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May 2004 Contents
I. Night Vision
II. Energy Management: Translations from the Psych Research Lab, the Board Room, and the Shrink’s Couch
III. Friends in Print: When you feel like reading
IV. Creative Links: Dreams
V. Newsletter and Info: Sharing this newsletter, subscribing, and unsubscribing

I. Night Vision
The thing about dreams is that they help us learn about our inner worlds. An added bonus for visual artists is the treasure trove of personal images that nighttime dreams provide, often with more vividness than any other medium. I’m especially interested in images that lead to or include combining elements in surprising ways.

One way dreams combine is by relating to a problem we’re wrestling with in our daytime life. This has often been illustrated by Kukele’s dream of a snake swallowing its tail; the image led to his discovery of the benzene ring’s structure. Less widely known is the dream that helped Elias Howe invent the sewing machine: while he was struggling with how to make a stitch mechanically, he dreamed of being captured by savages whose spears had holes in their points. Moving the needle’s hole from its traditional place at the blunt end to the point solved his design problem.       

Other dreams present combinations of images that have creative juice in and of themselves. When an artist works to plumb the deeper personal meaning, some combinations will have personal zing to them and some not. And the ones that have personal meaning may not initially have a visual wallop. For example, a dream about a bird in a nest is not an odd combination, but if its flight from the next stirs you, (it’s time to go?), you may be able to convey that depth of feeling in your artwork of an otherwise everyday image.  

Dreams with unexpected combinations may pack a visual zing, but if their shock value is too high, the dreamer may have a hard time finding the personal relevance. (Do you know why Dali’s watches melted?) Let’s say, the bird flies away, and then the nest bursts into bloom and produces a crop of linguine. Here’s an image with some charge. If this were my dream, I’d have a choice of using it in a piece of art with or without learning more of its personal meaning. Being a psychologist at heart, I, would choose to explore the meaning and bring both the image and the meaning to the artwork. Others might choose to do the artwork straight from the image; it’s my experience that they learn more about it as they create with it.

What do you think? What are your ideas about the impact of personal and visual dream images on your art? Send your reactions and comments to connect@dianereardon.com and let me know if it’s okay to share them with others.
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II. Energy Management: Translations from the Psych Research Lab, the Board Room and the Shrink’s Couch
Active Imagination. A straight-forward way to work with dreams is the Jungian technique of active imagination. Especially in the ‘40’s and ‘50’s, one was warned to have a therapist at hand as such work might get overwhelming at times. Still not bad advice, but not so critical for visual artists who are experienced in developing images in our more psychologically open era.

1.      First, create an atmosphere. You should be by yourself in a comfortable space. With an attitude of openness, put practicality and rationality on hold.

2.      Then wait to experience whatever you notice as you contemplate the dream. You are inviting the dream to continue in its own way. This takes practice as you learn to turn down the volume of your everyday consciousness and it’s tendency to criticize or comment. The next event could be a sound, a new image, or a connection with a dream character.

3.      Thirdly, enter into the interaction. Be open to let these events of your mind unfold, but also revisit the first experience of the dream to learn what it wants from you.

4.      Finally, as the process slows down and you can feel it ending, if you do not already have a sense of this, ask how this new energy has a place in your ongoing life or the world around you. Express this in some physical way…writing, drawing, movement.
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III. Friends in Print: When you feel like reading
Click on amazon link for book details and to support breakTHROUGHArts.

Tharp, Twyla. The Creative Habit. 2004
www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0743235266/breakthroug00-20
Tharp, world famous choreographer, shares her life’s journeys from the bare dance studio to full collaborative stage productions. She carves out the problems and workarounds of being creative as a life’s work, day in, day out, deadlines and all. One tidbit from her chapter “Scratching” “In Hollywood, an adventure movie with two guys doesn’t quite qualify as an idea. Two guys and a bear does. It adheres to the unshakable rule that you don’t have a really good idea until you combine two little ideas.” A beautifully written work well worth your time.

Johnson, Robert. Inner Work: Using Dreams and Creative Imagination for Personal Growth and Integration. 1989. www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0062504312/breakthroug00-20
Johnson is a Jungian therapist who writes clearly for those of us who aren’t. He guides and gives examples of how to use active imagination to bring dream elements into your conscious awareness and the stream of your daytime life. His outline differs from mine above in organization but not substance.
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IV. Creative Links.
www.mageist.net A therapist with a Jungian style, Marilyn Geist, hosts this gateway to many tools for growth including active imagination and examples of how it works.  

www.asdreams.org  The official site of the Association for the Study of Dreams, which supports training in dreamwork. Includes an annual juried art show of works based on dreamwork.
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V. Newsletter Info 
E-mail changes. To change your e-mail address, subscribe, or unsubscribe please e-mail connect@dianereardon.com. If you use a spam filter, please add this e-mail address to your list of approved senders. This material is included on the breakTHROUGH Creativity Coaching website (www.dianereardon.com). All material is copyrighted ©, 30 April 2004, Diane Reardon. All rights reserved. Visit the website for back issues and details on scheduling a complimentary one-hour coaching session.
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