Unleash your creative superpowers!
This is Monkeybutt. He’s down to 3 legs now (truck accident) but I’ve always cherished this picture, because he has completely surrendered to the moment. A total zen bath in nothingness. It’s true cats have always been good at resting, but this moment of bliss inspires me. It steers me to the place of “letting go”— which almost always leads to fresh-brewed creative expression. I’m off to the sofa.
If you follow this blog, you know there is nothing I love more than what’s called “found art”— beautiful images found in cracks of sidewalks, or from peeling paint on a rundown building. But a few weeks ago I encountered some of those “accidental canvases” that left me deeply unsettled. It has been just over 6 months since wildfires tore through Southern California, killing more than 2 dozen people, and destroying thousands of homes. For 30 years as a TV journalist I covered stories like this. So when the iconic Pacific Coast Highway reopened — and I had a chance to go see the aftermath for myself — I went.
I have close friends who lost their homes in the Palisades Fire, so I expected to be deeply moved by the devastation, and I was. But something else happened as well, something I didn’t expect. Literally amid the ashes were dozens of scenes that in any other context I would have considered abstract masterpieces. As Josh went about documenting what we saw, I admit for a moment, I felt a thrill, excited by the patterns, textures, colors, and shapes. Lost in the familiar wonder of artistic discovery, I had momentarily blocked out the unfathomable suffering these fires caused. Since that day, I’ve felt so guilty for feeling that moment of joy.
Since the beginning of time, painters, poets and writers have moved us by depicting moments of humanity and grace in the midst of tragedy and challenge. But that was their intention. This isn’t that. This is a devastating disaster leaving in its wake these images that in any other circumstance I would find… breathtakingly beautiful.
Weeks have passed since we visited Malibu and I’m still unresolved by my reaction to what I saw. So after weeks of ruminating, I decided to post some of the photos. Why? Well, this blog is an attempt to share my life-long creative adventures. In many ways, it’s been a celebration of the emotional riches that art has brought me. Almost always, that emotion is simple joy. This time it wasn’t, and I guess that’s just part of the journey too.
(All photos by John Kaplan.)
Join me in ushering in 2025 with intention. Not a list of pointless resolutions we won’t keep for a week, but a commitment to approach everything in a fresh new way. Allow your artist within to find its way out. A minor shift in thought — that can lead to radical results. You may surprise yourself. Just imagine.
“Creativity doesn’t wait for that perfect moment. It fashions its own perfect moments out of ordinary ones.” — Bruce Garrabrandt, artist
Wishing you a spectacular year ahead!
