Tuesday, June 24, 2008

Politics and creativity

So, I really thought my Barack Obama Obumpa fist pump t-shirt would be a big seller at my t-shirt store. I mean, I thought the design was clever, and the play on Obama's name seemed clever, but perhaps my son is right. Perhaps it is a lame pun. What do you think?
It's so hard for me to combine creativity with politics. I mean sure, there's the name of the candidate, and the symbols, (American flag, peace sign, etc.), but how far can you really stray from the status quo? Then I see some incredibly unique designs, and I wish I had created them! My 2 most unique designs for Obama are can be found here.. and here.
But even I admit I need to make something more unique and exciting. And when trying to come up with a creative thought, it just seems different with a political theme. I get caught up in the red, white and blue, and the ordinary, expected things. I wish I could erase every political design I've ever seen, I think they've influenced me over the years. It's kind of like really bad tv commercials, you seem to remember them, so I guess they've done their job.
And yet, my favorite way to get inspired to come up with new, creative ideas for my t-shirts, is to go to the used book store, and spend hours there looking through the art books. While I usually spend some money there, the point is to find things that inspire me, not to copy other artists' ideas. It's great because there is so much original art in the world, it makes me think that I can come up with something original too. If I put blinders on. But then, so much of the outside world is great for inspiration, I guess it would just be nice to have a filter. I do like my yoga t-shirts though, especially this one.
Please check out my t-shirt and gift store, any feedback is greatly appreciated.
And if you have any ideas on how you get inspired, or what helps you be creative, I'd love to hear them!

No comments:

Post a Comment