<p>In 2024, I hosted a talk/discussion called, Transformation Through Creative Play. The participants in the recording are Anine Hollander, Sasha Dolgina, and Willem Botha/Simba. </p> <p>Relearning to play was the first change I made to my creative practice (and life) to break through a big block and depression I had during my undergraduate studies. <br />However, it was not easy or comfortable - because I was faced with the reality that I no longer knew how to play. <br />I had gradually been conditioned to take myself and my work so seriously that fun, curiosity, and exploration felt agonizing. <br />Clumsily but determined, I rediscovered how to play over 3 years. That might seem like a long time, but I found that just as gradually as I was trained not to play but:<br />plan<br />worry<br />anticipate<br />think<br />use logic<br />​I had to slowly caux the clown and inner child out of the shadows of my being and make them comfortable on my stage of personal expression. Playing had to become a practice before it could become second nature again. <br />So, what is Creative Play?<br />How do we play creatively? <br />And what blocks us from doing so as often as needed?<br />This and more is what we discussed in my Transformation through Creative Play. <br />There were some doodling materials for those visually inclined and tasty kombucha to awaken the senses. 🔥</p>