How do we feel inspired?

“I think I'm curious and voraciously appetited … and want to express every instinct to follow each lead that curiosity presents” — Es Devlin For Fashion Neurosis

To be inspired is to allow yourself to discover who you are. John Berger writes in The Moment of Cubism ‘The only inspiration which exists is the intimation of our own potential’. What are your aspirations? And how do you want to get there?

To some, inspiration may be hard to come by. We are often bombarded with so many new ideas, information, and world views that it may be hard to make sense of what we see on our screen. There is a certain ephemerality to inspiration nowadays. It passes as the wind weaves through the leaves and as the train leaves the station. Inspiration is as easily gained as it is to go; it’s only a scroll away from visiting your mind, and thus, only a scroll away from drifting away.

I live in East London. And I constantly feel the wafts of inspiration gleaming through my window. I am inspired by the sound of cars honking due to an unruly biker, or the barista at my local cafe who likes to play pranks on me. To me, inspiration is active, rather than passive. To delve into what makes your monkey brain tick is way more fun than letting it go like a balloon at a state fair.

Much like fashion, art, and other things, people inspire me. One of my close friends, Constanza, and I have turned people watching into “cultural anthropology”. Or maybe we are just nosy. Nevertheless, acting on this inspiration, I asked the people of London, “What inspires you?”.

Lizzy: People inspire me, places, to know that my little pocket of London that I live is not the extent of everything, to know that there is so much going on around me. I find that very inspiring.

And, I think to remain curious you must must feel aligned and comfortable within yourself. Because I think it's a natural instinct to be curious, and I think humans are curious by nature and that's what arguably driven our success as a species. So I think, if you're feeling a lack of creativity, or a lack of curiosity, I think you need to do some inner work…

Alison: Exactly

Lizzy: and sit with yourself and just understand what you want to be curious about. Because if you're following kind of public discourse about what you should be curious about, and that doesn't resonate with you, you don't have to go in that direction to feed your curiosity, you can go in your own direction. So being clear in what aligns with you and how you feel, I think is very important. Because if you're trying to drive my curiosity about AI like I don't really care, but if you're trying to drive my curiosity about unexplored islands or the effects of climate change on the global population, I am fucking curious. So yeah, just determining what you’re passionate about. Which I think can be hard because there’s so much choice, its hard to narrow it down.

Alison: Why would you say people just aren’t that curious now?

Lizzy: I think its the constant access that people have to everything…

Alison: They’re desensitized to it, everything just feels dull.

Lizzy: Yeah. And I think social media, although it’s so good many aspects, I think it’s kind of played with how we receive dopamine and how that would have been a lot more delayed in the past, and now it’s like, instant, everything is instant. So going on a quest for knowledge about something is delayed. It’s like a delayed pursuit of gratification.

Alison: People don’t want to read anymore. People want to use AI summaries.

Lizzy: Or like a [Instagram] reel, instead of a doc. Like… watch a fucking documentary??

Alison: Literally. People now search shit on Tiktok or ChatGPT. When they could ask google and read a website instead.

Lizzy: Yeah, yeah, yeah. But then I think that [ChatGPT] can be a tool. Like, I slate AI a lot and I kind of get pissed at myself for doing it, because there are so many mundane tasks that can now be done with ease with AI. So I think if handled correctly, I think it can open up space for a lot more people to get creative. And that like people don’t have to get into the nitty gritty.

Alison: Like organizing a G Cal.

Lizzy: Yeah, or like researching something to send to a team of people. It’s like, that is so dry. Everyone knows its dry.

Alison: Or like numbers. I can’t do numbers.

Lizzy: Yeah. I think its accurate yeah, but it will never have the creative flare of a human. It will never have the unpredictability or the, like, the body language or everything that is given away in the silences. Like, it’ll never have that. It's just like, what is on paper, what is on words and like. at least 50% of human interactions is in the visible. So I would never do that [AI]. It’s never shocking. It’s never new. It’s never exciting. It’s never revolutionary. It’s just very accurate and very thorough.

Elice, 24, Artist and Model, South Korea, filled with whimsy.

Elice: What inspires me? Erm… That sounds a bit complicated. But like, basically, just like sunny weather and just nice people I meet every single day. Just like on the streets, like as a customer — just some nice people. I feel like everything inspires me. It’s just my personality. Because I have always, always, just like, wanted something new to try. So like lots of new experiences, I can always learn something new. And I don’t know, yeah, I just want to enjoy the moment and enjoy my life. That’s it.

Alison: Since you’re an artist, who is your favorite artist?

Elice: Like singers?

Alison: Anyyyyy form of art.

Elice: I really, really love SZA and Kendrick Lamar. And, like I know it’s so like typical. And I also love Frank Ocean. Oh, and my favorite artist is like Henri Matisse, The Snail, in particular. I think i’m going to get a new tattoo from his art because I really, really, admire his work. Maybe like here (points to her right shoulder).

Alison: What informs the tattoos you want to get?

Elice: I actually have quite a lot of tattoos. I really like butterflies. Maybe it might sound ridiculous, but if I can be reborn in the next life, I want to be a butterfly… or a bird. Every time I see them, they’re just enjoying their freedom, like a lot. So I might get a new butterfly tattoo, maybe next month.

Jasmine: I think music is the thing that inspires me the most.

Alison: Yeah, you look quite rave-y today.

Jasmine: Yeah. In particular, electronic music, anything that is underground. Sounds from the 90s, trance, techno. And mostly like the community that builds around electronic music. And I think in London we have a very good underground scene, with like club culture.

Alison: What’s your favorite club in London

Jasmine: FOLD. For sure. Always.

Alison: What about fabric?

Jasmine: I don’t really like fabric because it attracts a specific crowd that I’m not used to. It’s kind of mainstream. Whereas, FOLD, especially their parties (UNFOLD) every two Sundays, is what I like the most because it’s like a queer community and you can really feel like people are there for the music and that's what I'm all about. Like the music and the community around it. Besides that, what inspires me is also the people I met through music. So through going out, all my best friends, I've met them through like festivals and like clubs and they're all doing their own things in London, whether they're DJs, lawyers, doctors, we are all bonded by this passion for music and dance floors. So I guess that's what inspires me the most, yeah, for sure.

Alison: What about you, Patrick?

Patrick: How do I follow that? So So what more inspires me is just like the aspect of freedom, because I've come to London for a fast lifestyle, but all I've realized is, you know, the rat race in London, that everyone's chasing, especially in the world that I'm in, like, this corporate lifestyle. It's Monday to Friday. And it's very controlled. It's very, you know, you sit in front of the computer Monday to Friday. So how do we get that freedom? Is by, like Jazz [Jasmine] said, the music scene, the freedom that we get through that, and especially dividing between the commercial scene and the underground scene. The underground scene is so … there's no judgment, like anyone is accepted and there is the freedom there. So to escape, earning the wage and then to have your freedom, that's the important thing, and that keeps me going.

Diana: I’m primarily an actor, and my second love is fashion. So, the outfits that people walk into the store [Paloma Wool] with I find very inspiring. And I like that it’s a shared space for fashion lovers and you can ask somebody like ‘what are you wearing?’, and like, they're so enthusiastic to tell you. And I get a lot of inspiration on, like, just like, how to wear clothing and like, how to style things.

Alison: What’s your favorite area in London to get like fashion inspiration?

Diana: Here. Yeah. Bethnal Green Road like… we’re at the right spot. I feel like walking down Brick Lane you can see people wearing these amazing things. Also, King’s Road.

Both: Chelsea!

Alison: Literally same. My favorite spots too.

Diana: Yeah. Different aesthetics, but like, I think people there, they’re like, really putting that shit on.

Alison: She got that shit awn.

Diana: Exactlyyy.

Alison: Okay. Apart from fashion, what inspires you the most in acting?

Diana: I think a sense of play. I just finished like an acting class and it really reinvigorated, like the sense of play that you have as an actor and constantly investigating and staying curious. And I think it's not necessary play as in like having just a fun time, but like play as in like, the material is flexible, and it can change and always, you know, always remembering that when you're working, yeah. That’s inspiring to me.

Alison: Like investigating or like discovering different parts of yourself.

Diana: Yes. Absolutely. I think that’s one of the greatest gifts acting has given to me. You get to discover yourself more.

Alison: Back to fashion. Seeing as you work at and is wearing Paloma Wool right now, how do you respond to the current discourse surrounding Paloma Wool, saying they are uninspired and recycle vintage aesthetics and sell it to those who are not interested enough in fashion to look deeper into it?

Diana: I feel like if you resonate with Paloma Wool, and you are sort of not cognizant of the vintage and resale market then, it’s like, a brilliant entry point for you. You know like, you gotta start somewhere. And if that’s what you like then, probably someone who also likes Paloma Wool is like, hey, check out this place, and, hey, check out this other place, like I got this on Vinted and it matches the vibe, you know? I mean, I'm a Paloma Wool customer since before I started working there. So, like, and I also shop a lot of vintage and a lot of, like, you know, thrift. So I feel like there's space for both, you know?

Alison: Definitely, it’s a balance.

Moss: Life. Just like, how life goes. Sometimes it just throws you a big surprise out of nowhere, and you have to just take it and live with it. That sort of thing. I will definitely not say that my inspiration comes from art…

Alison: Even though we are in an art gallery right now.

Moss: Well yes! Yeah.

Alison: What about life made you inspired?

Moss: Okay. I don’t know. I feel like I inspired myself to be who I am today. Yeah, even though I don’t know who I am exactly, because I feel like in this period of like being in your 20s, it’s a time that your true self hasn’t grown yet. And the former self, like the one that was shaped by your parents, by the schools, by society is getting kind of driven away, kind of faded away. And your “self” self, your “truest” self hasn’t 100% grown up yet. I think that this journey has inspired me the most.

Alison: What do you think helps you the most on this journey?

Moss: I don’t know. Time? I feel like. Time is always moving forward, kind of pushing you somewhere. You can’t really stop it. And like the thoughts in your head. They’re like bubbles. You know popping in and out. There’s one thought, and then there’s another, and you have to remember to grab them, even though it’s really hard to do.

There is so much humor in the conversations I had today and I am saddened that you do not get to laugh along with the amazing people featured as I did. But, I have tried my best to indicate their tone of voice with punctuation and italics. Thank you to Lizzy, Elice, Jasmine, Patrick, Diana, and Moss for joining me today. :)