The Art of Play: Finding Happiness in the Everyday - How Art Journaling Became my Happiness Catalyst
What if we all just played a little more?
I was compelled to write this phrase in gold marker over a painting in my art journal this morning: "What if we all just played a little more?"
What would that be like? Would it mean less work would get done? Is it possible that society would crumble because we lost precious productive time? Could it mean that we’ve lost our senses? That we’ve become childish and incapable of being serious and being responsible, functioning adults?
Any rational person knows that if we played just a little more, nothing of consequence would happen. However, no, that’s absolutely untrue. Something huge would happen. We all would be just a little happier - or maybe even a lot happier.
Isn’t that a radical concept?
And when we’re all just a little happier, is it not easy to assume that we’d also be a little more rested, or motivated, or friendly, or open? It’s easy for me to see, perhaps because I’ve lived it.
It’s merely the act of doing something that I like to do, just for the sheer enjoyment of it. How glorious does that sound? And isn’t that what play is, after all? Doing something just because you want to and it makes you happy?
It's well documented that children not only have fun during play, they’re also learning. I would absolutely argue that the exact same happens for adults during play. When we play, our minds are more loose, free, open to new possibilities. One obvious thing an adult could learn is a new skill such as needlepoint or knitting, however I would argue that more importantly, play and doing something new or something one hasn’t done often, creates the opportunity to be open to new ways of thinking and new potential solutions to problems or challenges outside of play. The more positive experiences we have in our lives, the more ways we’re able to think of to tackle solutions in our day-to-day hustle.
To make it more clear, I’ll offer an example from my own life. As you may already be aware, I am passionate about art journaling and the benefits it offers outside of making art. This is an absolutely clear form of play for me. I love the freedom of making marks on a page, selecting colors intentionally, or at random, and creating something that might be beautiful, just so-so, or something quite ugly, if I’m being honest. But the beauty of all this is that it has opened up a renewed sense of agency and freedom in not only my creative life, but in my day-to-day “serious” life as well.
So, today I opened up my art journal and selected a few colors, unsure if they’d really work well together. But there was no risk in selecting these because it was just play! I was putting these colors together on a page of my art journal that never needed to be seen by anyone else. The colors I selected from my stash were Pyrrole Orange, a wonderfully bright orange that reminds me of pumpkins and Autumn; Phthalo Green, a lush, juicy and slightly bluish green; and Light Magenta, a classic “girl’s room” pink.
Here's an example of how this play can help me in my work life: I’ve been training to help our team with space planning for our branded environments projects recently. I started out quite rigid, asking for and sticking to clear parameters or feeling stuck because I didn’t yet have a strong understanding of my limitations. So I thought, what if I tackle this in the same way that I approach my art journaling? This is really just practice, so let’s just forget about limitations. Nothing bad would happen if I presented designs that would end up being far too expensive or simply impossible to implement - I was in training. So, I threw caution to the wind. I created impossible designs and came up with some unique solutions like putting a "floating" conference room in the middle of a wide open space or adding whacky ceiling fixtures to create a cozy and playful space to encourage innovative thinking while dampening noise. Bits here and there from my ideas sparked some other, more practical, yet innovative ideas that could ultimately be used in the space.
The freedom that I feel in my art journal also leads to new styles of paintings that I create in my pieces that eventually go up for sale or to new prompts and themes for my art journaling workshops. My experience of play has helped me get unstuck in linear thinking many times, but there are endless ways that play can benefit your “real life.”
I wonder what sorts of play you have in your life, and if you can’t think of anything, what can you possibly add in? If nothing comes to mind, try thinking back to your childhood. What are some of the things you used to love doing? If you don’t remember, see if you can find some old photo albums to help jog your memory, or ask a friend!
Trust me, it’s worth making this effort. You will see rewards from giving yourself the gift of more play. Please, let me know how this goes for you! I can’t wait to find out.
And if you'd like to try your hand at Art Journaling, I invite you to join me online or in person.
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