“Just as a battery’s power comes from wires attached to opposite poles, sources of our creative energy are often derived from opposites.  An understanding of both extremes gives an artist a deeper understanding of what lies in between.

life <   >death                                                                        laughter<   >tears

black<   >white                                                                      curiosity<   > single-mindedness

silence<   >conversation                                                      concrete<   >ethereal

female<    >male                                                                   fiction<    <non-fiction

deity<     >atheism                                                                mainstream<     >fringe

exertion<   >rest                                                                   wealth<    >poverty

technology<   >primitive tools                                           risk<   >safety

knowledge<    >ignorance                                                   growth<     >decay

details<   >the big picture                                                   lust<       >chastity

sun<   >rain                                                                            future<     >past

pain<   >pleasure                                                                  darkness<       >light

friends<   >strangers

EXPERIENCE       >         OBSERVE       >       CREATE        >        BE

Creative Sparks – An Index of 150+ Concepts, Images and Exercises to Ignite Your Design Ingenuity by Jim Krause