Cultural Creatives: Are You One?

Cultural Creatives: Are You One?

Who is a Cultural Creative?  Most expressive arts practitioners are, but what does that mean?

Cultural creatives are not floating along with the mainstream. In some important ways they are making lives that divert from the standard values and attitudes of middle America, although they may also share many ideas, ethics and standards with their neighbors. This small but significant percentage of our population is changing our society, as thought leaders in their fields of endeavor.  Although not listed by Ray and Anderson who wrote the book Cultural Creatives, in 2000, many of the traits and attitudes listed are also found in people with an aesthetic orientation in their lives. I am most interested in those who know the value of the arts in living a complete and satisfying life; those who know that art making is powerful and can lead to greater health and happiness. I don’t necessarily mean professional artists. I am talking about people who are dancing in the living room and singing in the shower, those who read poetry as well as write it, those who  create in any way. They dream of working with others in an aesthetic way, an artful way, working for meaning not just a paycheck.  They want to be part of the solution to the multiple challenges we face today.  I recognise these people – they are part of my tribe.  I call them artist-healers; change agents through the arts.

By bringing the power of the arts, aesthetics, and relationship to bear on healing, education, and all our labors, we change our world one person at a time. Like a stone dropped into a pond, the ripples of influence from the expressive arts philosophy and practice circle out wider and wider.  You can be a part of this change.

See if you are a Cultural Creative: Take this quiz:

In 2000 Paul Ray PhD and Sherry Anderson PhD wrote The Cultural Creatives: how 50 million people are changing the world*. Take the quiz to see how many of the traits you share.

Love nature and are deeply concerned about its destruction

1. Are strongly aware of the problems of the whole globe and want to see more action on them.
2. Would pay more taxes or more for consumer goods if you knew the money would go to cleaning up the environment and stop global warming.
3. Give a lot of importance to developing and maintaining your relationships.
4. Give a lot of importance to helping other people
5. Volunteer for one or more causes
6. Care intensely about both psychological and spiritual development
7. See spirituality or religion as important in your life but are also concerned about the role of religious right in politics.
8. Want more quality for women at work and more women leaders in business and politics.
9. Are concerned about violence and abuse of women and children around the world
10. Want our politics and government spending to put more emphasis on children’s education and well-being
11. Are unhappy with both left and right in politics and want to find a new way that is not mushy in the middle
12. Tend to be rather optimistic about our future and distrust the cynical and pessimistic view given by most media
13. Want to be involved in creating a new and better way of life for our country
14. Are concerned about what big corporations are doing in the name of making more profits.
15. Have your finances and spending under control and are not concerned about over spending
16. Dislike all the emphasis in modern culture on success and “making it” and getting and spending on wealth and luxury goods.
17. Like people and places that are exotic and foreign, and life experiencing and learning about other ways of life.

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