Cool art exhibitions to check out now:

Doug Aitken: SONG 1 *No exaggeration: truly spectacularly awesome.
March 22, 2012 - May 13, 2012
The Hirshhorn

The Black List - Photographs by Timothy Greenfield-Sanders
October 28, 2011 - April 22, 2012
National Portrait Gallery

R(ad)ical Love: Sister Mary Corita
March 9, 2012 - July 15, 2012
National Museum of Women in the Arts

Annie Leibovitz: Pilgrimage
January 20, 2012 – May 20, 2012
American Art Museum

In the Tower: Mel Bochner
November 6, 2011 - April 8, 2012
National Gallery of Art

Last Saturday I had the joy of spending a few hours with some brilliant young ladies at the Loving Me Girls' Conference, organized by the DC Metro Chapter of the National Alumnae of Association of Spelman College  I facilitated a workshop called 'What's Your Vision?' Using magazine clippings, paper, paint and other materials, the girls created vision boards reflecting their goals and aspirations. These are some of the vision boards the girls created:

I was so inspired by the girls' boards, I created my own vision board the same evening. Here's part of my board:

The golden nugget with vision boards is the active engagement in the creative process. It's thrilling to see your dreams and aspirations in visual form. I think one of the reasons why Pinterest is so popular is because it provides an outlet for a similar type of creative dreaming. Before creating my own board, I thought something that was so much fun couldn't possibly provide substantial personal development and strategic value. Having tried it, I realize it really is a valuable (and fun) exercise and I now plan to create at least one vision board a month. Next to meditation, I believe it's the best way to connect with my inner thoughts and make sure where I'm headed is in synch with where I want to go.

To learn more about vision boards, check out this article.

Some of my favorite quotes about creativity:

"You can’t use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have."
- Maya Angelou

"To be creative means to be in love with life. You can be creative only if you love life enough that you want to enhance its beauty, you want to bring a little more music to it, a little more poetry to it, a little more dance to it." -  Osho

“A hunch is creativity trying to tell you something.” - Frank Capra

"Creativity requires the courage to let go of certainties."
- Erich Fromm

"Think outside of the box. Your creativity is not found in your comfort zone. " - John Di Lemme

"Creativity is inventing, experimenting, growing, taking risks, breaking rules, making mistakes, and having fun." - Mary Lou Cook