The Groove Issue 29 - How to Be Creatively Ambidextrous
Welcome to the 29th issue of The Groove.
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HOW TO BE CREATIVELY AMBIDEXTROUS
Sigmund Freud said that neurosis is the inability to tolerate ambiguity. While many of Freud’s theories have been debunked, he was right on this one. What Freud was pointing at is the psychological construct where people perceive ambiguous situations as a threat, reject the unfamiliar and ultimately choke their own ability to lead and to become creative and innovative.
In our contemporary society we are thrown curveballs almost daily. We are relentlessly presented with circumstances and choices that are open to more than one interpretation. Sometimes we don’t even know what those choices will mean or entail for our businesses or careers, yet we have to make decisions usually under serious time constraints.
In all my 12 years working with artists and being the CEO of my own business, these are the three most important discoveries I’ve made when it comes to dealing with ambiguities:
Tolerance for Ambiguity is Indicative of Creativity and Consistent Evolution
Many founders of startups, when asked what it takes to succeed, unequivocally say, “to be comfortable with ambiguity.” The interesting thing is that many artists are also people who display this trait.
A well-rounded entrepreneur, business owner, leader or artist can navigate the complexities of what’s happening inside their company or studio, and the external circumstances of what’s happening in the world, by successfully dancing alongside rapid change and adjusting quickly to the increasing demands of an interconnected ecosystem that never stops spinning.
Embrace “Not Knowing”
The great Catalan artist Joan Miró had a prolific and quite lucrative seven-decade career where he comfortably and unapologetically, without family money or having to orchestrate publicity stunts, moved from Fauvism, to Surrealism, to Magic Realism and Dada, then Cubism and eventually pure abstraction.
Joan Miró, The Farm, 1921-1922, oil-on-canvas. Miró was in the early stages of his career and not yet into the abstractions that made him world famous. Fun fact: this painting was owned by Ernest Hemingway at some point. It is now at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC.
From 1912 to 1923, Miró painted human figures and landscapes, and then he changed, because the circumstances around him had shifted too. He felt that he had gotten all that he needed to get out of his early stages as a painter. Seduced by the mysteries of abstraction, he said he’d go to bed in his studio in Paris (quite poor and hungry), look at the ceiling and see irregular shapes that he drew in his notebooks and turned them into parts of his compositions the next day.
From the time that Miró found the beauty of abstract art, he never looked back. He believed that ambiguity was essential to the poetic effect of his work.
Similar to how many artists feel, Miró said, “when I stand before a canvas, I never know what I’ll do, and I am the first one surprised at what comes out.” With diligence and discipline, Miró produced more than 13,000 works of art, including paintings, drawings, sculptures, lithographs, tapestries, and ceramics.
Joan Miró, Ciphers and Constellations, in Love with a Woman,1941, gouache and terpentine paint on paper.
The world loved him back, by the time of his death in 1983 at the age of 90, Miró, who was supremely famous despite him being quite a low-profile person, had a net worth of $5 million (that’s $13.2 million adjusted for inflation today). Additionally, he witnessed the opening of his own museum at the top of Montjuïc in Barcelona and his work had been acquired by the most important modern art institutions around the planet.
Miró in his studio in Palma de Mallorca, Spain, surrounded by work that was always ambiguous and open to multiple interpretations
Balance the Use of Both Hands
We all use both hands every day, even those of us who are stronger on one side. However, developing creative ambidexterity may be the antidote for ambiguities.
In other words, having options to choose from – from those whose outcomes are certain and from others that span all the 60 shades of gray - is one way to look at it. Proverbially holding, squeezing, and exploiting what you know you are good at in your right hand, and using your left to explore and experiment in those areas that you aren’t as familiar with is another.
Take small risks daily, understanding that no matter how hard we try to prevent it, change will happen and that mistakes are inevitable.
Have the emotional fortitude to leave the things behind that aren’t working out anymore and be open to try new things.
Since we know that nothing ever stays the same, ambiguity will always be a part of our lives. Miró knew this all too well and said in an interview in 1936 published in the Cahiers d’art, Paris: “My young contemporaries know how to struggle when they are poor, but all stops the minute they balance their budgets.”
Long periods of being comfortable doing something are clear signals of creative stagnation. Add something new to what you do, even if you may have been afraid of it before. Invite those little or big struggles to learn or adapt to something else. This is one of the best ways to continue producing work that is meaningful and creative.
Thank you for reading this far. Looking forward to hearing from you anytime.
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