Creativity Found: finding creativity later in life

Your creativity is only good as a hobby!? With guests Tereza Barnard, Gerry Coles and Tara L Lacey

August 01, 2021 Claire Waite Brown Episode 27
Creativity Found: finding creativity later in life
Your creativity is only good as a hobby!? With guests Tereza Barnard, Gerry Coles and Tara L Lacey
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Show Notes Transcript
I am taking a break from releasing new episodes for the summer, BUT, I couldn't leave you with absolutely no Creativity Found positivity, so here is a cheeky little bonus episode, introducing you to some of the previous episodes that you might have missed.⁠

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Music: Day Trips by Ketsa https://ketsa.uk/under Creative Commons License
https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Ketsa/Raising_Frequecy/Day_Trips

Artworks: Emily Portnoi emilyportnoi.co.uk


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Claire Waite Brown:

Hi, and welcome to a cheeky little bonus episode, introducing you to some of the previous episodes that you might have missed. We're going to start with my very first guest, realist portrait painter, Teresa Barnard, who decided that her art would never be good enough to make her a living, thanks to a judgement made on her ability at a young age.

Unknown:

What happened is that my friends are in a completely different field. They're both medical doctors, and they don't know anything about art. It's just not, not not their thing. And I've always shown an interest in art, there's not something that like they understood, although they occasionally supported it. It's not it's just, you know, not something that they had any understanding understanding of. And so they were trying to like, gain a bit more understanding. And they heard of some guy that used to run, I don't know, maybe he still does some sort of school in Czech Republic, and it was some sort of an art school, they decided to show him my portfolio. And he was very dismissive. And he basically said, I have no talent, and I should not pursue art at all. And so I were told by my parents, you know, yeah, it sounds like it's a really nice hobby, but like, you know, get yourself a proper job, basically, one day. Yeah. And I guess that kind of shaped me because I was like, Okay, I guess if there was some sort of special talent that I would know by now. So I guess yeah, you know, I need to get myself a decent job in something I somewhat like, yeah.

Claire Waite Brown:

That idea of artistic pursuits as hobbies continues with Tara L. Lacey, talking here about a decision she was helped to make. Again, when young

Unknown:

before we leave Trinidad, and just before I came back to England to do my a levels, we had a parents evening, they were always very exciting. And nerve wracking, I'd say. So anyway, we had a parents evening, and my mom came to school and was told by my teachers that given the experience that I was having in the arts through theatre, and public speaking, they thought that I was talented, and that they could really see a future for me on the stage, if that was the way that I wanted to go. That was a massive red flag to my mom in particular, who pretty much freaked out and said to me, you're not doing theatre? This is even before I suggested that that might be the way that I wanted to go. You're not doing theatre, keep it as a hobby. Even better, why don't you think about jobs that you could do that you could employ your skills? I know, why don't you go into law. And this was when I was about 16, or 17. So I wasn't really taking it too seriously. But I was very aware that she was adamant that theatre wasn't going to be for me, other than as a hobby.

Claire Waite Brown:

Jerry Coles never considered art as a route to a career. Here's why.

Unknown:

I did aren't I level and because I'm old enough to be and I did on a level. And I was good at it. And I enjoyed it. But it, it just wasn't something that was presented to me as something that was a career. I probably put it in the category of hobby type things. I mean, I did go to university and I'm trying to remember whether I actually considered doing art a lot. And I don't, I don't think I really did. And I don't think I don't think it's the school's fault for not sort of pushing artists I just think I don't think the school pushed anything particularly I don't remember this Career Service being comprehensive that time. I just I just think I didn't know anyone who was an artist. And I certainly didn't know anyone who was a successful working, paying the bills artists. So I think if you don't ever see Time to see someone doing something you don't really consider it as a thing. I mean, I guess, I mean, obviously, the art teachers were working in the art area, but I didn't really want to be a teacher to secondary school to college anymore. So, you know, I just, it was never really a consideration of going into art at that stage of my life. No.

Claire Waite Brown:

So what changed? All of these guests found a way back to the creativity that they had been craving, and moved on from the hobby label back to Theresa.

Unknown:

But what made me pursue it as a job was actually my husband. He originally worked in the oil field in the oil construction in Canada. And he was good at it, but he never really liked it that much. He was like, submit it. Yeah. I like it. I'm good at it. But I don't love it. And he always liked jewellery. And we went through kind of a couple of years of him finding his way to jewellery and the family supporting him in that, to him actually pursuing him. And he's never turned back. And he seems super happy. And the change from him doing a soul soul job to actually do in something that he loved was tremendous to witness. Yeah. And very inspiring. And with psychology, I've always liked it. And I still like it. Just like I still like interiors, but I don't love that much either of them and not as much as painting. Yeah. And then I picked up a book and it was a book about how you basically find your true calling. And from the first page, I started reading and I was like, well, painting, it's always been painting. I just never knew that I could. And then I looked at my husband and I was like, well, he never, he never thought that he could do jewellery. He just thought that's always going to be a hobby. And here we go. So and he's like, No, I think you should try it. I think you know, he's like, I think if you were meant to be a psychologist, you would have been one already. And you kind of like haven't. Yeah, so it's like, go for it. That's Yeah,

Claire Waite Brown:

that's so uplifting and inspiring. That's brilliant. Thank you. Tara went back to theatre as an amateur, then took the brave step towards starting her own Theatre Company.

Unknown:

But the point about it is that, that decision to take that play to Edinburgh, started peppered wet and started a whole new learning curve for me personally. And it wasn't great, as I said, but the point was, it was proper Edinburgh Fringe fair, there was room to act in it. You know, it wasn't just rubbish. There was room to actually get to grips with some some meatiness in the play. But overall, it wasn't great. But that aside, it was a huge baptism of fire for us. And if I think about it, in terms of the fact that in our first year of existence, we actually had a full blown tour and ended up in Edinburgh in our first year of existence. That was quite something.

Claire Waite Brown:

And finally, back to Jerry, who told me how she felt when she sold her first print. By the way, the background noise is raised on her studio room. Yes, we met in person.

Unknown:

I had my work frame that everything that's nice and its frame turned up and it is my my stuffs about sort of a4 size you can imagine me turn up with these couple of things in the back of my car. And so these big, big blokes coming in with enormous oil painting, yes. What am I thinking? What were you thinking Jerry's stupid. He's beautiful oil paintings, and don't miss me. Here's my little tiny line. Okay, you know, but it hung and I sold something. And I just thought, you know, it's a validation of what I do people some people are prepared to pay money for so I do.

Claire Waite Brown:

Quite right to Jerry. I hope you enjoyed those snippets. If you want to hear the full stories head to season one, and look for episode one for Teresa. Episode Two verdure, and Episode 12 photogra. Creativity found is an open stage arts production. If you're listening on Apple podcasts, please subscribe rate and review. If you would like to contribute to future episodes, visit kayo hyphen f fi.com slash creativity found podcast. If you contact any of the artists featured sign up to their workshops, or buy their products don't forget to mention creativity found podcast on Instagram or Facebook follow at creativity found podcast where you'll find photos of our contributors artwork and be kept abreast of everything. We're up to

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