Georgia Scholes’ artistic path explores the delicate balance between raw creativity and practised discipline. Grounded in a deeply personal, yet universally resonant approach, Georgia’s work reflects a dialogue between spirituality, ambiguity, and the everyday rituals that shape creative flow. In this interview, Georgia delves into the experiences, habits, and ideas that define a practice driven by introspection and experimentation.

✧✧✧

How do you reconcile the tension between raw, innate creativity and the discipline required to master your craft? 

I’m not sure I'll ever be able to adequality reconcile the tension between raw creativity and  the discipline required for my craft but I'm learning to love that. Unfortunately, if I was a  deadly sin, it would be sloth.  I think how I reconcile it, is constant reminders that it’s a lifelong battle of cultivating the  balance between discipline and innate creativity. I do believe artists need a lot of discipline, something that I'm not the best at. I think the way I try to reconcile the tension is by opening myself up to chance and probability, if a particular idea or piece is causing me grief, I often believe that it just wasn’t meant to be and given time that idea will be reanimated in a different way that produces a much better artistic outcome. You just need to be open and patient. However, it is important to not forget that art is also a skill that needs to be cultivated and nurtured while you need to have a creative mindset without the artistic skill you don’t have the tools to bring the idea into the physical world. For example, due to the fact I now primarily work within collage and photography, I don’t often get a chance to hone my painting or drawing skills but it’s important to me that I still engage with and practice these mediums. My best advice is to be aware of what medium you like working with the most but don’t pigeonhole yourself, it’s always much more enjoyable to work with everything and everyone.

Does spirituality or a connection to something larger than yourself influence your creative process? 

While I don’t feel like I express it much within the work, spirituality is extremely important to me, especially feeling a connection to something larger than myself. I was raised Roman  Catholic which affected how I respond to higher beings or consciousness, while I now describe myself as agnostic the idea of a higher power is comforting to me especially when I'm producing work. I’ve always had uncanny feelings that I'm made for not just something better but on a divine path that has always influenced the way I approach my life. I’m not always influenced by this ideology in my art but often my best work is produced when I give up control and allow myself to be guided by the visual imagery in a form of spiritual give and take. In a way opening myself up to the patron saint of the creative arts and letting it work through me.  I’ve always seen myself as a mirror, I aim to reflect the cyclical ideas and nature of humanity but use my experiences to reconceptualize the visual landscape. Even in my early days of  producing art, it has always been important to engage with this spiritual process, I believe in a way it’s important to pursue this almost as a thank you to the world for my creative abilities.

How important is it for viewers to understand the intended message of your work?  Does ambiguity add value, or do you seek clarity in your expression? 

It all depends on the piece, although I don’t often present a direct or intended message in my work. I think it is important that the viewer has some grasp of the intentions behind the piece but while I'm working this isn’t at the forefront of my mind. When I do embedded messages in my work, they are quite direct, it isn’t hard to ‘get’ and while the intentions in my work are important to me, I find how the viewer responds to or reconceptualizes the work much more interesting. I very much seek clarity in my work, even though I'm sometimes unaware of what I'm presenting or even what I'm exactly trying to artistically capture and I've very drawn to ambiguity for better or worse. When I come across other pieces of work I appreciate, I like that the artwork doesn’t always tell you everything about the meaning or the artist. It’s often when you read further into the artist and their process that their work begins to develop more layers of interest, and I find this process quite endearing while it’s narrowminded to expect the viewer to do ‘extra’ work I believe it’s the best way to approach the art and artist and how I would want people to approach my work. 

Do you have any rituals or habits that help you enter a creative state of flow? 

I’m a very ritualistic person; I work best with a routine and spend a lot of time trying to keep the balance of my routine but yes, I use plenty of rituals and habits to both keep myself in ‘check’ and enter a creative state.  My habits while creating consist of two parts, one is to relax my mind and elevate any anxiety or restless energy and this usually consists of cleaning around both my room and flat along with very methodically making my first cup of coffee in the morning. I do this to try and declutter my own thoughts, trying to create a clean slate so I can really hone into my creative production without being distracted or letting myself sabotage the process.  Without these habits I find I get too ‘worked up’ and frustrated with the work which stops me from continuing. The other part of my habits consists of activities or processes that allow me to enter an alternative state of mind which is extremely important in my process. When I first started creating art, I was struggling with something called Depersonalization in which the individual feels like they are outside of their body which causes altered self-awareness of yourself and identity. The results are feelings of dissociation or disconnection from yourself and your surroundings. Trying to explore/a way to present this formed the basis of my obsession with college due to the ideology within it and how you can create this almost uncanny alternative world which is directly linked to how it felt living my life. While I still struggle with it, it’s no longer as prevalent within my life but it’s still important for me to engage in that alternative state of mind. One of my inspirations British collage artist John Stezaker explores this in his practice and explains in interviews he works best in an alternative state of mind however small. For example, after a long day of work or feeling tired, the lines blur and you begin to  operate in this form of alternative state  

Do you believe the ‘mad artist’ stereotype still holds weight or is creativity more grounded than we think?

While I'm aware the ‘mad artist’ stereotype still holds weight within the arts, I believe we are beginning to slowly move away from the ideology that suffering or madness constructs a better artist. The stereotype did and still does affect my perception as an artist and my work, it took a long time to even come to terms with the idea that while personal struggle and hardship can offer a unique form of insight/inspiration. It doesn’t make me any less or more of an artist. I also find it quite cruel to pigeonhole artists in a way that glamorizes/glorifies suffering,  the more you’ve experienced or suffered makes you a better artist when this just isn’t the case. We are shaped by suffering it’s keyed into human nature but as an artist to me it’s about the balance, and the ability as an artist to channel lived experiences in a way that produces a visual landscape that fully explores the perception and emotions of the event.

Is art created for the artist, the audience, or somewhere in between? 

To me art is created somewhere between the artist and the audience, I've always seen it as a mutually exclusive relationship where both parties are benefited. However, one of the privileges of being an artist is creating art for yourself, and I think while it’s important to create art that relates and connects to your audience, there is nothing better than producing a piece that is just for you. I think it’s good for the creative flow and allows you to explore your practice more but most of all it’s fun and if you like your work to be slightly cynical like me, you’re able to create a form of inside joke that the audience will never know about. Not necessarily producing work for yourself but almost creating alternative narratives that run alongside any other perceptions the audience engages with. Something I do appreciate about my audience is the response to my work often the things people experience while looking at my work are completely different from what I intend and it can be difficult if the audience doesn’t ‘get’ what I'm trying to say. It’s always been a privilege to see how people interact and how my work transforms through the eyes of other people. When I'm creating, I rarely think about the audience, it’s only when I'm engaging in exhibitions or events, that I begin to explore how the audience would approach my work. I think as artists we are allowed to be selfish with our production, especially in this current age with so much oversaturation of visual material and media.

Are there any upcoming projects or dreams that you’re particularly excited about?

I’m Currently in my final year at Camberwell College of Art, studying Fine Art and while scary I’m excited to see where I next end up and looking forward to exploring wherever that is. An upcoming project I’m excited about is my involvement in a group show located at  Southwark Park Gallery, London 1st and 2nd of February, 2025. It’s a privilege to be able to exhibit within the Dilson Gallery this beautiful semi-derelict exhibition space surrounded by a beautiful park. I’m particularly excited as while the piece I’m exhibiting is a large-scale collage print,  I’m beginning to explore different elements of my creative practice through exploring sculptural pieces which work as a form of ornamentation around the work that adds a further depth to my work.

✦ ✦ ✦

As Georgia’s artistic practice evolves, the balance between personal expression and audience engagement remains key. With each new artistic project, Georgia continues to explore how structure and spontaneity intersect, creating work that invites reflection and reveals deeper meaning with every encounter.