| Accessing the default mode network March 5, 2010
Dear Jeremy,
When you paint you are using two distinct areas of your brain. One is the up front, active brain known to neurologists as "task positive." This is where you try to paint well, get the anatomy right, master colour, achieve a decent design as well as other practicalities of the moment. The second area is farther back in the cortex and is more the resting brain--what is known as "task negative." Neurologists also call this the "default mode network." This is where attention wanders when the task-positive brain is not being fully used. Here are daydreams, memories, fantasies, fictitious conversations and even thoughts about things that have nothing to do with the job at hand. To their surprise, neurologists found that this wandering mind uses almost as much energy as the one that gives the appearance of getting things done. Average people are in their task-negative brains more than a third of their waking hours. Apparently, artistic and inventive folk are even more into it. As such, the default mode network is thought to be the buzzing beehive of creativity. I'm not a neurologist, but I've knocked about in a few artists' brains. Beginners tend to favor the task positive--fairly obviously because they are figuring out how to do things. Mature artists, on the other hand, can often slip into task negative for entire works. Having mastered the nuts and bolts, they now trust the felicitous takeover of default mode. Their paintings paint themselves. The Chinese philosopher Lao Tzu figured it out 2400 years ago. He called it "Doing without trying to do." Here's the rub: Some artists stay permanently stuck in task positive. "Without wandering minds," says psychologist Jonathan Schooler, "they stay shackled to what they're doing at the time." On the other hand, there are artists who are all wandering mind and show little evidence of practical technique or self-managed application. Left on its own, neither mode works properly. Working together, they are like a couple of characters in an old silent movie--they can't help but make interesting things happen. If there is a secret, it may lie in achieving a balance and teaching yourself to switch back and forth. Constant stopping just to think won't fix a work that is already over-thought. Over-thinking leads to one of our most vexing goof-ups--overworking. Conversely, a persistent state of wandering mind can turn fine work into a fine mess. You need 'em both. Best regards, Robert PS: "What a fine mess you've got us in now, Ollie." (Stan Laurel to Oliver Hardy) Esoterica: Now here's the interesting part: Apparently, boredom is a significant springboard to creativity. Neuroscientists have also found boredom to be a source of feelings of well being and a strong sense of self. In boredom, the brain continues to fire away in those regions that conjure hypothetical events and new possibilities. The wandering mind, the dream world, can be a better world than the real nuts-and-bolts world and for the artist, with the addition of task-positive skills, it can transform into the joyful business of making it happen.
Current clickback: " The outlook for fame" looks at a variety of opinion on the value of fame. It seems some artists love it and need it while others find it an impediment to the real world and real life. Your further input is welcome. Read this letter online. What is the nature of the creative brain? How do we access it or train it for maximum fun and profit? Live comments are encouraged. You can also send your illustratable remarks directly to Robert at rgenn@saraphina.com. Every day there are new features going into The Painter's Post. This online arts aggregator has links to art info, ideas, inspiration and unmitigated creative fun. If a friend is trying to subscribe to the Twice-Weekly Letter via Constant Contact, please let them know that as well as subscribing they must confirm their subscription. You can also follow Robert's valuable insights and see further feedback on Facebook and Twitter. Featured Responses: Alternative to the instant Live Comments, Featured Responses are illustrated and edited for content. If you would like to submit your own for possible inclusion, please do so. Just click 'reply' on this letter or write to rgenn@saraphina.com. BOOK UPDATE: Please see banner on our website. If you have special needs or just want to discuss your purchase, please contact Sarah Garland at sarah@saraphina.com or telephone her at 604 617 2112.
Engage your creativity online! A Premium Art Listing in the Painter's Keys Art Directory is the most effective thing an artist can do to be tastefully and respectably noticed. This listing--really a mini web page--costs $100 per year and we do all the set-up. Find out how well it might work for you. | 
jeremyholton 
jeremyholton
No comments:
Post a Comment
Please leave comments which will help me improve my work