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July 2004 Contents
I. Summer Rhythms
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:
V. Newsletter and Info: Sharing this newsletter, subscribing, and unsubscribing

I. Summer Rhythms
Tempo and rhythm create powerful moods and atmospheres. Compare a mall on Saturday afternoon to the seashore on a sunny day. Think of how different pieces of music affect you….Bridge over Troubled Waters? Louie, Louie?

We all have our repertoires and ranges of rhythms and tempos and can recognize times and places, relationships and groups that have their own distinctive “beat”. Even though I don’t have kids at home out of school, I feel the shift into summer rhythms. Living in a resort area, I have to add five minutes to everyday trips; I call it Winnebago time.

Different kinds of art and craft work have different rhythms. Think of standing in front of Picasso. A Monet.  I have a different tempo when stitching by hand outside in full light than when inside. But think more broadly now. Do you have different rhythms for different pieces? Aren’t there some that get made rather rapidly while others may wait weeks until they move from the unknown to the next step?

Look also at your pieces, your ideas, the images that catch your eye. The rhythms of some are a strong backbeat of pattern while others are more narrative with a “once upon a time” cadence. Then there’s the rhythm of your reactions to the piece – calm, energized, the technical timing of the way it draws your eyes from point to point.

Summer is a time to be not so focused and to let yourself drift a bit, being open to what catches your eye and what catches your heart. Whether you make a note or sketch of it or not, it will enrich your work during the coming rhythms of fall and winter.
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II. Energy Management: Translations from the Psych Research Lab, the Board Room and the Shrink’s Couch

Cycles
Our mind/body selves respond to shifts in rhythm due to the time of the year, the time of day, even within a 2 hour period. Here in the Northwest, we can’t avoid the summer shift as the sun doesn’t even think of leaving til after 9 pm. Leads you to consider adding curtains over curtains in the bedroom and makes for very late fireworks on the fourth of July.

The powerful daily sleep/wake cycle links our surroundings to our bodies affecting cortisol levels, temperature, physical strength and, for some, even weight. As an artist, I’m sure you’ve thought about how your own 24-hour rhythms work, whether you are a morning person (lark) or a night person (owl). I’m hoping you’ve come up with some creative ways to negotiate with those around you to use your best and brightest times for art.

While we sleep, there are 90 to 120 minute cycles of dreaming (REM) and non-dreaming sleep. The main researcher of these cycles, Nathanial Kleitman, proposed that similar cycles occur during the day, but evidence of this basic rest-activity cycle (BRAC) is still spotty. Hypnosis research indicates associated changes in suggestibility. Others have evidence of links to food intake, endorphins, sexuality, and nasal dominance. In this last one, a stronger air flow in one nostril correlates with more EEG activity on the opposite side of the brain, and the sides shift with the BRAC cycle.

Remember this daytime BRAC is proposed, not proven. All of this may go the way of biorhythms, which used to be in the daily papers, but went out with mood rings. While science keeps trying to help us figure out the biological cycles that affect us all, artists only have to figure out their own personal rhythms of creativity.
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III. Friends in Print: When you feel like reading
Click on amazon link for book details and to support breakTHROUGHArts.

Louden, Jennifer. The Comfort Queen’s Guide to Life. 2002.
www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0609605275/breakthroug00-20
The word comfort does not mean self-indulgence but a balance between indulgence and overcontrol. Louden dances on both sides of the line, encouraging both careful inner listening and honest looks in the mirror for the reality of what you actually do. Her lively writing style make this a book to dip into again and again; the only downside is that the presentation and examples are so tilted toward a woman’s life that it might put off those men who would otherwise find it very helpful.

Lundstrom, Meg. The Power of Flow: Practical ways to transform your life with meaningful coincidence. 1997. www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/060980197X/breakthroug00-20
This author has  gathered enough guidelines from many corners of the self-help world (“be aware”, “finish things and move on”) for about four years of therapy. But she has also packaged them in a way to help readers open up to the unexpected yet meaningful events of life (C. G. Jung’s synchronicity). Good reminders for all and of special interest to artists working in collage, mixed media, or with “found” objects.
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IV. Creative Links.
www.comfortqueen.com  More tools from Jennifer Louden (see above) including an “inner organizer”, retreat resources, and 2 biweekly and 1 daily free e-newsletters.
www.robertfritz.com Here’s a site to learn more about Fritz’s work which was featured in last month’s newsletter*. It provides access to the basic principles he works with, workshops and books such as “Your Life as Art”, and a free e-newsletter. *(www.dianereardon.com/nlarch.htm)
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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 June 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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