The Joy of the Creative Process

At the end of this week, I will have participated in the American Art Therapy Association Conference in Washington DC.  Planning for the event has me thinking about the mood-altering characteristic of art-making.  

Richard Taft is a woodworker; he is also a stroke survivor and former machinist. As part of his rehabilitation from his stroke, he invested time in wood working, developing a process for creating unique tumbled sumac pieces he calls "worry woods." The smooth wood pebbles provide a soothing tactile sensation.  

In an interview in the Twin Cities press, Taft said; "Working with these every day, I've become convinced that they have mood-altering properties...I like to tell people I manufacture endorphins, and these are the byproducts." 

His quote was an "Aha!" moment for me and led me to thinking about how my view of creating is transformed when I view it as an internal process impacting a person rather than an external process resulting in a product.  

In working with children, and let's face it, many adults claim to "draw like a child," this is especially true.  So the next time you sit down to draw, build with blocks, color with chalk or play with play dough with your child, focus on the joy you are making.  

Endorphins are the feel-good neurotransmitters in our brains. Research supports the idea that creative activity helps support and build happiness. If we see the goal of the artistic process to build a sense of joy, mastery, persistence and creative confidence, then the actual painting, drawing or sculpture  becomes merely a by-product.  

The product is the child (or adult) artist and the integrated feelings created through making art.  This spring, my evening studio class included six young women who set about making a clay city, complete with skyscrapers, restaurants, a beach, vehicles, and (to my delight) an art studio.  

Even as I delighted in their collaboration, I worried a bit about what would happen to the city when class ended.  Who would get to take it home?  "We're giving it to you!" came the enthusiastic reply. It was less of a gift than a presentation to the studio, a way of leaving their mark on a space where they enjoyed working with materials and being part of a creative community.  

Having the city in the studio is a great reminder of the energy, creativity and joyful enthusiasm of this group. Don Spatz wrote an essay called "Having and Making" where he described watching children building all day only to lose interest when a project was complete.  

He argues that "making" is more fun than "having," and he writes:"When you 'have' a need is filled. Filled, yet there is a void, an emptiness. Motivation is suspended. Having is an external circumstance, while making comes from within.  

It is the result of creative drive.  As long as these wheels are in motion, there is purpose."This summer, whether you are building sand castles at the beach or drawing with chalk on the sidewalk, take a minute to notice the faces of the children and adults in your group.

Look for the concentration, the confidence and the joy of the creative process.