Passing Between Passions: Separating Art from Life Is Keeping you from Happiness
There is a contagious emotion that trumps all others in the spectrum of human interaction.
It’s the feeling of creative inspiration.
You know that sensation, that rush of joy or sense of discovery when you lock on to an idea that seems to defy the laws of social reason. It’s equal parts crazy and equal parts intelligent with a dash of spontaneity. It’s a metaphorical middle finger to the way society wants you to act or behave, and it’s an idea that helps you carve out an existence that straddles the line between the reasonable and the radical.
This is where I want to live.
You’re not re-inventing the wheel when you feel this way. It’s the success you may feel when you realize a quicker route to work, or figure out a way to sort laundry faster. You could even be inspired to change from a well-written book or movie. The light of inspiration flickers on and off for a wide variety of reasons and in a myriad of ways, but the age-old question remains…. How can we remain inspired?
From a personal perspective – I struggle with this a lot. I often feel like my life is disjointed – and I naturally compartmentalize things so I can make sense of how life works.
What this quickly boils down to is some activities become “work” and others become “fun” or creative and the more I’ve meditated on this subject, the sillier I think the concept is. When things become “work” the opportunity for any learning seems to fade – it’s replaced by the concept of getting from point A to Point B without major physical or emotional injury. Let’s be honest work then becomes stress.
To me, we have this entire process backwards.
When I got out of school about two years ago, this mental separation between work & play, creative and structured was a process I grappled with constantly. I struggled to maintain a life of balance with equal parts work (for financial reasons) and equal parts play (for creative and soul-feeding human interaction). I now have the chance for both.
Recently I made a mix video with the help of my friends Ben + Dan that gave me the opportunity to start sonically curating matches for the Chicago Fire… An organization that is historically very important piece to Major League Soccer. The sport itself has long since been a huge part of my life, and now to be able to combine two life-long passions into what some would characterize as a “job” – is truly an incredible experience.
This collaboration comes as a direct result of the idea that work & play can coexist. It also proved to me personally that there is opportunities to find art in every facet of your daily life. Art or creativity isn’t something that stays on a canvas or hangs from a wall – your art is your personal touch, your writing style, the way you laugh and how you entertain others. It can be as small as a whisper between friends or as big as street-side mural – but acknowledging that art’s prominence exists in multiple mediums of life is a great way establish your own place and path in the community. I’ve chose mine – and it’s to soundtrack and enrich the lives of people through music, whether it be creating music or curating selections from other sources, I’m excited for what the future holds and hope you’ll join me on this creative exploration in your own personal way.