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Messes of Intentional Creativity

Mess-terpiece Theatre: Jest for the Fun of it

By Chris Dunmire, CoachingYourCreativity.com

"How messy do you get with your creative projects?" Creativity Coach Dan Goodwin asks at the end of his article, Scribbling Outside the Lines: 7 Reasons Why it's Good to Make a Mess, to encourage creatives to practice more "cutting loose" and "creating freely without inhibition or restriction." In fact, he begins the article with the pivotal question, "When’s the last time you really made a mess?"

I can hear the responses from aristocrat artists right now. "ME make a mess? I can't possibly be messy on purpose. I'm here to produce the perfect masterpiece!" Which makes me think, what artist statement will boldly admit to "messes of intentional creativity" as part of the creative process? Oh, no, not THAT!

I could write about the psychological reasons why some creative people (artists, writers, performers, etc.) fear mess-making as part of their work, or I could write about what REALLY happens inside a person's being when they "Dance like nobody's looking." OR I could do what I do best: bypass the armchair dialogue and simply show you the paint sticking underneath my fingernails and the creatively-satisfied smile on my face. Yes, I'll answer Dan's question myself, "When's the last time you really made a mess?" And when I'm finished, you're going to understand a lot more about this than you already think you do.

The ART RAT Nest Mess

The last time I made a mess, cut loose, and had lots of experimental fun with my creative work was two weeks ago, while preparing my ART RAT April Fool's Day Prank. Yes, the ART RAT story was a joke, but the rest of what I'm about to tell you is absolutely true. Familiarize yourself with the ART RAT joke first and then come back here and read what I had to do to pull it off.

Everything about the ART RAT joke was manifested out of this colossal cerebrum of mine, inspired by the book "Why Cat's Paint" and the Maggot Art Web site (which are real). Over a span of several days, I designed the ART RAT Web site, book, blog, and wrote all of the paragraphs and posts, making it all up as I went along.

And what of the ART RAT watercolor art? I painted those pieces on my best Strathmore cold press watercolor paper in my creativity room ("art studio"), after meditating myself into 'the mind of a rat." Okay, not really, but as you can imagine, I had to paint as if I had little rat paws and pointy toes. No small feat! (well, maybe small feet...). And guess what? Two weeks later my creativity room is still a mess, literally! (And that's why every room should have a door... that closes!)

All of it — the writing, the blogging, the painting — was a result of cutting loose, stripping off seriousness, putting on silliness, and making a "mess". How else could I have pulled that off? Indeed, by "flowing over the usual confines" and playing outside of the box of conventional RATionalism ART RAT and I became one. This is what experimental, uninhibited creativity is, and it is one of the most awesome sensations and rewarding experiences a human being can have. The ART RAT project is just one example of many in a long line of "mess making" projects I've done. I find that my humorist mode is fertile ground for ripe mess-terpieces of art, design, and writing.

The ability to laugh at myself and my silly ideas has side benefit of accepting the quirky, embracing imperfection, and being open to following where outrageous ideas flow. These are all things that help dissolve inhibition and FEAR, the biggest creative blocks in the world. And yes, I've been ridiculed for this... by people who of course fear to dare! (I know they secretly wish they could be freeative too, which they can be as soon as they put their ego's aside.) Of course, there's no rule that mess-terpieces or idiomic ideas have to be shared with the public.

So, I am all for mess-making, experimenting wildly, and exploring the quirky questions through my creative work. And I am here to encourage this in you. Every single time I've played on this path, it's led me to places of surprise, intrigue, and "Wow, I didn't know I could do that!" Following this bliss always expands my love for life and contributes something so undeniably worthwhile to the process of living fully, exuberantly, joyfully, and of course, creatively.

Now let me graciously "borrow" from Dan and ask you a variation of his question. When's the NEXT time you're going to make a mess? •

© 2007 Chris Dunmire, CoachingYourCreativity.com. All rights reserved. (04/11/07). Please do not duplicate this article elsewhere without my permission.

About the Author
Chris Dunmire is a thriving humorist, creativity enthusiast, kid's artshop facilitator, and creative director and publisher of the popular "Writer's Digest Best" Creativity-Portal.com. Chris trained as a creativity coach with Eric Maisel, Ph.D., and is the innovative mind behind the famous 'Cashius monetarius' Dollar Bill Origami Money Plant project. Learn more about Chris's creative printable playbooks at CreativeSlush.com.