THE PRINCIPLE

Playing is the most creative state

Picasso said, ‘Every child is an artist. The problem is to remain an artist once we grow up.’ That applies to creativity in general.

In his wonderful book Orbiting the Giant Hairball (Viking/Allen Lane), artist Gordon Mackenzie relates how he used to go into American schools and ask the children how many of them were artists, too. The 6-year-olds all raised their hands. With third-graders, who were 10, only about a third of them responded that way. When asked the same question at the age of 12, out of a group of 30, only 1 or 2 would raise their hands, hesitantly.

To return to the state of creativity that children have naturally, we have to do what they do – play.

Play can take just about any form. When the great pioneer of psychology, Carl Jung, felt that he had lost direction, he would go into his garden and play with little stones.

The important thing is to do it for its own sake. If you make a drawing, do it just to enjoy the process, not to try to create something others will admire. In fact, it’s a good idea to decide beforehand that if your form of play is to make something, you will destroy it when you’re done, or at least not show it to anybody.

Has it been so long that you can’t think of anything to play? Here are a few ideas to get you started:

• Scribble on a piece of paper, then turn the scribbles into drawings of people or objects (remember, it’s not art, it’s playing – it doesn’t have to be artistically good).
• Play a card game that you enjoyed as a child. Or just make one up. Turn up cards one at a time. If you get four hearts in a row, you get to have a muffin.
• Buy a yo-yo.
• Get some modelling clay and make some figures. If you’re angry at somebody, get some pins and do clay voodoo.
• Walk down the street pretending to be your favourite superhero, and imagine yourself solving minor crises. ‘Look, Superman/Superwoman, that driver ignored the zebra crossing, use your vision heat rays to melt his tyres!’
• Spend some time with a child – your own or a friend’s – and find out what they want to play and join in. Play by their rules!

Website bonus

At www.CreativityNowOnline.com, click on the ‘Creativity Now!’ button. Bonus 2 is a set of games to get you started playing.