Book Review: The Spark & the Grind by Erik Wahl
I promised myself to dedicate more time to reading this year. And along with some well chosen fiction, I have a long list of books that are designed to facilitate personal growth. The first one that is art related is what I am reviewing here. The Spark and the Grind: Ignite the Power of Disciplined Creativity, by Erik Wahl.
As I shared over the last year, I became more consistent in my studio practice by just showing up more often. Low and behold, I made quite a bit of work, played in some sketchbooks and sparked some really good ideas to keep me going in both areas of my work, fiber and paint.
Here are a few take aways from the book that I noted as I read. The first is that there are people who are “sparkers” or igniters. They are creative people who swim in new and novel ideas. They are dreamers and have a role in finding the good ideas that move innovation forward. There are also other people who are grinders. These are the hardworking people who will diligently sift through the details and do the mundane tasks because they are driven by knowing what to do and what the final outcome looks like.
I think I used to be an igniter. I started a lot of things that never came to fruition. Lots of unfinished objects in the studio and often stuck in drawers or out of sight places so I didn’t feel the “failure”.
Recently, I had a conversation with a long time friend. He was at the house and asked to see my studio and the work I was doing at the moment. He marveled at how I could take a blank paper or canvas and then create without knowing where it was going. You see, he’s a grinder. He has a woodworking workshop. He will diligently do the tasks required to make a piece of furniture as long as there is a plan, a photo and a specific end goal. I think traditional quilters can be like this. There’s a pattern and I saw it in fabrics that were a nice color combination. I know what the end product should look like and so they set to their cutting tables and sewing machines. They know where they’re going.
I tried traditional quilting once. It was a loooooong project. I abandoned it for improvisation and not knowing what size it would be, or shape or what the final piece would look like. Unlike grinders, I am more comfortable with ambiguity. (I also think this is why a lot of people had a really hard time with the pandemic. There was no certainty, end game or target for success.)
As Erik points out in the book, in order to have consistent creativity you have to oscillate between sparking and grinding. Once you get a good idea, you have to be willing to do the work to see it through. I think this is key if you are an artist. I also think that people quit making art because they have the ideas but, have trouble mustering the drive to do the tedious, mundane and laborious tasks.
Here’s some points he makes about growing your ability to move back and forth between finding the ideas and acting on them all the way to fruition.
Embrace the creative process without attachment to a specific outcome. Keep open to new ideas and course corrections.
Attach who you are with what you do. When you align your inner being with your outward actions what you do work becomes play.
Practice courage and everything else will follow.
Look for creative sparks where you are and within your circumstances. Don’t wait for the perfect time or place. Maximize the certainty in your life (financial, personal, emotional) and leverage that to embrace uncertainty. Don’t separate your reality and circumstances from your creative work. See opportunities where you are.
Create a routine that allows creativity to flourish. The boundaries of your routine allow you to focus and go deep into experimentation, exploration and creative work. Having a routine with decisions already made allows you to maximize your creative capacity.
Defamiliarize the ordinary. Change how you perceive things. Look for ways to innovate your daily environment. See differently or see differently things. Originality has a better chance in unfamiliar locations and circumstances.
What you already know will not ignite creativity. Looking into the unknown generates sparks and builds intuition. Blend efficiency and novelty to create innovation.
Be curious. Let go of mediocrity and embrace uncertainty. Learn to create a bit of chaos in your day so you practice opportunities to be creative.
Stay foolish. The more you think you know the less you look for creative solutions to problems, projects and challenges. The beginner mind is about thinking. Staying foolish is about acting in a state of wonder and curiosity.
Know that in order to do what you have never done before you must face fear. Accept that it’s there. You got this. Go.
Take small steps and you will see progress. Create big steps and you will be strategizing instead of creating.
Fall in love with your creative work. (that’s a verb) Don’t fall in love with every painting you create. Fall in love with the actual act of painting, sculpting, baking, gardening, or whatever is your creative pursuit.
Be obsessed with the creative process and don’t focus on creating the perfect environment. You will find unique solutions to fix the issues within your surroundings and you won’t even notice the imperfections while you are engaged in your creative work.
This was an interesting book to help reinforce what I am doing well and a nice way to review what I can tweak to invite more creativity into my daily life. I got a copy from the library and if you are so inclined, you can probably get a copy from yours.
I hope something in here resonated with you. This post was taken from the notes I took as I read. The ideas here were the ones that spoke to me. If you read the book for yourself, surely other ideas will jump out for you.
Thanks for being here. It was a long read. I hope you will take a look at your imperfect circumstances and find an innovative way to make it work with your creativity. Look from a different perspective and it will always be more interesting.
