Nature’s Muse: Unveiling the Power of Nature on Creative Minds
Maybe we should all invoke Thalia a bit more often...
In the tranquil embrace of nature, where whispers of leaves and the symphony of streams reign, the spirit of Thalia, the Greek muse of idyllic poetry, flourishes...
Now, if you think that sounds a bit contrived, you might even be right, but since I’ve chosen a headline that talks about invoking muses, I had to find a hook to draw you in somehow, so I’ve attacked you with my finest purple prose. But I’m also half-serious about it—for artists navigating the tumultuous seas of their minds (still not done with the purple prose), nature can serve as an anchor. Connecting with nature can actually be quite a profound step towards mental well-being.
But we have to take that step.
And we often don’t, glued to screens and phones all day, hunching over our desks or at least spending significant amounts of time indoors, perpetually making excuses that we have deadlines, and keeping our butts firmly planted on our seats. I am as guilty of it as the next person. And that’s why I decided to make this newsletter about (purple prose alert again) letting nature weave its magic to nurture our creativity and soothe our minds.
The Tranquility of a Forest…
I’ll admit it—I love silence. That might sound strange coming from someone who has spent much of her life as a professional musician and teacher of same. But outside that context, I am not doing too well with too much noise around me and instinctually seek out said silence. Especially after I have spent significant amounts of time in loud environments, or surrounded by people. Of course I could just find that silence at home. And often, I do. But the type of distractions you encounter in that environment are sometimes not conducive to really switch off. And on an even more profound level: Nature provides me with far more inspiration than my home environment does. Nature is simply a never-ending source of imagery and symbolism. I notice every time I go back to writing after a walk in nature that I will express myself in a much more vivid way.
But it’s not just that of course. Like all creative artists (no, make that humans), I sometimes feel stressed, frustrated, or I wallow in self-doubt. And while going out into nature doesn’t magically solve all problems, it gives me comfort and relief. It calms my senses by engaging them. If that sounds weird to you—it truly isn’t. When I’m sitting at home at my desk, I get literal tunnel vision because I stare at a screen. That’s not relaxing for anything, least of all my eyes, but also not my brain. When I’m outside, I don’t constantly focus on one little tiny spot, and that ultimately helps me with restoring my energy levels. And yes, even tiny micro breaks like looking at a green space through your window for 40 seconds can restore energy, focus and attention.1
Of course that’s just me, talking about my personal experiences. However, we know that spending at least two hours a week in nature is good for your (mental) health and wellbeing. If you’d like to have a closer look into some research, I’ll pop that into the links for you.2
Suffice it to say, we meanwhile have ample reason to believe that spending time in nature can reduce stress levels and improve mood by lowering blood pressure, heart rate, and cortisol levels. It’s also creativity-boosting because it enhances cognitive functions such as attention, memory, and problem-solving. In a nutshell: Stress reduction and attention restoration go hand in hand.3 Plus, we meanwhile know tasks that involve attentional control tend to show beneficial effects after nature exposure and detrimental effects after urban exposure. It’s complicated and not straightforward because multiple cognitive mechanisms are involved. If you want to dive in deeper, I will link the relevant research for you.4
Exposing yourself to nature can help regulate your circadian rhythm, which is basically your body's internal clock that controls your sleep-wake cycle. If you expose yourself to sunlight/natural light first thing in the morning, you will gradually start to feel more tired at night (provided you keep those darned screens switched off!). It will take you less time to fall asleep, and the quality of your sleep should hopefully improve, too (needless to say: If you have longer lasting problems with insomnia or disrupted sleep, that’s always a reason to see your general practitioner).
In short: Doing physical activities outdoors can be more fun, challenging, and rewarding than indoors. And if you are more motivated to do some physical exercise, you are on track to help your body release endorphins, which are natural painkillers and mood enhancers. There is no “mind-body-split”, it all goes hand in hand.
Why Is Nature Such a Powerful Inspiration?
Well, first of all, nature is literally a feast for our senses—colours, shapes, textures, sounds, smells… Stimulating our senses with something new tends to evoke emotions. Those emotions don’t even have to be “nice” all the time (if you’ve ever walked past a big pile of fresh poo on one of your outings, you’ll know what I’m talking about ;)). But whichever way you turn it, nature will provide you with a wealth of metaphors, symbols, and stories just itching to be told.
And it doesn’t even matter what your main artistic discipline is:
If you are a visual artist of sorts, it becomes all about light, shadows, colours and shapes, or changing seasons, life, death, decay and rebirth.
Writers can also explore topics like life, death, love and conflict through the lens of natural phenomena. A million metaphors and symbols wait to be explored, and by putting yourself into the midst of it all, you will find more inspirations than staring at an empty page at your desk. What I’m trying to say here because I continually experience this myself: If you struggle with writer’s block, get up and get out!
And even musicians can use nature as a source of inspiration, for example by playfully incorporating sounds like birdsong, rain, wind or waves into their compositions/songs. But there’s much more to it: I sometimes just sit down at our local foreshore and tune into the rhythm of the waves. There’s something both soothing and inspiring in following the patterns and variations of natural cycles.
And one thing I haven’t even mentioned yet: Many people think that nature is only beneficial for artists who seek personal healing or well-being through their connection with nature. But that’s not the whole picture. Nature can also inspire us to care about collective or social issues, like environmental problems, cultural conflicts, or human rights violations. Helen Chadwick springs to mind, who used the myth of the “Twelve Labours of Heracles” to create a series of photographs that critiqued gender stereotypes and social norms. There are of course many, many more examples far beyond the scope of this article.
Where to Start?
If going out in nature isn’t easy for you for whatever reason (could be anything from accessibility to just feeling stuck in a rut), I have a couple of hints and tips for you to ease yourself in slowly (or you could check out Mind UK’s advice on nature and mental health5):
Give it a shot and spend some time outdoors every day. It doesn’t have to be long, even 5 or 10 minutes are better than nothing. Even if it's just a small walk around the block until you can see some open sky, because not everyone is lucky enough to have a forest, open fields or a nice park around the corner. But there are small islands of nature even in inner city environments—maybe channel your inner detective and try to find them, because it will really boost your mood and creativity. There’s much to be said for starting each day with a nature walk if that’s something you can do—especially if there is enough natural light. If you do it for a while, it will honestly change your life, energise you, improve your mood. And be present on that walk, whether it’s through a park, forest, or simply your neighbourhood. Notice the small pockets of nature and life around you, listen to their sounds.
If that still feels like a stretch, start with bringing some nature indoors. Decorate your workspace with plants, flowers, or if that’s not for you, with objects from nature like pebbles, shells, pieces of wood. Or listen to natural sounds like birdsong, rain, or waves. It’s not as good as the real thing, but it is still a start.
Use nature as a prompt. You can write about what you see, hear, smell, touch, or taste in nature. You can draw or paint what you observe. You can use nature as a metaphor or a symbol for your writing. The ideas are truly endless. So the next time you are out and about, just take a notebook with you, or make use of your voice memos (although I have to say: It’s sometimes good to try and let that ole device rest for a bit).
Connect with other creative artists who love nature. You can join a local or online group that shares your passion for nature and art. You can exchange feedback, support, and inspiration with them (you can also do this in our chat, by the way).
Reflection Is a Good Starting Point
If you know me, you will also know that I always like to finish my newsletters with a few questions for reflection, and this one won’t be any different (that’ll probably be one thing I’ll stick with).
Did you ever think about how nature could help you to overcome creative blocks or challenges?
How does nature influence the choice of your medium, style, or technique?
Does nature foster a sense of connection, belonging, or identity for you, or is this something you haven’t experienced yet?
Does nature inspire you to express your emotions, thoughts, or experiences in your creative work?
Does it motivate you to address social or environmental issues?
Do you think engaging more with nature will improve your physical and mental wellbeing?
Nature is both a source of inspiration and support for me. I hope it is for you, too, so please don’t hesitate to leave your reflections in the comments or chat. I will be back soon, up until then, happy creating!
And some housekeeping at the end, because as some of you might already know, I have restructured The Creative Cure a tiny bit.
The very idea of The Creative Cure is that mental wellbeing information should be available to everyone, and that creativity is not a magical unicorn for a select few. That’s why the latest newsletters and podcasts will always be freely available. Posts and podcasts older than two months will be moved to my archive from now on, which is only accessible to paid subscribers.
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