Concrete results from our creativity

 

(The Standard  10 April 2014) When I think of young girls in the fashion industry, my mind often jumps to lanky 15-year-old models skipping down the runways far from their home countries.

 

But I didn't forget one familiar face who had a fascinatingly early start at the age of 11 - Tavi Gevinson.

She came to the attention of the world when she started her blog Style Rookie in 2008, where she would post pictures of outfits she put together and write commentaries on fashion trends, drawing 30,000 visitors a day.

Her father did not show much interest in her hobby until she asked if she could be interviewed by The New York Times on an article about young bloggers.

 

Her early success was not met without criticism though - some thought she had help from her mother, and fashion editors doubted her credibility, or, as one put it, her huge bow that blocked her view of the runway in fashion week. Many wondered if her success would last.

 

It has certainly lasted up to today. In 2011, she decided to stop writing primarily about fashion, and at age 15 started the online magazine Rookie, which is mainly written by teenage girls and mixes fashion with other areas of concern.

 

What is inspiring about this young woman is not only her personal talent, but also the community that has recognized, nurtured and supported it to grow.

 

The Tavi story is a true inspiration to young people today. Even without many resources, she was empowered by being willing to put her work out there and gather like-minded young people.

To me, that is a story of true creativity. One often associates the word simply with the idea of creating something in the design or artistic field.

 

But I personally see creativity as the act of finding solutions, sometimes unexpected and unprecedented ones, to problems. It

spans every field and could happen any time in anyone's life.

 

In this case, creativity happens with how ideas are expressed, how human connections are made, how one is self-motivated. These things seem vague and abstract - but they result in concrete outcomes, and beautiful ones at times are created.

So off you go, start getting creative.

 

Art student Gloria Yu is a designer, writer and a citizen of the world.