Blurring the line between artist and therapist, Adam J. Kurtz, is our favorite person on Instagram these days. Describing himself as hopeful but realistic, Kurtz is interested in the ephemera of daily life, a nice little thing that makes you feel better for some reason, and creating honest, accessible work.
A designer-author-illustrator-creative director-writer-small press-brand, Kurtz’s brand, rooted in honesty, humor, and a little darkness. One of our favorite creations by him is a book dedicated to life advice for creatives. Describing it as the most sincere work he’s ever done, the book is a fully handwritten essay collection that touches on what it really means to be a creative person, and all the energy and fear and internal jumble that comes with that.
But his advice can also be relevant to non-artistic folk as well. “Creativity is a huge, giant word,” he remarked once in an interview with the Creative Independent. “I don’t think creativity is inherently good. I don’t think it’s inherently anything. Actually, I’m not even sure if creativity is the drive to make things, or if it’s the mechanism that allows us to make things. It’s so big, and the word means so many different things to different people.”
“People say that to me all the time. ‘I wish I was creative,'” he notes. “Everyone is creative. Creativity is not a magical skill that you have or don’t have. I think creativity is one of the big, vague things that we all have that manifests itself in very different ways.”
According to Kurtz he tries to remind people that creativity isn’t just writing or drawing, and it’s not just for artists. It also doesn’t have to be labeled anything. “Really, everything I’ve ever done has come from this place of me helping myself, and then letting other people into it,” he notes.
You’ll want his positive spirit in your feed and life.
