Creativity, the talent myth and craft

What are creativity and talent? Good question, personally I think there easier to demonstrate than explain but here’s the internet’s take on the two:
 Creativity Noun- The use of imagination or original ideas in the production of something.
 Talent Noun- Natural aptitude or skill
 In today’s society, the state of being creative is simply having the power to create something, I know for a fact that is something everyone has the ability to do. And Talent is simply the aptitude of something. Personally I think each stands for something different to the individual. For me creativity is a form of expression so that I can express my unique perception and how I see things into a way that is understandable or perceivable to others, manifesting ideas into reality from inspiration to execution. Majority of aspects that I engage in within my game art course show levels of creativity. For example the designing of a character from research to sketches, silhouettes, design developments and finished designs shows me envisioning what isn’t and translating it through a media that everyone understands, in this case art.

 Talent on the other hand, some we seem born with, others we have the capability and strengthen, support and improve them overtime through repetition until they are what they are today. In some cases we may be naturally talented ‘born with it’ Talents, through practice can be learned though because from experience I have found talent stems from having a really strong skill and skills are improved from repetition. My drawing in particular is a prime example of this because I never used to be able to draw particularly well until I taught myself and practised. I would now say my ability to draw is strong but not a talent as of yet because I’m still making mistakes and developing.

 The creativity we possess to an extent has been diluted by the experiences we have had up until now. As a child your creativity was greater because you had very little awareness to the limitations of life. A fear that has developed over the years stopping you from pushing yourself. Pushing the boundaries, thinking outside the box is what can turn a good idea into an outstanding idea in the game industry.

 In the games industry I can see creativity through all sorts of angles for example combat mechanics, environments and characters. Creativity within industry I can see being limited by the consumer due to what they like sells, making the risks developers take less creative and unique. For example call of duty is hugely popular, meaning the generic shoot em up war game being churned out over and over again. There’s no creativity in this because it’s all been seen before.

 When it comes to skill and talent and how you achieve talent through skill , I think all boils down to what type of person you are. There are people who work hard at something to become the best, people that pick things up quickly or naturally gifted individuals. The guy that gives up easily or ‘can’t be bothered’ is never skilled or talented at anything.

As an artist, I show my creativity through digital and traditional methods of working, from 3D modelling to sketching and digital painting. The creativity is demonstrated in the journey I take for works I produce from a fluffy idea to a final piece. My ideal acknowledgment of my creativity would be the person looking at my work to see how I saw it in my head and to make that connection through my artwork, also just a simple appreciation of my style which I think also demonstrates creativity.