This is a repeat of a blog post interview I did with Jill Badonsky on my Artella blog back in 2009.
Enjoy! (Oh and by the way, I own all of Jill's books and highly recommend you buy all of them and then subscribe to her blog and follow her on Facebook! She is such an inspiration.)
Top o' the Mornin' to Ya and Happy St. Paddy's Day Ya'all!
We are SO excited to have Jill
Badonsky, artist, author, coach and Muse Channeler as our special guest today.
Jill is the founder of Kaizen-Muse Creativity Coaching, nationally known
workshop leader, and the author, of "The Awe-manac: A
Daily Dose of Wonder." You can find her lurking at www.themuseisin.com.
Some of you may know Jill from her first book "The Nine Modern Day
Muses (and a Bodyguard): 10 Guides to Creative Inspiration for Artists, Poets,
Lovers and Other Mortals Wanting to Live a Dazzling Existence."
Since it's St. Patrick's Day, we
sent our very Irish reporter extraordinaire, Clover McFourleaf, off to
California to do a live interview with Jill. (Actually Clover begged for this
assignment. Jill is suspected of having an intimate connection with magical
beings, inspiring Muses and faeries. So it only stands to reason that she must
know a few leprechauns as well. At least Clover is banking on that!)
Let's check in with Clover now....
1. Jill, I just love your illustrations. When you sit down to
create your art, what is your process? What is your favorite medium to work in?
I do illustrations two ways. My
favorite method is just doodling with a very fine ink pen and seeing what
designs come out of it. This method results in, what I think, are my freshest,
most original designs.
The other way, I use a picture as
reference, but I make modifications according to my art-voice. This is fun too
but often not as inventive. Using a pen first, versus a pencil creates a
child-like energy and an invitation to love the less-than-perfect.
2. You write, you teach, you create, you coach. You seem to share
so much of yourself. What would a perfect day "just for Jill" look
like?
What a great question. A perfect day
would be a two hour hike in nature, followed by a big breakfast and then a banquet
of art until the evening. Then meeting up with favorite friends and my
sweetheart for fun entertainment, dinner and clever, intelligent discussion
would be great. If somewhere in there, there's a moment to make someone's day
brighter, that would make the day even more perfect. And of course, receiving a
large sum of money in the mail for no reason is always a favorite thing.
3. You use the term "coaching resistant." Describe a
person who is "coaching resistant."
Coaching resistant means a number of
things. 1). It means feeling rebellious about being given instructions to do
anything, even if the instruction may be exactly what is needed. Rebellion is a
necessary part of the creative process and if a coach isn't sensitive to this,
they may further block a creative person. 2). I also think some people don't
try coaching when it could really help them because they don't want one more
person telling them what to do to add to their feeling of overwhelm. In
Kaizen-Muse Creativity Coaching, we turn coaching sessions into creative
experiences not just accountability sessions. This means guided imageries, art,
writing and other activities take a client deeper. The emphasis of this model
is taking away the pressures we put on ourselves around the creative process.
4. How has Julia Cameron and her book "The Artist's Way"
influenced you?
I taught The Artist's Way for six
years so there's probably a lot of ways it influenced me that are now out of my
consciousness. If I could say what helped the most, it would probably be the
awareness that her explorational exercises liberate. With that awareness we can
begin to know where we need to embrace our power. Her concept of Artist Dates
is something I believe in and take regularly.
5. Can you tell us a little bit about how you evolved into the
artist you are today? When did you know your true calling?
Each time I was able to see through
my fears, release my insecurities, and take the risk to follow my dream, my
intuition emerged and guided me effortlessly to the experiences that unleashed
the fuel of passion. Keeping a consistent but not perfect awareness of my love
for art and allowing myself to practice as often as possible was a big part of
it.
I knew my true calling when I was working as an Occupational Therapist on a psychiatric unit and couldn't wait for the patients to leave the art-clinic so I could work on my art without interruptions… definite sign it was time to leave that career.
I knew my true calling when I was working as an Occupational Therapist on a psychiatric unit and couldn't wait for the patients to leave the art-clinic so I could work on my art without interruptions… definite sign it was time to leave that career.
Oh well Clover. Maybe next time.
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