Be Delighted

Sometimes, when you are following your heart and your creative inspiration, when you just play around, you get to be delighted. Happy surprises appear out of nowhere. This image is one for me. I found this free action for Photoshop (works in Elements too - yay!) through a post on a Flickr group yesterday. I went to run it on another photo I had open, but somehow chose the photo incorrectly and got this one. Happy accident! I loved the result, it made the photo of the carnival lights in Geneva much more abstract and interesting.

Here's the original:

When we get creative, when we play, we have a lot of opportunity for happy accidents. These are what happen when we give up the idea of Serious Creativity with all of the pressure of creating something perfect, something that others will love, something marketable even, and just have fun.

Yesterday my son decided it was an "art day" and (to my neat-freak husband's horror) proceeded to pull out all of his art and craft supplies (and some of mine) and spread them out on the dining room table. I found some artists chalks amidst the wreckage and had fun playing with colors and getting my hands dirty. I call the result "The Color Comet." Here's another recent happy outcome, a painting I did a few weeks ago when I just felt like putting paint to canvas and playing around. Not trying to be an Artist with a capital A, just enjoying the process of creating. I like the colors and the message, it sits on my desk and reminds me everyday to believe in myself. I share these little pieces, not because they are fantastic art, but because they are not fantastic art. They are just the result of creative play. The process of playing around delighted me, so the end result delights me too, if only for the memory of the fun I had. Pastels on my fingers, paint brush in my hand.

So if you have time this week... wait, let me rephrase that... Make time this week to play creatively. Find a fun new action, pull out the paints or the pastels, go through your art and craft supplies and see what your fingers itch to hold. Don't have a plan, just have fun. Be delighted in the result. Come back and share your happy accidents!