Creativity and control: How to find freedom in the creative process

It’s natural to want to control the things around us. After all, most of us relish the thought of having an easy (enough) life where nasty surprises aren’t lurking round corners, ready to drag us down at any moment. Control, and the attainment of it, apply similarly to the creative process for many artists. A steady hand which confidently marks a canvas can certify whether a painting will be a success or not. But on the flip side, there is much to gain from unpicking the relationship between control and creativity.

If one throws away the comfortable, self-imposed stylistic parameters which have become the norm, the creative process (not to mention its results) can be unexpectedly fruitful. It may sound simple to do, but in practice, renouncing our sweet comforts is harder than one might think. The greater the challenge however, the greater the pay off. Delving into this discussion, we’re pleased to be joined by two creative powerhouses whose respective works breathe an air of refreshment through style and technique.

First off, we’re joined by Anna Murray, one half of conscious creative practice, Patternity, an interdisciplinary studio researching the wonder of natural pattern then applying it in innovative new ways to the man-made world. We’re also joined by esteemed illustrator and animator Joey Yu who’s garnered a mass following for her colourful pencil portraits.

Anna, on the other hand, sees the interplay of creativity and control almost like “an infinite dance”. The two are a deeply philosophical matter for the Patternity co-founder whose work can be seen across book jackets, homeware, public installations not to mention a range of textiles. The relationship between creativity and control for Anna, is “part of the fundamental energies and expressions of life.” Like most big questions, she uses nature to seek answers, in this case appreciating its “spiral of expansion and contraction,” growth followed by chaotic breakdown to further understand how creativity and control interlink. “I believe we need to learn to navigate both in order to survive and thrive,” she adds.

The Patternity co-founder admits she “used to try and control things quite rigidly” but with time, and learning to lean into the philosophy of order and chaos, she’s embraced both states of being which has only aided her both personally and professionally. “The older I get the more I realise you have to allow space and flexibility – for play, serendipity and chance.” It’s impossible to control everything around us, no matter how much it is desired, and Anna is testament to the fact that by letting go, the creative process can be more enjoyable and in turn, more fulfilling. It’s important to note however that clarity and intention within the creative process is equally essential for Anna. In this way, she creates space in life for dedicated ritual, set with intention while coinciding with wide celestial cycles. In other words, she puts in place another kind of pattern for herself, one which chimes in with a personal clock and habitual regime. As Anna puts it: “a higher pattern can give structure and order to the infinite nature of creativity”.

Similarly to Joey, Anna has always been a visual person. Her mum remembers how she would stop every two minutes on a walk to take stock of the smaller details nature had to offer; a tiny spotted insect scuttling across the soil scattered floor for example or the delicate veins sprawling into a pattern on a green leaf. She can vividly recall being “completely obsessed” with the fabric cover of her mum’s cookery book, a 60s swirling psychedelic design with flecks of fluorescent pinks, oranges, greens and yellows used to enhance the botanical flowers and leaves. She liked it so much, she even painted an interpretation of it all over her bedroom wall: “Thanks for tolerating me mum!” Anna can say now in retrospect.

Not much has changed for Anna decades later as nature is still at the core of her’s and Patternity’s design philosophy. Like Joey, time spent off screen is important, and indulges in the inherent decor of the external world, whether it’s a canopy of branches, clouds or plain sky. “There is something about the feeling of being outside, sensing the smells, the texture of light, feeling the air on my skin and seeing how everything is in constant relationship and communication with everything else – a language of connection that so often lies out of view,” Anna adds on the beauty of nature, something that is undoubtedly out of her control but brings bottomless wonder.

Even just a quick turn around the block can incite new inspiration from Anna as there is always another aspect of nature to be discovered. With this in mind, Anna’ s 12 Days of Creativity tutorial sees her make the most of this philosophy, this time round, using marbling. Published on 5 January, Anna’s tutorial exemplifies the beauty of the unpredictable with just a few materials; marbling inks, water, paper and a tray. She’ll demonstrate how to make intricate one-off pieces using the ever-intriguing medium, offering some creative respite from the electrical hum of screens. Through personal experience, Anna knows that by engaging with nature, new perspectives can arise. In one particular instance, she was struggling to put together a talk discussing her nature-centred ethos when an incredible sunset let itself be known, pouring orange light into her window.

In that moment, she explains, “I realised how contradictory I was being as I wrote about noticing the beauty of nature while ignoring the nature in that moment.” Immediately, she put down what she was doing and let “that feeling of connectedness we’re so trying to communicate” absorb through her whole self. “Having gone from feeling very heady and rigid, I relaxed and felt in my body a sense of lightness flooded in. A new depth came from that place that wouldn’t have come had I stayed staring at the screen.” It’s experiences such as these which has allowed Anna to reflect on the journey of creating rather than the outcome. The process is as important as the finished product and should be filled with self-questioning: Am I really present for this? Am I being authentic to what I want to communicate? And for Anna, honouring nature, its cycles and rhythms are integral to succeeding in this.

From 25 December to 5 January, you can discover more creative tips with Joey and Anna when their exclusive tutorials launch online. Put new found inspiration into practice today with Bombay Sapphire’s 12 Days of Creativity and its calendar, a joyful twist on the traditional advent calendar for the creatively-minded. The beautifully designed box packed full of premium art supplies and cocktail-making tools is now available plus several Bombay Sapphire creative tutorials which you can sign up to here. Take part now to enjoy inspiring art and mixology sessions this Christmas.