Creativity Found: Finding Creativity Later in Life

A conservative New York mortgage banker turns his hand to performing cabaret solos and tap-dancing in Manhattan's Times Square.

In this episode, Norman Calvo shares how a devastating childhood choir audition silenced his voice for decades, and how an unexpected encounter with an opera singer client in his 60s allowed him to find his voice once more.

We explore the power of starting from scratch as an adult, the vulnerability of freezing during your first public solo, and how embracing a creative outlet can completely redefine your social life and personal identity.

Norman also offers advice for anyone afraid of putting themselves out there, emphasizing that when it comes to finding joy in retirement, you truly have nothing to lose and everything to gain.

The Choir Audition Scar: Norman shares the devastating childhood experience of being rejected from his seventh-grade choir, which sidelined his artistic confidence for decades.

The Hand-Written Mortgage Magic: How a face-to-face meeting with opera singer clients in his 60s sparked a late-in-life journey into singing lessons at the Brooklyn Academy of Music.

Falling on Your Face to Learn: Norman recounts freezing on stage during his first-ever solo and explains why making mistakes is the ultimate way to grow as an adult.

Tuxedos, Top Hats, and Tap Dancing: From a conservative Wall Street uniform to performing 'Putting on the Ritz' with a cane, Norman describes the pure fun of adding physical performance and tap lessons to his creative toolkit.

The Holistic Banker: How performing cabaret completely transformed Norman's social life, broadened his conversations, and led to a heartwarming joint talent show with his granddaughter.

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Dirty Blues and Dorothy Fields with Suzanne Noble

From Corporate Career to Paris Playwright with Cecilia Poullain

From Serving Fries to Performing Stand-Up with Rabiah Coon

I would love some financial support to help me to keep making this podcast. Visit buymeacoffee.com/creativityfound

Affordably advertise on this podcast by emailing claire@creativityfound.co.uk, or book a call here.

Support the show

Follow @CreativityFoundPodcast on Instagram

Want to be a guest on Creativity Found? Send me a message on PodMatch, here

Podcast recorded with Riverside and hosted by Buzzsprout

Engineering a life of colour.

Justine Guillermou transitioned from a rigid career in space engineering to the vibrant world of professional interior design.

In this episode Justine shares how her childhood experiences of home renovation in France planted the seeds for her future, despite being pushed towards more traditional academic paths.

We explore the therapeutic benefits of colour, Justine’s experience as a contestant on a Channel 4 interior design show, and how embracing a creative outlet helped her manage the challenges of living with endometriosis.

Justine also provides insight into her signature Rainbow Shaker style, and offers advice for those who believe they lack a creative spark, emphasizing the importance of the process over the final outcome.

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Dreaming, Planning and Painting with Annie Sloan

Art You Can Touch with Furrah Syed

Making Creatures Great and Small with Emma Brassfield

I would love some financial support to help me to keep making this podcast. Visit buymeacoffee.com/creativityfound

Affordably advertise on this podcast by emailing claire@creativityfound.co.uk, or book a call here.

Support the show

Follow @CreativityFoundPodcast on Instagram

Want to be a guest on Creativity Found? Send me a message on PodMatch, here

Podcast recorded with Riverside and hosted by Buzzsprout

At the intersection of medicine and masterpieces.

Lora Arbrador is a nurse and artist who uses the ancient technique of egg tempera to explore profound human experiences.

In this episode Lora shares her childhood memories of art lessons in New York, her experience of the counterculture movement in Berkeley during the 1960s, and how her career in nursing – specifically during the height of the AIDS crisis – became the catalyst for her most significant works.

Lora and I discuss the meticulous nature of egg tempera, the emotional weight of painting stories of loss and immigration, and Lora's decision to document her life and art in her memoir, Art and Love. Lora also reveals her unique 'adoption' approach to finding homes for her large-scale paintings and explains why she chooses to embrace a slow, deliberate creative process in her 70s.

Connect with Lora here

You might also like:

Medicine and Mysteries with Tammy Euliano

Problem Solving in Science and Art with Claude Larson

Policy Advising and Portrait Painting with Sally Ward

Support the show

Follow @CreativityFoundPodcast on Instagram

Want to be a guest on Creativity Found? Send me a message on PodMatch, here

Podcast recorded with Riverside and hosted by Buzzsprout