Creative/Art therapy

It's of the Hounsgill viaduct near Consett Co. Durham. The fencing is primarily there to prevent suicides. There are Samaritans posters every ten feet along both sides.

The views from the viaduct are amazing.

I do seem prefer black and white photography. Although sometimes it really doesn't do justice to the subject.https://photos.app.goo.gl/dHxGu6867a1jK1UZ6

I really like the photograph you linked to. It conveys very powerfully the sense that the photographer/viewer is being drawn inexorably towards the darkness in the distance.

Photography, particularly black and white. I have recently discovered the power of intentional camera movement to create really expressive images.

I'm really partial to a Dansak, or a Bhuna. I need to keep off the ghee though 

I have written poetry from time to time, but mainly drawing/journalling. There are tons of prompts you can use for journalling, which can be really helpful at getting you to dive deeper into the inner workings of what your thinking, feeling, is impacting you. I personally just find drawing very thereputic and calming, especially the process of adding colour. 

My minds eye works fine, I just can't get stuff from minds eye to hands and into the world.

No, I like them all!

I also struggle with fine motor issues as i I have dysgraphia so writing can be difficult and painful. 

It's wonderful to hear that you used your talent to help other possibly escape from harmful situations.

I suppose for me it's not about creating something new and unique it is more about finding a release in a constructive way rather than screaming into the void.

I'd love to paint vast vivid canvases but my minds eye just doesn't work so I can't visualise what I'd be aiming for, so I feel I'd just get frustrated and give up.

I appreciate and admire the talent of others and I can happily wander around a gallery looking for an impartation that will never come.

I hope you enjoy your retirement and continued organisation of your outbuildings.

I write poetry, less now than I used to though. I won a competition and had five books published by mainstream poetry publishers. However I tired of the mental energy requirement to cope with the huge number of rejections for each poem accepted. I know it is  good quality and original writing but I completely stopped submitting to publishers some years ago. I didn’t find it helpful in a therapeutic way and the boost to my self esteem wasn’t worth the quantity of rejection.

One creative job I had was writing funding bids and this was incredibly satisfying. I have a knack of writing in the style of others, this worked extremely well in this post as it enabled the bids I wrote to out compete others. The real satisfaction though was in seeing my work create opportunities for, for example, young people in severely deprived areas, projects which provided them safe spaces and activities and support as an alternative to the gang and knife culture of these areas.

As a hobby I tried photography, here though I found I was simply re creating the styles of iconic  photographers such as Ezra Stoller, Diane Arbus, Andy Goldsworthy, not personally adding anything to the sum of human creativity so never put it out there. In the end I stopped as it seemed pointless.

I cant express myself in drawing or painting due to significant fine motor impairment but I do enjoy seeing the work of artists and visiting galleries  

However my creativity is now very healthily directed at organising and sorting, eg: our garage, kitchen cupboards, cutlery drawers, which is surprisingly fulfilling and helpful for my mental health. Im retired but worked for many years in libraries and before that factories where part of my role was managing the stores, both these jobs required me to think four dimensionally about object storage and Im using these skills to improve our own spaces. 

Creativity can be so many different things, and many not all obvious 

AnA

Do you have a favourite curry?

I myself draw and write comics and manga. I'd love for you to check out my own work globalcomix.com/.../phantasm-project

https://photos.app.goo.gl/cMxPgNJ9nQd6GZmX9

I also like taking photos but if you publish them I find that there are far too many critics.

I write a page a day journal every morning and a one line, 5 year diary at night. These bookend the day nicely. 

I wrote one about a therapy session I had, I was almost tempted to send it to me psychologist but I thought might involve extra sessions just to talk through it!

Oh! I do remember the curries! Seems like that was pretty well-received.

I did do a thread called The Catwomans curries.

I don't paint or draw anymore I don't even draw a bath anymore and I have no camera and don't know how to upload stuff.

TheCatWoman said:

then have it treated as unimportant rubbish by those around me

Yeah that’s one of the big reasons why I started writing for myself. I keep sharing my music and stories with friends but my works tend to be colossal lol so they never have the time and energy to actually focus on my art. I think part of the issue is that my target audience is either hard to reach or nonexistent.

(Another reason - particularly for stories - is that my tales tend to be dark in nature, so I have a fear of negatively affecting someone. That’s why I haven’t shared them here.)

Have you thought about sharing your dishes, garden, and potential art with us? There’s certainly an audience here that would find your work interesting.

No I don't, I do have a lot of creativity but no means of expressing it. It's to often seemed like a battle to get enough time and resourses to do anything and then have it treated as unimportant rubbish by those around me, just puts me off.

Although I do cook a lot and create my own dishes and I garden.

I love being in a haberdashery shop, all the colours and textures and possibilities

Good morning from America, Hergé!

Hergé said:

I'm terrified that criticism (RSD) would just scare me off completely.

I’m in a similar boat where I write stories and craft music, but I have such a hard time sharing them. Maybe I have RSD, too? Anyways, I mostly write for myself these days, just like you do. It’s a little harder to find purpose, but at the same time it alleviates the stress of hoping others will enjoy or be positively impacted by your work.

You mention creative/art therapy in the title, and I wonder if that is actually something you could pursue? We have art therapy here in the States, I’d be surprised if it weren’t over there as well. I think it’s usually geared more towards kids, but I once took it with a gal who was more than willing to adjust her focus to accommodate what I needed. I wouldn’t be surprised if an art therapist would love to see/hear your poetry and give positive feedback, and that could give you something to write for.