I was invited by the faculty of art at the University of Granada, to come and lecture to students studying to be art teachers. I was asked to speak about my work and the importance of art in life, something I feel very passionate about. My job was to inspire the students, so that they would it turn be encouraged to inspire their students.

An Approach to Creativity

I have, for a long time, had this lecture ready and it’s the first time I’ve had a chance, outside of my own circles, to teach it. The original idea actually comes from my mother, it’s how she taught me to start a drawing. The idea is to just doodle with a brush, pen or clay, not to have a clear idea of what you want to make before hand but to just let something emerge on the paper or form in your hands, to allow something to come straight from your heart and then shape it once you can see what it is going to be. This is my approach to art and I find it really exciting.

The Importance of Art

It is all too easy to take art for granted, because it is all around us. However, someone has taken the time to draw or paint the designs that surround us on our clothes, on packaging or the image that becomes a book cover. The girl I spoke to in this film, that was off screen, had a folder covered in a simple repeat pattern of a bird in a cage. I said to her that the artist who designed it, had probably seen that bird and that the drawing had come from their heart. Art makes life lovely and life would be a much poorer experience without it.

Dedication

The point I was trying to make when I said, “Everyone is an artist”, is that creativity is in human nature and the only real difference between me and another, is that I have dedicated my life to making art. Thus I am more practised, more rehearsed, I have a high level of training and thus I get good results because I have worked hard for a long time perfecting my art. Anyone can achieve a high standard, in their chosen creative field, with some dedication.