The Thing Itself – Exploring The Psychology of Creativity with Creature & Machine
The Thing Itself - Exploring The Psychology of Creativity with Creature & Machine
Podcast Description
From film-makers to poets, musicians to photographers, theatre-makers to illustrators, doctors to CEOs, creativity is an increasingly valuable skill in a complex and uncertain world. I'm Lilly, also known as Creature & Machine, a music artist and producer, and I love exploring what creativity means to people from all walks of life. From those making art to those using innovative decision making in domains not traditionally considered ‘creative' - I want to know how people access their ideas, how they use mindset to turn their ideas into reality, and how they persevere through inevitable obstacles along the way. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Podcast Insights
Content Themes
The podcast explores themes of creativity, decision making, resilience, and the balance of artistic passion with financial sustainability. Episodes include discussions on topics like managing critical feedback and the creative process, featuring examples from artists like Sonia Elisheva, who shares her unique blend of personal heritage and music.

From film-makers to poets, musicians to photographers, theatre-makers to illustrators, doctors to CEOs, creativity is an increasingly valuable skill in a complex and uncertain world. I’m Lilly, also known as Creature & Machine, a music artist and producer, and I love exploring what creativity means to people from all walks of life. From those making art to those using innovative decision making in domains not traditionally considered ‘creative’ – I want to know how people access their ideas, how they use mindset to turn their ideas into reality, and how they persevere through inevitable obstacles along the way.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
In this special final episode of season 1, I chat to Bhumika Billa, a lawyer – poet – dancer – filmmaker, about the psychology behind her approach to creating so many various types of art and staying creatively active. In this magical and deeply reflective episode, you can hear an actual live improvised collaboration between the two of us, during which we combine Bhumika’s poetry with my piano playing to create a new performance.
Afterwards, we discuss how the heartbreak of losing artforms and skillsets over time can be a driving force behind dedicating yourself fully to new ideas and creative bursts, as well as the intricacies of trying to stay innovative and authentic as an artist at such a politically charged time. Listen in to get an insight into how a true multihyphenate navigates endless outlets and the inspiration passing through her, and be sure to tune in to the end to hear our full spoken word piece.
Find out more about Bhumika here…https://www.instagram.com/bhumikabilla/
Watch the video of Bhumika and Creature & Machine performing their full collaboration here: https://youtu.be/bikgRPzyJ5s?si=eWfo_zK9xJ4n1CMJ
Watch Bhumika’s film about her research here: https://youtu.be/oAnm88Sozj8?si=jd7SdUXBWRRdjzPB
The Thing Itself sees music artist and producer Creature & Machine take a deep dive into the psychology of some incredible creative brains. How do creatives know which ideas to follow and which to discard? How do they keep motivated and deal with critical feedback? How do they balance their creative drives with making an income and marketing their work? In this podcast we dig into these questions and more to get an insight into the psychological scaffolding that supports creative lives, through conversations with creative people from different disciplines and backgrounds.
Got ideas or suggestions about the podcast? Get in touch!
Sign up to the podcast mailing list to get notified of new episodes and see behind the scenes content: www.creatureandmachine.com/the-thing-itself
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The background music used in this episode is from Creature & Machine tracks Colours and Fairytale – listen now on Spotify! https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5cmOPozLsUNMdb5sTahGHI?si=6FW8iLLmSBOFAPvtl4uR9Q
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

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