The Art of Helping Others
Want to know what fuels the creative fire of one of the most gifted visual artists I know? Read on…
I’ve been reading an advance copy of THE ART OF HELPING OTHERS by Douglas C. Man, IVP Press, and it’s powerfully good. Mr. Mann believes that art can be a form of social justice, and both can be powerful expressions of faith.
I’ve known Doug for several years, and his art is thought-provoking and stunning…so I was excited to read this “behind the scenes” work on how he creates, and why. He views art as a form of incitement:
“The world is not clean, nice and orderly, tailor made for our own creative expression. It is in a perpetual state of formidable disarray. Yet many of us imagine it to be well and good and fit to suit. And then we wonder why life doesn’t work out, why we suffer. It takes creative people to see the world for what it is, to discern the human condition. To practice creativity is to be more keenly aware of the complexity of the world, to recognize its fragile, fractured soul. It takes creative people to awaken that awareness in others. Creativity can beget creativity.”
I love that idea; that we must keep our creative fires going, in part, because we keep the world’s creative fires alive. Wanting to know more about how Doug creates, I asked Doug what his one tip was for operating at peak creativity. Here’s what he answered:
“I believe it’s pushing myself to move into others lives, even those that aren’t so lovable in order that they enter into the discovery process of my faith. It’s the art of conversation, the art of helping others, which leads to the art of story. As a writer, it’s also equally important for me to have time to allow for alone time – to dive deep like a swimmer diving down to retrieve a pearl from the ocean floor, and eventually resurfacing with something to say.”
Loving the unlovable leads to the art of story. Wow; as a writer, he’s onto something here. I am loving the book and I recommend you get your own copy here:
