The first of an ongoing series of thoughts, ideas, suggestions, and tips around creativity and its inner workings.

Biophilia, eco-anxiety, the unconscious mind, less-screen time, Yorkshire Sculpture Park, the imagination in children and adults, 24/7 news cycles and elections, and more are covered.

Music by Dirty Freud

Supported by https://illustrationx.com

https://ui.org.ua to help the Ukrainian Insititute

The Creative Condition book is out now https://bentallonwriter.com/shop

Ben Tallon Illustration https://bentallon.com

We're heading into dark nights season. These panic-fuelled days can be tough. Here in the UK I often lament the dreary, soggy, TO-LET addled high streets and the way they assail already tested moods. So I picked up the colour psychologist bat phone and called Justine Fox.

Justine is an expert in applied colour psychology and we're getting into the opportunity to do more with our urban environments, to promote more consideration for the impact of colour, and what needs to happen to shift perception away from luxury and folly to a key player in the visual landscape when it comes to mental health.

Please take a moment to rate, review, and subscribe to the show! And please, TELL A FRIEND ABOUT THE SHOW!

To see the information on the group and individual coaching opportunities, head here!

https://bentallonwriter.com/shop for The Creative Condition book and the brand new 'Anatomy of Creativity' map.

Sponsored as ever by https://illustrationx.com who have a superb new quarterly illustration trends report here:

https://www.illustrationx.com/uk/news/5992/trendx_-_april_2024

https://justinefox.com/

https://www.linkedin.com/search/results/all/?fetchDeterministicClustersOnly=true&heroEntityKey=urn%3Ali%3Afsd_profile%3AACoAAACGWb0B-2Rf6Tyjo10qlj5pwp2IDbKjTy0&keywords=justine%20fox&origin=RICH_QUERY_SUGGESTION&position=0&searchId=fda4694c-99a7-45b4-b617-0137b66da119&sid=JOC&spellCorrectionEnabled=false

https://open.spotify.com/episode/3cFn73Vu6H09UmkPzhBivC - Max Ottignon in conversation

Shaun Ryder in conversation: https://open.spotify.com/episode/6astuM9Yh9wqnGwmI4p2Bt

and the Ukrainian Institute https://ui.org.ua

Hosted by Ben Tallon https://bentallon.com

https://www.linkedin.com/in/ben-tallon-a822a725/

https://www.youtube.com/@_TheCreativeCondition

Lights off, blankets on, The Walking Dead on, forget about the world's insanity for one hour. Many of us can relate to that feeling, but what are the deeper themes? 

I drill down into the sense of comfort I get when I watch survival horror, or played those old Resident Evil games. It's not that I want everything to collapse, but could there be a better balance? What is 'evolutionary mismatch' and what can we learn from this comforting feeling about the foundations of our creativity?

Please take a moment to rate, review, and subscribe to the show! And please, TELL A FRIEND ABOUT THE SHOW!

To see the information on the group and individual coaching opportunities, head here!

https://bentallonwriter.com/shop for The Creative Condition book and the brand new 'Anatomy of Creativity' map.

Sponsored as ever by https://illustrationx.com who have a superb new quarterly illustration trends report here: https://www.illustrationx.com/uk/news/5992/trendx_-_april_2024

https://raggededge.com/

https://open.spotify.com/episode/3cFn73Vu6H09UmkPzhBivC - Max Ottignon in conversation

Shaun Ryder in conversation: https://open.spotify.com/episode/6astuM9Yh9wqnGwmI4p2Bt

and the Ukrainian Institute https://ui.org.ua

Hosted by Ben Tallon https://bentallon.com

https://www.linkedin.com/in/ben-tallon-a822a725/

https://www.youtube.com/@_TheCreativeCondition

I don't care what you do. I care who you are. What moves you, what excites you, what you're bad at, what you find funny, what trauma you've suffered. That's your brand. Not your logo, or website, or profession. These things matter, but without knowing yourself and projecting it in everything you do, they are irrelevant.

Today I'm discussing a recent loss of confidence, how it was remedied, and what I learned about the personal brand I always trusted and made a creative industry career possible.

Please take a moment to rate, review, and subscribe to the show! And please, TELL A FRIEND ABOUT THE SHOW!

To see the information on the group and individual coaching opportunities, head here!

https://bentallonwriter.com/shop for The Creative Condition book and the brand new 'Anatomy of Creativity' map.

Sponsored as ever by https://illustrationx.com who have a superb new quarterly illustration trends report here: https://www.illustrationx.com/uk/news/5992/trendx_-_april_2024

https://raggededge.com/

https://open.spotify.com/episode/3cFn73Vu6H09UmkPzhBivC - Max Ottignon in conversation

Shaun Ryder in conversation: https://open.spotify.com/episode/6astuM9Yh9wqnGwmI4p2Bt

and the Ukrainian Institute https://ui.org.ua

Hosted by Ben Tallon https://bentallon.com

https://www.linkedin.com/in/ben-tallon-a822a725/

https://www.youtube.com/@_TheCreativeCondition

Natalia Talkowska is a Polish-born, award-winning CEO and Founder of the pioneering neuroscience-led strategic storytelling agency Natalka Design.  Founded in 2012, Natalia and her team redefine how businesses communicate, using neuroscience-led visual storytelling for instant ideation and problem-solving to create strategic creative that really resonates with people. Working with renowned brands, including Google, Disney and The British Royal Family and leading agencies and consultancies, including PWC, Ernst and Young, Omnicom and Havas.

We get into the perception of drawing, Natalia's interesting path into the creative industry, and her love of storytelling and its science.

Please take a moment to rate, review, and subscribe to the show! And please, TELL A FRIEND ABOUT THE SHOW!

To see the information on the group and individual coaching opportunities, head here!

https://bentallonwriter.com/shop for The Creative Condition book and the brand new 'Anatomy of Creativity' map.

Sponsored as ever by https://illustrationx.com who have a superb new quarterly illustration trends report here: https://www.illustrationx.com/uk/news/5992/trendx_-_april_2024

https://www.natalkadesign.com/

and the Ukrainian Institute https://ui.org.ua

Hosted by Ben Tallon https://bentallon.com

https://www.linkedin.com/in/ben-tallon-a822a725/

https://www.youtube.com/@_TheCreativeCondition

Takeaway learnings from:

The New Yorker staff writer and author of Filterworld: How Algorithms Flattened Culture Kyla Chayka details the trajectory of the internet from human-curated and cultivated passions to algorithmic conformity and sameness.

Please take a moment to rate, review, and subscribe to the show! And please, TELL A FRIEND ABOUT THE SHOW!

To see the information on the group and individual coaching opportunities, head here!

https://bentallonwriter.com/shop for The Creative Condition book and the brand new 'Anatomy of Creativity' map.

Sponsored as ever by https://illustrationx.com who have a superb new quarterly illustration trends report here: https://www.illustrationx.com/uk/news/5992/trendx_-_april_2024

https://uk.bookshop.org/p/books/filterworld-how-algorithms-flattened-culture-kyle-chayka/7590771?gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjwpP63BhDYARIsAOQkATYRIbzEOHSkWygTXQLp1-4481W38CRKQgqujFc2CFvagFMdNih4T7gaAjw2EALw_wcB

and the Ukrainian Institute https://ui.org.ua

Hosted by Ben Tallon https://bentallon.com

https://www.linkedin.com/in/ben-tallon-a822a725/

https://www.youtube.com/@_TheCreativeCondition

The New Yorker staff writer and author of Filterworld: How Algorithms Flattened Culture Kyla Chayka details the trajectory of the internet from human-curated and cultivated passions to algorithmic conformity and sameness.

Please take a moment to rate, review, and subscribe to the show! And please, TELL A FRIEND ABOUT THE SHOW!

To see the information on the group and individual coaching opportunities, head here!

https://bentallonwriter.com/shop for The Creative Condition book and the brand new 'Anatomy of Creativity' map.

Sponsored as ever by https://illustrationx.com who have a superb new quarterly illustration trends report here: https://www.illustrationx.com/uk/news/5992/trendx_-_april_2024

https://uk.bookshop.org/p/books/filterworld-how-algorithms-flattened-culture-kyle-chayka/7590771?gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjwpP63BhDYARIsAOQkATYRIbzEOHSkWygTXQLp1-4481W38CRKQgqujFc2CFvagFMdNih4T7gaAjw2EALw_wcB

and the Ukrainian Institute https://ui.org.ua

Hosted by Ben Tallon https://bentallon.com

https://www.linkedin.com/in/ben-tallon-a822a725/

https://www.youtube.com/@_TheCreativeCondition

The full length episode is also available now!

The New Yorker staff writer and author of Filterworld: How Algorithms Flattened Culture Kyla Chayka details the trajectory of the internet from human-curated and cultivated passions to algorithmic conformity and sameness.

Please take a moment to rate, review, and subscribe to the show! And please, TELL A FRIEND ABOUT THE SHOW!

To see the information on the group and individual coaching opportunities, head here!

https://bentallonwriter.com/shop for The Creative Condition book and the brand new 'Anatomy of Creativity' map.

Sponsored as ever by https://illustrationx.com who have a superb new quarterly illustration trends report here: https://www.illustrationx.com/uk/news/5992/trendx_-_april_2024

https://uk.bookshop.org/p/books/filterworld-how-algorithms-flattened-culture-kyle-chayka/7590771?gad_source=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjwpP63BhDYARIsAOQkATYRIbzEOHSkWygTXQLp1-4481W38CRKQgqujFc2CFvagFMdNih4T7gaAjw2EALw_wcB

and the Ukrainian Institute https://ui.org.ua

Hosted by Ben Tallon https://bentallon.com

https://www.linkedin.com/in/ben-tallon-a822a725/

https://www.youtube.com/@_TheCreativeCondition

Creating a vision on paper helped me to make sense of a very scattered brain and regain some momentarily displaced passions, so I wanted to share the exercise with you.

I was shocked at how many needs, hopes, and fears I brought to the surface during this exercise from The Creative Condition coaching program.

Why have a vision? How fantastic can it be? And what about real-world constraints?

I'd love to see yours, so share at [email protected] or on Linkedin or Instagram and we can discuss it!

Please take a moment to rate, review, and subscribe to the show!

To see the information on the group and individual coaching opportunities, head here!

https://bentallonwriter.com/shop for The Creative Condition book and the brand new 'Anatomy of Creativity' map.

Sponsored as ever by https://illustrationx.com who have a superb new quarterly illustration trends report here: https://www.illustrationx.com/uk/news/5992/trendx_-_april_2024

and the Ukrainian Institute https://ui.org.ua

Hosted by Ben Tallon https://bentallon.com

https://www.linkedin.com/in/ben-tallon-a822a725/

https://www.youtube.com/@_TheCreativeCondition

Here are the key takeaway learnings about creativity from:

After many years working as a full-time illustrator as Miss Led, Joanna Henly has grown. Returning to the show for the 3rd time, Joanna reflects on her 5 years helping others as a mentor, balancing it with her art practice, and the personal understanding and acceptance it's required.

We get into sensitivity, the importance of 'white space' to think, process, and develop relationships with all things key to optimal creativity.

Joanna moved from London to Lisbon to find more of that white space and time to think, and she details that change, and why that uncertainty is necessary.

https://www.joannahenly.co.uk/

https://bentallonwriter.com/shop for The Creative Condition book and the brand new 'Anatomy of Creativity' map.

Sponsored as ever by https://illustrationx.com who have a superb new quarterly illustration trends report here: https://www.illustrationx.com/uk/news/5992/trendx_-_april_2024

and the Ukrainian Institute https://ui.org.ua

Hosted by Ben Tallon https://bentallon.com

https://www.linkedin.com/in/ben-tallon-a822a725/

https://www.youtube.com/@_TheCreativeCondition

(The highlights edition of this episode is also out now)

After many years working as a full-time illustrator as Miss Led, Joanna Henly has grown. Returning to the show for the 3rd time, Joanna reflects on her 5 years helping others as a mentor, balancing it with her art practice, and the personal understanding and acceptance it's required.

We get into sensitivity, the importance of 'white space' to think, process, and develop relationships with all things key to optimal creativity.

Joanna moved from London to Lisbon to find more of that white space and time to think, and she details that change, and why that uncertainty is necessary.

https://www.joannahenly.co.uk/

https://bentallonwriter.com/shop for The Creative Condition book and the brand new 'Anatomy of Creativity' map.

Sponsored as ever by https://illustrationx.com who have a superb new quarterly illustration trends report here: https://www.illustrationx.com/uk/news/5992/trendx_-_april_2024

and the Ukrainian Institute https://ui.org.ua

Hosted by Ben Tallon https://bentallon.com

https://www.linkedin.com/in/ben-tallon-a822a725/

https://www.youtube.com/@_TheCreativeCondition