10 Activities To Exercise Your Creativity & Boost Your Happiness
By Kiara Ramirez
As a professional artist or content creator, creativity is the driving force behind every moment of inspiration and self-expression. While it is common to focus on one artistic medium, embracing creativity across various avenues can greatly enhance your artistic abilities and boost your overall happiness. If you are looking for a new way to make art, here are 10 fun and fulfilling activities we recommend trying to help you exercise your creativity!
Make a Painting
The wonderful thing about painting is that there is no wrong way to enjoy it! You can use a variety of different mediums such as watercolors, oil, or acrylic paints to put your own unique vision down on canvas, wood, paper, or a three-dimensional surface. Whether you are creating detailed portraits, painting your favorite animal, or experimenting with random paint splatters, you are only limited by your imagination!
Photography by pakorn | Adobe Stock
Take Photographs
Mastering any skill takes an extraordinary amount of time, patience, and perseverance — photography is no different. Luckily, you don’t need to be an expert photographer to take creative, meaningful, and beautiful pictures. Inspiration for your photography can be found in just about any environment. It can become an opportunity to get outdoors and enjoy nature from a different point of view– your camera lens! Alternatively, you can stay indoors and find interesting lighting, shapes, and hidden gems around your house that you may have otherwise never noticed. Explore your creativity by trying out different perspectives and shooting from a variety of angles. Learn by experimenting and having fun!
Start Drawing or Sketching
All that is required for basic sketching and drawing is paper and a pencil, making it one of the most readily accessible activities. With these tools in hand, you can begin creating anything from abstract to hyperrealism. Many artists, especially beginners, find it helpful to use a reference photo (or take their own)! Keeping a sketchbook is a great way to watch your artwork progress. It takes daily practice to get the results you intend, but if you keep at it daily, you will see improvement quickly.
Photography by Tatiana| Adobe Stock
Create Digital Art
From Photoshop to Procreate, there are numerous apps available on phones, tablets, and computers for creating digital art. This can be a more forgiving medium than traditional artwork, as modifying and erasing are often done in a few quick and easy clicks. The days of crumpling up artistic mishaps on paper in frustration for trash-can basketball are over! Another helpful feature of digital art is being able to zoom in and out throughout your process. You can easily magnify your work or scale it back to check if your drawing proportions are slightly off, a feature that traditional pen and paper certainly can’t give you! Zooming in can also help you achieve a very high level of detail in your final piece. In addition, digital art can be more cost effective, as there is no need to continually purchase physical supplies.
Put Together a Collage
Collaging is hands-down one of the most creative, engaging mediums around, and anyone can do it! The process of destroying something and remaking it into something entirely new and different provides a deep sense of creative fulfillment and expression. It is likely you already have the materials needed for this project at home: old magazines, books, photos, or anything else you can cut up! By mixing some water and glue with the torn-up papers, you can create a 3D model paper-maché. You can also glue your images onto a canvas or paper, and even add paint, glitter, stickers, or other materials for a stunning mixed-media work of art!
Write a Song
Songwriting can be an extremely therapeutic and healing creative outlet, as you are able to convey your deepest thoughts and passions through your lyrics. Plus, you can perform it for others to create a special communal experience. There are no limits; express yourself with verses and chords in any way you choose. From creating silly songs to serious ones, or stand-alone songs to an entire cohesive album, you can create, play, and repeat!
Photography by maxbelchenko | Adobe Stock
Choreograph a Routine or Go Freestyle
Connecting with your body in the form of dance often brings a sense of great joy, emotional expression, and artistic satisfaction. Choreograph a routine or go freestyle! Choose music that speaks to you and inspires you to move. You may find that your body leads the way, and all you need to do is follow. This is an artform with the added benefit of exercise, which supports physical health and spiritual growth. Give it a try!
Write a Poem
Although many people think of poetry as a dying art, it still remains one of the most beautiful ways for humans to connect with themselves and express their thoughts about the world around them. There are numerous formats and types to choose from if you prefer to work within a given structure of rhyme or stanza (such as a haiku or limerick). However, if you are not inspired by any particular poetry structure from the past, you can be completely original and invent your own! The possibilities are endless when it comes to expressing yourself through poetry.
Experiment with Video
If you have a somewhat up-to-date cell phone, you can experiment with videography! To begin, give some consideration to the content you’d like to create and what inspires you. You can create meditative time-lapse videos of the sky while you are out on a long walk, or you could try some moodier videos with black and white slow-motion. The whole world is your medium for this form of art! In addition to being a ton of fun, becoming comfortable and proficient with videography can help you in other business endeavors on social media. Hello, TikTok!
Photography by mtaira | Adobe Stock
Play an Instrument
Playing an instrument is another great way to get in touch with your creative mind. Go to a music store and see what instruments grab your attention. You can rent them out until you’ve decided on the ones that best fit you. If you don’t have access to an instrument readily available, see what sounds you can create with what you have at home. Once you feel like branching out, try adding your friends and their instruments into the mix. Who knows? You could end up creating the world’s next big band!
In a world overflowing with opportunities, exploring the realms of artistic imagination is a journey worth taking, benefiting both your health and career goals. Whether you choose painting, photography, dance, or music, each path holds a unique key to your artistic self. Remember, the world is your canvas, and your creativity knows no bounds — have fun creating!
