Emma O'Halloran's Creativity Challenge: Embracing Boredom, Quiet-time and Ditching our Screens

In this Creativity Challenge episode, Tamzin and Finola discuss whether or not they embraced the idea of "boredom." In the last episode, GRAMMY-nominated composer Emma O'Halloran pulled a card from the Oblique Strategies card deck – a deck full of creative prompts designed by Brian Eno and Peter Schmidt. The card that came up for our challenge was "Do Something Boring." The sisters have NOT had a boring fortnight (moving countries and many concerts amongst other things)! Nevertheless, they sat down to discuss how they did find some boredrom and what aspects of their creative jobs are truly boring. Tamzin discusses her beautiful walks by the sea and Finola considers simplicity in the music she is writing. They talk about the importance of presence, mindfulness and avoiding our screens, to boost creativity. Finola has now given herself the challenge of really bringing down her phone-time, and she will report back next time for accountability!In other news: Finola has just released her album, Abhaile, with Catherine Sikora, for saxophone and electronics! It is released on Fort Evil Fruit. Every little helps; if you can support for the low cost of €8, please go here. About your hosts:Tamzin Merivale is a visual artist and writer, on a mission to explore diverse stories and to guide people to process their life experiences through art. Tamzin’s visual art facilitates people in their quest to unearth their true, powerful selves — work which is unique and transformational. Tamzin’s writing was recently published in the New York Times best-selling memoir The Book of Alchemy (2025) by Suleika Jaouad, alongside Gloria Steinem, Elizabeth Gilbert, Salman Rushdie and more. Subscribe to Tamzin’s Newsletter here or follow her on Instagram @tamzinmerivale.Finola Merivale is a composer of acoustic and electro-acoustic music, based between France and Ireland. She is currently a 2025–26 Fellow at Columbia University’s Institute for Ideas and Imagination in Paris. Her music has been described as “edgy and discomforting, yet exciting and distinctive,” and "a wild ride." Finola completed her DMA in Composition at Columbia University. Recent accolades include fellowships from MacDowell (2025) and the Civitella Ranieri Foundation (2024), a 2025 Music Bursary from the Arts Council of Ireland and an award from the New York Council on the Arts. Her music has been performed internationally. Follow Finola on Instagram @finolamerivale.Audio editing and production by Finola MerivaleMusic by Finola Merivale Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.