Edited by Samaira Kumaran
Every painful day last semester was colored a deep shade of monochrome since I had left my acrylic paints and colored pencils at home. Already armed with three bags totaling a weight heavier than mine, I decided I’d return home to fetch my art bag this upcoming Diwali break. My jewelry-making pliers, the box of polymer clay, and the silicon resin mold collected dust at the bottom of my 5-kg heavy art supplies bag shoved at the back of my dad’s closet. Either way, Mumma told me I wouldn’t get the time to be creative now that I was an intellectual, grown-up college girl. There is no space for molding clay into miniature food necklace charms in the life of a 4.0 GPA student.
Fortunately (and unfortunately, since this realization dawned upon me once I had already left my supplies at home), one always manages to find time for the things they love to do. My hands itched to get hold of my Prismacolor pencils and tan-colored art file where I draw all my portraits. Every time a friend’s birthday rolled along, I wished I could make them the necklace I was sure they would love. I hadn’t realized the role making art played in my life until I barely had the means to make it again; I felt like the toxic ex who didn’t understand what she had until she didn’t anymore. Nonetheless, months without my precious bag forced me to discover more minor, less-effort activities that would nourish my creativity regularly.
- As the number 1 Trident chewing gum fanatic (you’d know this about me within 20 minutes of conversation), I’d be left with a minimum of three silver wrappers scrunched in the corner of my laptop bag after a full day. If I’m too lazy to find actual origami paper, chewing gum wrapper hearts are a quick fix to making yourself and the receiver of the hearts a little happier. Attached is a 5-minute-long YouTube video on making chewing gum wrapper hearts for a lifetime of receiving “This is so cute! How did you make this?” compliments. Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6GLmwztjgCA
- No matter how tough it is to drag myself out of bed for class each morning, I know I have my morning outfit-curation time to look forward to. While this eats up an extra 15 minutes of sleep time, nothing beats the feeling of putting together an unexpectedly good outfit that makes me want to actually leave my room (have you really worn the fit if no one saw it?). Matching different colors, patterns, textures, and jewelry items evokes a feeling adjacent to finding the perfect paint shade for my portrait after painstaking attempts at mixing multiple tubes of what looks like the same color.
- Ideating plans for girl’s night scratches the same itch as scouring the web for a reference photo to draw or taking apart the stationary store to find a couple of pretty beads. From planning the theme for a friend’s birthday dinner to unpacking the logistics of where to go, throwing parties is an unexpected way of tapping into the organization and meticulous attention to detail with which I approach my artwork.
- I’ve discovered collaging is my ultimate savior when faced with a creativity drought. Whether it takes the form of creating arbitrary Pinterest boards, incessantly spamming my Instagram story with pretty pictures or sticking the thousandth poster on my dorm room wall, collaging is my assured tool for feeling a little bit artsier.
- Photographing the ugliest, unsightliest things around me in an attempt to capture their quiet beauty is when I feel most creative using my phone. Notwithstanding the low storage space left on my phone or the confused looks I get from my friends seeing me photograph an arbitrary tree, concocting ways to frame my picture aesthetically is sometimes more important than the actual image.
- My ultimate creative outlet? Plotting detailed, low-effort pranks for my most gullible friend. From contemplating how I could make her believe an elaborate lie I just came up with to switching out the contents of her underwear drawer and bookshelf when she’s not in her room, there’s no better art form than a harmless prank pulled off with dedication.
In the end, maybe being an artist is never really about owning the perfect supplies or curating
the ideal conditions to create. Maybe, it is about finding tiny, ridiculous ways to make something a little more beautiful, a little more fun, a little more yours. Whether with a pack of chewing gum wrappers, a pile of secondhand posters, a poorly framed tree photo, or a meticulously orchestrated prank, the need to create has a way of always sneaking back into your life. Even without my beloved art bag, being creative lies at the core of making every day more unique.