Can we learn creativity?
I’m only asking as creativity is the top tier of my ‘4 C’s of Culture model’; so, I really hope we can…
Having spent three decades performing, creating and teaching theatre I can say, with some confidence, yes creativity can be taught, learnt and developed. It has been said before that creativity is like a muscle that you build through training. I have developed many methods for exploring and developing creativity for both myself, students and clients over many years but I feel it is important to start from what Cognitive Psychology tells us about creativity. Here we learn that there are 5 types of creativity:
- Mimetic creativity is the act of searching for ideas to reapply or imitate from one industry to another
- Biosociative creativity is the act of connecting concepts to produce a hybrid idea
- Analogical creativity is the use of analogies to solve a challenge
- Narratological creativity is the act of storytelling
- Intuitive creativity is when a person empties their mind of distractions and allows it to freely wander
Let’s look at the first one, Mimetic, and how this might be developed. I will explore the others in future posts.
Mimetic creativity is the ability to imitate or mimic something, especially in art. It is the most basic form of creativity, but it can also help you learn new skills and improve your expression. An example of this would be learning to play a classic song on a guitar before you start writing your own.
Here are five steps to develop mimetic creativity:
- Find a model that inspires you. This could be a person, a work of art, a piece of music, a story, or anything else that you admire and want to emulate.
- Study the model closely. Observe how the model does what they do, what techniques they use, what choices they make, and what emotions they convey. Try to understand the logic and the intention behind their work. You can also read or watch interviews, reviews, or analyses of the model to gain more insights.
- Practice copying the model. Try to reproduce the model’s work as accurately as possible, using the same tools, methods, and style. Pay attention to the details and the nuances that make the model unique. You can also compare your work with the original and identify the differences and the areas for improvement.
- Experiment with variations. Once you have mastered the basics of copying the model, you can start to introduce some changes and adaptations to your work. You can modify the content, the format, the tone, the perspective, or the context of the model’s work to suit your own preferences and purposes. You can also combine elements from different models to create something new.
- Express your own voice. The final step is to use what you have learned from the model to create something original and personal. You can use your own experiences, opinions, values, and goals to inform your work. You can also explore new topics, genres, mediums, or audiences that the model has not covered. You can use your mimetic creativity as a foundation for your own creative expression.