The Creative Condition podcast

Washington DC-based artist and all-round creative human Chris Pyrate reflects on the role of early travels to New Mexico and LA, challenges for young people growing up in Washington DC, and why being an artist is a way of life, and not merely a profession. His big brand collaborations with the Washinton Wizards and Nike are secondary to a bigger philosophy. We get deep into all of it with a man va...

Part 2 of the creativity checklist. Part 1 can be heard on episode 208. Distilled from the forthcoming 'The Creative Condition' book. Out March 28th 2024.The show is supported by Illustration X: https://illustrationx.combentallon.combentallonwriter.com

Sarah Boris is a multi-disciplinary artist and designer at the top of her game. We discuss the challenges of change in early years, along with the upsides, her early career roles designing for The Barbican and Phaidon, and her current art and design studio practice. The challenges of staying disciplined, but not overworking are covered, as well as activism, and what Sarah refers to as 'the care be...

Part 1 of a list of considerations for maximising your creativity, distilled from the forthcoming 'The Creative Condition' book. Out March 28th 2024.The show is supported by Illustration X: https://illustrationx.comhttps://bentallon.comhttps://bentallonwriter.com

The human mind is not equipped to cope with the information overload we all experience in out western lifestyles. We burn out and stagger through our lives paying bills, consuming, neglecting, and misunderstanding our creativity to the detriment of our happiness and fulfillment. In 1993 Tom Hodkinson founded 'Idler' magazine - a publication dedicated to calling for a slower, more wholesome way of...

The first in a series of audience question-focused episodes of the podcast. This one is from designer Steve Cardwell, wondering about the validity of a portfolio comprised of personal work when starting afresh, or changing direction in an arts career. Any further responses to the question, questions for future episodes, or opinions on the question-based format are most welcome! Supported by Illust...

In 2018 I met Murugiah for episode 102 of The Creative Condition Podcast. He had results, and he was freelancing successfully as an illustrator and artist, but there was a fragility about him. The earliest seeds of his current, flourishing art style were starting to flower, but they were mere dots in the soil. In 2020, on 'Cabin Cast 5', bright green buds had emerged, and spots of colour were tryi...

Designit is home to 700+ designers, analysts, brainstormers, creators, doers, dreamers, explorers, geeks, leaders, learners, lovers, mamas, papas, renegades, strategists, marketers, tree-huggers, visionaries, question-askers with diverse expertise and perspectives working together to solve complex problems. I'm joined by their head of design and creative in the Americas, Christine Pizzo as we get...

An excerpt from 'The Creative Condition' book about creativity in education, including the story of stealing a child's drawing. You can back the book on Kickstarter here with just 4 days left to get your advance, contributor copy: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/creativecondition/the-creative-condition-bookAs ever, the show is supported by the founding sponsor, illustration and animation agen...

We hear it all the time, 'You are what you eat!' - but how seriously do we take our diet when it comes to our mental health? For the longest time, for me, the answer was 'not very.'We identify a raft of other aggressors when it comes to our moods, but we are living organisms and we require constant good nutrition to operate at our best. As part of the November mental health special episodes, follo...

During a recent appearance on Adobe's 'Creative Connections' show by Kladi Vergine and Elise Swopes, an audience member asked me how I discovered I could write, given that I'm an illustrator. I wanted to elaborate on my concise answer with a longer form consideration of my author timeline. Back 'The Creative Condition' book on Kickstarter here: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/creativeconditio...

Column 7 in the ongoing series of articles written by The Creative Condition host and illustrator Ben Tallon. Exploring the nature and behaviour of creativity, the latest looks at vulnerability and it's potential value in sending the right message to potential clients. You can read any of the previous columns at designweek.co.ukThe Creative Condition is sponsored by Illustration X. You can see the...

We all know - on some level at least - the importance of good nutrition for good health. But how many of us equate it to effective creativity? It took me the longest time to start eating, every day, to fuel a firing brain, and positive mood, to give myself the best chance of hitting my optimal performance zone. It's been a revelation, and that was in part to do with Kimberley Wilson. Kimberley is...

Phaidon was founded 100 years ago, in 1923, with the intention of producing beautiful affordable books, predominantly on art. To celebrate the milestone, I'm joined by Creative Director Julia Hasting who has worked on many titles over several decades. We discuss her story, the role of print books in the digital age, what it takes to produce a book of this magnitude, the people involved, and the co...

As The Creative Condition Book Kickstarter launches, here is an exclusive 1st chapter of the book, 'What is Creativity.'You can support the campaign by getting your copy ahead of the March 2024 release and bringing the idea to life. https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/creativecondition/the-creative-condition-bookSupported by the brilliant Illustration X, founding sponsor of The Creative Condition...

After 2 years of writing, 10 years of study and research, a lifetime of observation and lived experience, and 200 podcast episodes, 'The Creative Condition' book is ready, and I need your help! Creativity has been an infinite joy in my life. It has become my calling. It brings together communities, energises societies, empowers individuals, and has enabled the continued survival of our species. An...

Have you ever been told, or thought you need to toughen up? Or that you're a weakling for feeling more hurt than others at the hands of events in your surroundings? Or wondered if you're strange for feeling more joy than other people seem to when times are good? It's likely you're a highly sensitive person. For the 200th episode of The Creative Condition Podcast, I'm joined by sensitivity and intr...

Somewhere in those big hardback books of collected design that we had around the studios in which I studied, or perhaps it was in the 'Handwritten' book of collected hand lettering, I found the work of Stefan Sagmeister - the infamous talk poster for which he'd carved the information into his own torso. His reputation as a great designer is more than earned. Since 1993, working out of New York, he...

The two types of creativity: Are you balancing your intellectual and emotional creativity? It's the key to staying motivated, passionate, and energised. Here's why. Column 7 in the ongoing series of articles written by The Creative Condition host and illustrator Ben Tallon. Exploring the nature and behaviour of creativity, the latest looks at vulnerability and it's potential value in sending the r...

Creative Stories #1: Cheeky BatmanA ramble about what a silly graffiti doodle can teach us about creativity, mental health, and reframing the world around us. Supported by the brilliant Illustration X, founding sponsor of The Creative Condition podcast. View their global roster of illustrators and animators at illustrationx.combentallon.combentallonwriter.com

Dance school was a cheap hobby for Stephanie Powell-Baxter and her siblings to attend. Now she performs choreography and dances on Strictly Come Dancing, in London West end musicals, and in major movies. We discuss different types of intelligence, the community spirit of dance schools, creativity in schools, and Steph's parental perspective on making sure her children get the right balance. There'...

Mac Ferrari and Jake 100 share the inspiring Bikestormz story. Together they built something from the ground up to help people come together through community and creativity, through something simple and positive against a backdrop of troubled young people hurting each other. We discuss what the bike represents, the misconceptions, demonisation, and the evolution of the ride-outs and bikelife comm...

I'm joined by the Executive Creative Director of Wasserman, Rich Jones. Wasserman is a sports & entertainment marketing company based in LA and Rich shares his experience of fighting for creativity, and keeping things fresh in a time-based industry. We dig into the importance of healthy relationships and a dynamic, fun environment for staff not just to do their job, but to be themselves and a...

Kelly Korzun made the decision not to make money from her art. The purity of it meant too much to her, and we get into that, along with the twinned journey with Marc Chagall she grew aware of. How did her artist interview and feature project, 'METAL & DVST' originate, and why is it essential to embrace your 'shadow' self for mental wellbeing. We get onto the unlikely, but interesting topic of...

Automation is here. At first subconsciously, then consciously, I found myself factoring AI into my decision-making - the work I chose to create, the direction I chose to push forward in, and the broader value of each of my skills. As an artist, illustrator, letterer, podcaster, writer, and speaker, each of my disciplines came under the lens of this new technology. Like all tech before it, much goo...