Unleashing Creativity Through Play

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Ever felt guilty for "just playing around" in your studio when there are commissions to complete and deadlines to meet? What if those moments of joyful experimentation are actually essential to your artistic growth and spiritual journey?

Drawing from my own artistic evolution, I share how seemingly random creative play—from fiddling with natural materials found while gardening to trying encaustic wax techniques—has repeatedly transformed my work in unexpected ways. These weren't calculated business moves but simply responses to curiosity that the Holy Spirit used to breathe new dimensions into my practice. The materials and techniques I stumbled upon during "unproductive" studio time eventually became defining elements of my artistic voice.

There's profound spiritual significance in creative experimentation. When Jesus said we must "come as little children" to enter the kingdom, he highlighted the very qualities that make creative play so powerful: wonder, openness, and joy unconcerned with productivity metrics. God isn't disappointed when we take time to experiment without clear objectives—these might be the very moments He uses to draw us deeper into communion with Him through creativity. As Isaiah 43:19 reminds us, God is always "doing a new thing," inviting us to perceive and participate in fresh expressions of His creative nature.

Ready to reconnect with the pure joy of creating? I challenge you to dedicate just 30 minutes this week to creative play without pressure or expectation. Turn on inspiring music, follow your curiosity, and see where the Spirit leads. Then share your experiments on social media and tag me—your courage might inspire fellow artists to embrace their own joyful experimentation. What breakthrough might be waiting for you in these seemingly "unproductive" moments of creative freedom?

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
So what if your next breakthrough didn't come from
things like hustle and strategyand planning, but actually from
things like curiosity and play,from that whisper inside of you
that just says what if you justtry this?
Or I really want to try that.
Listen, today we're talkingabout something I love to call
joyful experimentation in yourcreative practice.
We're going to talk about whyit matters to God, how God uses

(00:22):
it and how it just might awakensomething deeper inside of you
than you ever expected.
Today here on the ThrivingChristian Artist podcast.
Welcome to the ThrivingChristian Artist, the podcast
where we hope you connect withGod, to bust through the
roadblocks that have held youback for years, create the work
you love and really live thelife you know.

(00:43):
God created you to live as anartist in his kingdom.
I'm Matt Tommey, your host.
Let's get started.
Well, hey, my friends, so gladthat you're back with me here on
the podcast.
I want to lean into this wholething of joyful experimentation
today because I think it's a lotmore important than we realize.
In fact, as I look back at myown journey, and even today in

(01:06):
my journey as an artist, it'ssomething that unknowingly sort
of has deeply shaped who I am asan artist, not only personally
but also creatively, and it'ssomething that continues to
breathe a lot of life and a lotof joy into my own studio
practice every day as I come in.
It really is about you know,cultivating the space, if you

(01:29):
will, to play in your creativelife and in your creative
practice without pressure orwithout expectation, just
allowing yourself to kind ofmove spontaneously in the studio
.
And I think for a lot of usthat can be something that is a
little unnatural, especially ifyou're in a season of making

(01:50):
work to sell.
I know for a lot of us that arein this place and I have been
for a lot of years of makingwork to sell, making it for
galleries, making it for showsand commissions, the idea of
kind of just playing in thestudio, you know, can feel a
little bit irresponsible, likewhat are you doing?
You got so much to do, but youknow, like who has the time

(02:11):
right To to just be messingaround with new materials and
when there's important thingslike shows and commissions and
deadlines and exhibitions andall that stuff to to be focused
on?
But but here's the deal, andthis has come, I think, after a
lot of years in my life of doingit wrong and focusing on the
wrong things, play is.
And this joyful experimentation, if you will, it's not

(02:34):
frivolous, it's actually one ofthe most fruitful and spiritual
and informative things that wecan do inside of our creative
process, if we'll let ourselfreally engage in this.
I love in Isaiah 43, 19,.
It says, hey, behold, I'm doinga new thing.
Now it springs forth, do younot perceive it?

(02:54):
And I really believe thatjoyful experimentation and this
play and this sort of just goingwith the flow in your studio
from time to time, this is oneof the ways that we get to
participate in the new thingsthat God's doing, because how
many of you know, god is alwaysdoing new things, right, I love

(03:15):
it.
He's the same yesterday, today,and you know, yesterday, today
and forever.
The Bible says and also, hismercies are new every morning.
Right, he's always doing a newthing.
And so there's this sort oftension with which we can lean
on the steadfast nature of Godand also realize that in him, as
we're being led by the spirit,we're tuning our hearts right to

(03:38):
the new things that he wants torelease in us and through us,
things that he might be wantingto awaken in us to take us to
the next place in our spiritualjourney.
You know, I can look back at myown life, not only as a person
and I could talk about thatforever but really to hone in on
it as an artist today.

(03:59):
For a lot of years I've beenvery disciplined in my life.
I don't know if it was becauseI was just wired that way or
whatever, but I've always kindof had the ability to focus on
something.
When I started my baskets as ahobby so many years ago, I never
really felt a lot of desire toexperiment with other things.

(04:21):
I'd kind of experiment withinmy own materials.
But as I got a lot of masterywith that and really, you know,
kind of developed my voice as anartist, I really did start
feeling a little bit of boredomand your boredom can be good.
I kind of felt like is this, it?
Is this all there is?
And I noticed that as I wouldlook at other artists and I

(04:44):
would look at other mediums andI'd look at other processes and
that sort of thing, I would feelthis sort of nudge inside to
kind of well, why don't you trythat?
Well, why don't you?
You look for that.
And it wasn't necessarily froma hey, try this in order to sell
it or try this in order toprove that you can really do it.

(05:05):
I just enjoyed it, I justthought it was cool.
And so over the years,throughout my practice, you know
, I've I started using thingslike, uh, paper clay and in
caustic wax and cold wax andscrap metal and barks and
branches and all this kind ofstuff.
And listen, every bit of thatstarted as me kind of fiddling
around with something in thestudio, with no pressure or no

(05:28):
rules, just kind of grabbingsomething or seeing something on
Pinterest or on Instagram or inthe work of another artist and
just saying I think that's neat,I want to try that At the time.
You know, when you start doingthat and you allow yourself,
without pressure, to sort oflean into that kind of stuff,
you don't really ever know whereit's going.

(05:49):
But for me, the thing thathappened is that these simple
sort of spontaneous moments,these times of just playing
without expectation, god beganto really use that to not only
keep me energized in what I wasdoing creatively, but also begin
to add whole new layers ofexpression to my work, and so

(06:12):
something that was, you know,just a play thing, all of a
sudden became this reallytactile and organic and raw and
dimensional, if you will,expressions of what the Holy
Spirit wanted to do in andthrough me.
It's kind of like the HolySpirit was using these times of
play and spontaneity to breathethe new thing that he wanted to

(06:35):
do in and through me, in andthrough me, and give those to me
as gifts.
Now, as I look back at myjourney you know I didn't ever
start out with those things, asI'm going to start this as a new
way to sell work but as I lookback, these little sort of you
know, as Bob Ross said happyaccidents, these little fun

(06:55):
experiments have really pushedthemselves, if you will, and
made a way for themselves in mycreative voice, in my artistic
voice, and now they've kind ofbecome a staple of what makes my
voice really my voice.
Again.
I didn't set out to plan it,but it started with me and this
is what I want to get over toyou today.

(07:16):
It started with me saying yesto that joy, yes to that
curiosity, yes to that sort ofexperimentation without
expectation and just allowingmyself to be curious and explore
in the studio, because when welisten, when we do that it
always awakens this deeperconnection to our creative voice

(07:37):
, and sometimes one that maybeyou've even forgotten that was
there.
It's even when we're doingthings that are not on purpose
right that these sort ofspontaneous expressions come
forth in our life and theybecome this sort of maturing
force, if you will.
Even today, I mean, I can beout gardening and I can see

(07:59):
daylily foliage or things innature, and there is nothing
better for me than to honestlyjust sit down in the yard and
start fiddling around with stuff.
And again, some people mightsay, well, gosh, that's kind of
a waste of time.
Gosh, no, it's not.
It is choosing.
It is choosing to allow thatthing which is waking you up

(08:20):
creatively to have a space toreconnect with the pure joy,
unplanned, spontaneous joy, ofjust fiddling around with your
hands, of just sketching in yournotebook, of just playing with
materials.
Listen, that is important.
See, you got to realize God isnot a God of just production.

(08:41):
Of course God wants to producethings through our life, but I
think God is not afraid of thetimes that we just want to
experiment and play.
In fact, I think that's core tothe kingdom of God.
Jesus said right you can'tenter the kingdom unless you be
born again and come as a littlechild, unless you be born again

(09:05):
and come as a little child.
And sometimes I think play andexperimentation is this sort of
rebirth for us, right, wherewe're reborn to our creative
process.
We're reborn to art within us,we're reintroduced to creativity
outside of production and forme that is so, so, so important.

(09:25):
And God is not listen, that'dmake him nervous, that'd make
him disappointed that you're notdoing things for him and being
effective.
No, this is again an invitationfrom the spirit, I think, to
reconnect, to lay down ouragendas, to lay down our plans
as important and wonderful asthose things are and just to

(09:45):
create with Him, just to playwith Him in these kind of
moments of unhindered joy andplay.
So I just want to encourage you,as you're listening to this
right now.
What does joyfulexperimentation look like for
you, right?
Because you know again, for methat may be playing around with
new materials.
It may be.
You know again for me that maybe playing around with new
materials.
That may be, you know, watchinga video, it may be just sitting

(10:07):
down in the yard and fiddlingaround with, with natural
materials.
Maybe it's a new medium for youthat you've never touched, or
or layering or combiningmaterials that you've never done
before, or maybe it's uh, Idon't know cleaning or
rearranging your studio or justsetting aside some time to
sketch this week.
Whatever that is, I want toencourage you to give yourself

(10:30):
permission to explore this week.
So here's a challenge.
Right, choose one thing thisweek to try in your studio, not
for any purpose, not for sellingit, not for a new project, not
an idea for a commission, justfor the sake of curiosity, and
play.
No expectations, no goals, no,anything, just to play right.

(10:53):
And some of you I know some ofyou love a checklist, love
instructions.
So here's the deal Take 30minutes, all right, 30 minutes.
When you come into the studio,turn on some music, get with the
Lord, just allow yourself tokind of go with the flow and
then, at the end of it, justlook at what you did and say
what did I enjoy about that?

(11:14):
What surprised me?
What am I sensing from the Lordas I did this?
And if you don't sense anythingagain, as long as you're
feeling joyful in the process, Ijust want to encourage you.
That is a God moment, a momentof joy, a moment of creativity
that God can use and use to drawyou into your voice, into your

(11:37):
process and into a deeper walkwith him, if you'll just give
yourself the space and the timeto do that on a regular basis.
Jesus, I pray right now thatthrough your Holy Spirit, god,
you would birth a desire forexperimentation and freedom
inside of us.
That, lord, as we walk in thestudio this week and do the

(11:58):
beautiful thing that you'vegiven us the opportunity to do,
which is create in the studiowith you, god, I pray that the
whimsy of your spirit, thelife-giving nature of your
spirit, would draw us intobeautiful places of play and
experimentation this week, sothat we can receive the
invitation that you have for usto go deeper and to go further

(12:20):
in all that you have for us,creatively.
We thank you for that, god, inJesus name.
Amen.
Now listen, my friend.
I hope that this is wakingsomething up inside of you today
, and here's what I want you todo.
When you do that, do me a favor,tag me on social media, on
Instagram, on Facebook, you cantag me at Matt Tommy or at the
Thriving Christian Artist andjust post maybe a video or maybe

(12:43):
a picture of what you did thisweek to kind of re-engage in
that place of creativeexperimentation, of joyful
experimentation.
Listen, it's not only going toinspire you when you post about
it, it's going to inspire othersto do the same.
All right, hey, listen, makesure that you're subscribed so
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(13:04):
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(13:25):
All right, hey, I love you, myfriend, thanks for joining me,
thanks for being faithful toyour calling as an artist.
Remember, until next time.
You were created to thrive.
Bye, hey, my friend.
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(13:48):
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(14:10):
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All right, love you, bye.