Monday, June 8, 2015

Creative Chaos......or Creative THINKING?!



Why, oh why have I always moved through any living space like a creative whirlwind?  There never seems to be a clean, uncluttered and neatly arranged surface ANYWHERE I live. And, trust me, if you can find one, it is probably because I am just physically unable to reach it!  Neat and perfectly organized surfaces last about...oh, maybe 2 minutes.  Then something gets tossed into the perfection and it all gets turned right back into chaos.  

The funny thing is this is a frequent topic among my creative friends.  We even share photos of our workspaces to see whose space is the "worst".  By this I mean the way OTHER people perceive it...as if an uncluttered, tidy space has higher perceived value with the rest of the world than a space filled with all sorts of interesting and often unrelated objects.  

I often wonder if those who are tidy are just plain boring....  Maybe those of us with spaces that look like a craft explosion took place do so with actual intent.  It seems that way...as if creativity cannot happen as well in a boring space.

If that theory is true, what is the REAL purpose of  what I refer to as "creative chaos"?  Science and psychologists wish they knew.  Unfortunately, it is probably beyond the logical mind's reach.  However, highly creative people...artists..designers, decorators and the like know the answer. 

Creative chaos is actual thinking in motion.  In the midst of what was perceived by my mathematically precision-driven mother as a total MESS, there are pattern, color and size relationships...the stuff ART is made of.  "Creatives" see color palettes and combinations brilliantly decided by random placement of objects tossed next to or on top of each other. A creatively chaotic room is filled with scale relationships, as well as ones of color value, contrast and texture.  Inspiration is everywhere.  In a single feather...or in a heap of fibers carelessly tossed over a pile of left-over bits and pieces from previous projects.  It is how I see the world... and how most of my creative friends see it, too.  

Yep, we are weird.  We see things differently.  We don't see the mess as chaos.  We see it as possibilities.