Do you find your creativity waning? Are you searching for inspiration in your artwork? Create a CKS (Creativity Kick Starter) to keep your muse on-call.

A CKS is very easy to do. Just get a large three-ring binder and use it to hold examples of pottery, art, and designs that you find appealing. These can come from any medium. If you are a potter, don't limit your examples to just pottery. Save pictures of paintings, sculpture, quilts, wood work, or anything else you find appealing.

Many of these examples can come from the Internet. When you find a site or picture on a site that you like, print it, and put it in your CKS Book. It's always a good idea to print anything you find on the Internet versus just saving a bookmark, because the Internet is very dynamic and the content you find today may not be available tomorrow.

You can organize your CKS content however you like or not at all since you are merely looking for inspiration. You can start paging through your CKS book at any page you happen to open to find new ideas or directions to take your work.

You may find a handle you want to experiment with on your style of mug, or an interesting foot treatment you want to try on your vase, or a pattern to try with your glaze. The possibilities are unlimited.

When you do pull out your CKS book, you will be amazed at the pictures and references you find that you have forgotten about. This is where the creativity sparks come from.

I don't recommend exactly copying any work in your CKS in your own art pieces, but instead try to take the essence of the example, apply your style, and create a new creative form.

(c) 2005 Gary R Ferguson http://www.garyrferguson.com