The Inner Studio - Riverside Architectural Press

PART FIVE | USING THIS LIFE TO BE CREATIVE AND WISE
material to the project. The sensation of spinning your wheels may
simply be telling you that you are trying too hard.
2. “I’m bored”
Marion was working on the design of a Chinese cultural center. She
sat at her desk looking annoyed and upset. She had a site and had
done good preliminary work, but found herself stuck. Finally she
said, “I’m really bored with this project. I don’t want to do a
cultural center.” She sounded frustrated. She had been very enthusiastic
a few weeks ago and now she found herself totally bored and
worried the project was dead, that “it is all wrong,” that she would
have to start again. It was like a promising relationship that now
seemed unworkable. After a little silence I said, “Let’s see what we
can learn from boredom.” Marion began to say she wanted to stop
working in the way she had planned. Then she related how she had
heard another student complain about how terrible a new Chinese
cultural center she had visited had been. And suddenly Marion said
she really felt drawn to design a daycare center and a theater along
with some special housing. Suddenly it became clear that this new
vision was the cultural center! The old idea of a cultural center had
been boring–she couldn’t even work on it. And listening to the
boredom–trusting the boredom and letting the energy of boredom
and frustration express itself–allowed for the release of a new
creative pulsation. The cultural center went from being a static,
curated institution to a vibrant cauldron of unpredictable interactions
and the culture of the project was born. As is so often the
case, the layer underneath the first message was rich and alive,
waiting to emerge from its chrysalis.
It’s important to listen to boredom. Becoming aware of feeling
bored is the beginning of reconnecting to your creative instincts.
Boredom is a clear signal telling you to stop. Don’t go further along
the path until you can do so without boredom. Chances are your
work is about to take an unexpected turn. Perhaps a sacrifice is
necessary. What aspect of the project might you have to sacrifice to
go further? What image do you have of yourself as designer that
may need to be surrendered to move forward?
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