Inspiration - Slow Down and Take a Look
The other day I watched a 10 minute video clip on simplicity and beauty in the world and how we should pay more attention to the simpler things in life. This got me thinking. We move at the speed of light through life these days not really paying attention to our surroundings and missing out on all of life’s simple intricacies. It seems to me that is wasn’t always this way. I don’t ever remember my parent’s lives or ours for that matter being this crazy busy as a kid. I used a quote in a blog I posted a couple of weeks back and I feel it’s very fitting for this post as well. You can’t smell the flowers when you are driving past them at 90MPH. For me, it rings so true in society today.
People don’t say hi to each other in the streets or heaven forbid smile at one another. We are far too busy speed walking with our heads down to pay attention to the people we are passing in the streets. Something as simple as a smile from someone can make your day or change someone else’s.
As photographers, inspiration is a tool that we use to create our works, we draw from it. Sometimes it eludes us and other times it is staring us right in the face. Perhaps if we just slowed down a bit in our lives we would then notice that inspiration is EVERYWHERE. You just have to take the time to actually see it.
I challenge you all as human beings first, and as artists second to just take a couple of hours one day and go walk around your city. Take a note pad with you or if you are an artist, take a camera, a sketch pad or canvas and jot down, shoot, paint, draw something that catches your eye. Truly slow down and take in the things you see, look at the clouds, notice the people you pass on the street, a tree, anything that is aesthetically pleasing to your eye and really look at it, enjoy it’s beauty.
I guess I am trying to say that if we DON’T slow down even for a few minutes out of our day, we may just miss something that we will never ever have the chance to see again as every day is different and things change in life so quickly.
Image courtesy of Tnooz.com