Art and Design Commons^™

Managing A Creative Practice, Julie C. Barrett

Critical and Creative Thinking Capstones Collection

Myths and assumptions about creativity often lead us to believe that creativity is innate. Researchers find though, that we develop creative skills like any other ability, through opportunity, encouragement and practice. They also believe that most people fail to reach their creative potential, not because of lack of ability, but lack of opportunity. In this paper, I studied how creativity functions (specifically in terms of my own painting practice) and how it can be applied more flexibly. Certain factors, such as access to strong mentors, freedom to experiment, and readily available resources, help potentially exceptional minds find the passion to …