Be More Jellyfish

I recently experienced the oddity that is a lucid dream.

It started with a simple awareness that the door to my unconscious was open. What an opportunity, I thought.

“What dreams are in there?” I asked the void.

The reply came with certainty:

“There is no room for dreams in here. It is full of jellyfish.”

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It didn’t come as a surprise to me that my unconscious is full of jellyfish - I am more than a little obsessed by them. 

Take the moon jellyfish: almost entirely translucent, a mouth with four arms and hundreds of tentacles like eyelashes. Mesmerisingly beautiful. And seemingly indestructible: when cut in half, they can regenerate within 2-4 hours.

I’m increasingly coming to realise that my entire philosophy of art, which I espouse in my drawing workshops and which shapes how I make paintings, could be encapsulated in one phrase: “be more jellyfish”.

When I find myself uncertain, feeling like I should be doing something but I’m not sure what, I look for my inner jellyfish.

This jellyfish floats, suspended in an inky darkness, surrounded by silence. It allows itself to be moved by currents, then propulses in an unexpected direction. It is unfathomable, mesmerising.

My inner jellyfish is not logical. It does not provide direction or clarity.

But my jellyfish embodies the mysterious, scary and enticing character of creativity.

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What would that mean for you, if you were to be more jellyfish?

• Jellyfish seem other-worldy. Look for the wildness and the magic in the world, let it inspire you.

• Jellyfish move with the sea’s current. Go in the direction that interests you and see where it leads.

• Jellyfish are highly adaptable. Respond to your environment - adapt your practice according to where you are.

• Jellyfish are resilient. Cultivate creative resilience - be open to new ideas and follow the thread of curiosity.

• Jellyfish are extraordinary. Give yourself license to invent the improbable, welcome the unlikely, embrace the unusual.

• Jellyfish are mesmerising, but their stings can be deadly. Pay attention to what scares you - what can you learn from that?

• Jellyfish don’t hear sounds so much as vibrations. Leave room for silence so ideas have space to grow.

• Jellyfish have no awareness of past or future - they rely entirely on their radially distributed nervous systems, not brains. Quieten your conscious brain and allow your instincts and sensations to inform creative decisions.

And whenever you have the chance, immerse yourself in water like a jellyfish. Float freely in the sea.