“Do anything, do something, do the first crazy thing that comes to mind.”
Today’s Awakened Creator Spotlight is on Gillian Keller, an Artist, whose creations pour from deep wells of colorful visions and psychedelic wisdom.
Connect with her on Instagram: @enlightenmentbarbie or www.enlightenmentbarbie.com
Here is Gillian in her own words on her creative journey and what it means to be an Awakened Creator.
Tell us about your authentic creative expression. What do you love to create and why?
I work in so many mediums! Painting, collage, photography, and digital art are my main focuses as a professional artist, but recently I’ve been designing wearable art in the form of kimonos and outfits… and soon, I’ll be coming out with coats! Everything I make is colorful, spirited, bright, psychedelic… Basically I do my best to put my soul and my color drenched dreams into physical form. Why? I can’t help it! I think the one thing I am here to do is create. It brings me joy to create. And the things I create bring joy to others, which is a beautiful bonus. My mind gets filled with ideas and new ways to express them- if I didn’t create in some way, I might explode!
Creating art is my celebration of life. But I mean, I also create in the way I move through the world, the people I meet and how I interact with them, the foods I cook, the environments I create- I think everyone’s life is inherently creative. We get to pick up our proverbial paint brushes and make marks across the canvas of reality that we walk through. Basically reality seems like a big interactive art performance to me!
What most often gets in your way as a creator and how do you stay in alignment and flow?
Probably my own mind, actually. Especially the tendencies of my personality towards perfectionism and self judgment.
If I am focused too much on perfecting a piece, or executing a particular element of a piece in the ideal or perfect way, I freeze and overthink my process, causing doubt and overly critical thinking, which halts all creative flow. And often the thing I’m trying to do turns out worse than it would have, if I had just flowed with it!
Recently I taught myself a really simple practice, for when I run into that potentially perfectionist moment in the studio- I tell myself, “Don’t think, just do.”
And I try to take one deep breath, and draw myself back into the quality of play and imagination I embodied when I was a kid- and then, I just DO. Do anything, do something, do the first crazy thing that comes to my mind. It feels ridiculous at first! But, what ends up happening is a very spontaneous kind of, yeah, childlike creativity that feels free and loose, and results in the creation of something that is novel and unexpected. Way cooler than what the perfectionist would have come up with!
Similarly, the self judgment piece can hinder my flow- I often have so many ideas that I wish there were two of me, just so I could get more done. And I can tend to judge myself on the amount of great things I’ve managed to produce in my life, as compared to the amount of great ideas in my head that have never entered the physical world!
But I remind myself that I am only one human, at least in this physical incarnation, and I kinda have to be okay with that! This same issue can cause me to become really obsessed with being prolific, even when I don’t feel very good- and when I push and push and push- it causes me to burn out. Within the last few years, I have challenged myself to be okay with doing less, rather than more. Even FORCE myself to do less! Because ultimately I want my creative process to feel like a natural element of my life, not something that my life force is forcing! Haha.
If you could offer words of wisdom or support to your fellow creators, what would you say?
You’re not what you created yesterday. What I mean is that you’re not limited to the version of yourself that you hold in your awareness. Often times we go through the motions, living out our lives based on the specific person and personality that we have decided we are- based on life experiences, our reactions to them, our decisions and opinions, our styles and portfolios, etc… We can very easily pigeon-hole ourselves into a curated human being that others expect from us, and even that WE expect from us.
If you ever feel sort of stuck, or blocked, or claustrophobic- my best advice is to say “fuck it” and let the imaginary walls down for a minute– see what happens when you approach each new day as a brand new being- try drawing from the vast ocean of everything, rather than the limited “self” that you think you’re supposed to be. Because really, we ARE that vast ocean of everything, and always have access to it.
A good friend of mine told me that anything I make is still my work, no matter what it looks like or how it’s made. Don’t be captive to expectations, and allow yourself to BE the experiment of life!
What does being an Awakened Creator mean to you?
Well, for me, the reason I was able to start making the kind of audacious art that I make now stemmed from a crazy spiritual ZAP that happened to me, out of nowhere, back in 2013. I called it the Big Zing, because that’s what it felt like. It stripped all fear from me, and all I was left with was pure radiance. Which I guess you could say, gave me the courage to create with wildness… to go on a quest to make beautiful things until I die. Ultimately as the years have gone by, fears do creep back in from time to time, but I have this incredible awareness of my (and ALL of our) innate connection to the great everything, the great one thing– that connection gives me fuel for imagery and fuel for passionate exploration of life!
Want to connect with Gillian?
Check out Gillian Keller’s vivid collage and wearable art creations on:
Instagram: @enlightenmentbarbie
Website: www.enlightenmentbarbie.com
Do you want to create from a place of authentic expression like today’s featured Creator?
My HeART Alignment Guide will show you a simple yet powerful creative ritual that will help you sync heart & art so you can create your most authentic heartwork yet!
