output makes us see something fresh, something new, doesn’t even need to be 100% original, but an out-of-box, heartfelt addition into our daily lives.