Research task: Flow and Play

For this research, I had to take a look into the essay 'Memory, Instinct and Design: Beyond Paul Rand's "Play's Principle"', by Michael Golec. In which I read, highlighted and took notes to write up what the essay speaks about, my thoughts and anything else that spoke to me as I read it. 1

The essay (in summary) is all about what play can give someone and subconsciously learning a tool for what the "play" involves, Paul Rand's quoted in this essay expressing that by setting up boundaries for an artist its gives us the limits to how far we can go since boundaries (or 'rules') are sometimes good to push the limits to- or even break them.

When we are playing and not worried about the boundaries of things- like when we're a child, you instinctively and subconsciously pick up things without knowing; like learning to speak, overtime you speech improves (ex. playing dolls), or learning to walk as a toddler.

Playing is what some "grumpy" adults call "for kids", but deep down we all play, and without realizing. Your thoughts, daydreams and goals are created through play; since you feel you can't play with a doll and/or play doctor (at age 16 for example), you imagine yourself being a doctor- in turn dreaming to be a doctor, then becoming one.

Going further through the essay, they talk about how we use that knowledge every time we use it, how we pick that skill up again. The idea in this essay is that we never forget, we have it stored in our brain to prepare for next time; like learning to swim or ride a bike- you can do lesson or play, then years could go by and you'll still be able to use that skill.

With artists we find what inspires us and drives us, we see the possibilities at play of what we can achieve or what speaks to us. We can go for walks and find ourselves entranced with ideas that can impact us and motivate us to create art that will eventually inspire others too; the beauty in it all is how much we limit ourselves from what we put down as rules and boundaries, and when we do break out from those boundaries amazingly and incredible things can happen.

Just look at Vincent Van Gogh, a harden life with mental health and with not many people liking his work- he tried and he did what we loved, he stepped out of the boundaries and created the iconic artworks we see everyday. Even with all the dark side that he had, and died with, it continues to inspire people today...

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But how does this apply to art?

Creating art takes play, a lot of it in some cases, you'll decide to have a bit of fun and draw something funny- then you find yourself liking that experience and think "oh, I want to draw another one". You'll keep at that until you realise that you've picked up a drawing skill.

Say you went 2 years without picking up that pencil and you eventually find yourself wanting to draw something, you may feel rusty and it may not look as 'good' as you once were, but after a few sessions of drawing again and you pick it right up.

Artists use this ideology particularly in abstract art, you'll see artists finding their mood then their subjects and creating based on what their hearts and bodies are telling them. The abstract artist may start out a little rough (as all do), but the more they work into it, the more they find their voice.

Hilma Af Klint is an abstract artist from Sweden where she found her voice through art, what resonated the most through her work was her spiritualism. She felt this 'play' when she was connecting her art to her different spiritual beliefs that she believed in, she would use interesting shapes language and lines to create her work.

Personally, I love her use of colour and the way she uses geometry to convey her spiritualism, visually showing her flow from her and her spiritual side. Below is one of ten in a series, all containing a link from another but just as important as on their own. I love the flow and the colour, it feels carefree without restriction or worry on complementary colours. I love the distinguish between line and the geometry coming together for some very symbolic and powerful imagery.

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Reflection

Quotes and thoughts that I've picked up from this of what art's philosophy-- or the science behind it is (you could say), comes down to what you find calming or inspiring to you and picking up a skill which makes you happy and it won't feel like studying, it just feels fun. So, when you're looking at other's work and creating mood boards you'll find a goal, you'll find what speaks to you.

Reading this essay and writing up this, creates that understanding of why you're doing this, what your purpose is. I, myself, am a believer of ikigai (diagram right of meaning4); finding what you love, what you're good at, what the world needs and what you can be paid for. I found it profoundly interesting that when you're playing you're subconsciously picking up a skill or a tool for your brain to file away.

You're bound to think about your own artistic journey as you read this essay and then reflect because you were once at that point where you picked up a pencil and drew a dog-- or a person for the very first time and loved that feeling of drawing then loving what you drew (no matter how dysfunctional that dog ended up looking).

I'm probably looking too deeply into art and the journey of art, but I've developed a great appreciation and passion for art. The quotes I have from this essay are going on my study wall, I very much liked this research task.

1 pp.103-107, Michael Golec 'Memory, Instinct, and Design: Beyond PAul Rand's "Play Principle", u/a. (Reading List Access). https://contentstore-cla-co-uk.oca.idm.oclc.org/EReader/Index?guid=9f2b3e9b-7758-ee11-830d-0050f2f06092&pcid=2713769&t=eyJhbGciOiJIUzI1NiIsInR5cCI6IkpXVCJ9.eyJqdGkiOiJiMjg1YTRjMS00ZGMyLTQ4MzctYTQ1Mi1kYzFjNGZhMDA0NDIiLCJuYmYiOjE3MDQxMjMyNjksImV4cCI6MTcwNDEyMzU2OSwiaWF0IjoxNzA0MTIzMjY5LCJpc3MiOiJEQ1MiLCJhdWQiOiJSZWFkZXIifQ.p_j6QFZRltECjcFM09oXuUc36OCpyHyh1suFj5b1UZs&b=False Accessed Jan 1, 2024

2 Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "Vincent van Gogh". Encyclopedia Britannica, 23 Dec. 2023, https://www.britannica.com/biography/Vincent-van-Gogh. Accessed 1 January 2024.

3 U/A, Guggenheim 'Group IV, The Ten Largest, No. 7, Adulthood (1907) by Hilma af Klint', Oct 24, 2018. https://www.guggenheim.org/audio/track/group-iv-the-ten-largest-no-7-adulthood-1907-by-hilma-af-klint Accessed Jan 1, 2024.

4 U/A, Obakki 'The Philsophy of Ikigai', U/A. https://obakki.com/blogs/journal/the-philosophy-of-ikigai Accessed Jan 1, 2024.