In Praise of Mindless Work and Drifting Off

Doing sculpture is for the most part an intuitive process. We think and problem solve of course as part of that, but most of the time, we are following our instincts and finding our way as we go. There are some notable exceptions to this, but for the most part it is true.

Often while lost in the process of forming or finishing a piece, streams and sometimes great rivers of thought begin to flow. Sometimes it happens and that's the extent of it. We may remember, we may not. More and more often I find myself writing it down. Some of these things are really good ideas, or the return of earlier great ideas. What some of the more forward thinking business types now refer to as a Flow State is what artists, writers, composers and others of our kind have have always experienced when we immerse ourselves in work and enter the zone of creation.

What isn't well understood, especially in today's overly prescribed and micro-managed work environments is that when you set some people free, they often produce many times more than when harnessed and monitored every step of the way. Some can't handle freedom, because they have no experience with it, but for those who are capable of some measure of self regulation, playing or going off on a tangent, may well lead to something far more valuable than what would be yielded if one dutifully remains on task hour after hour, day after day. It is the fear of people not doing what is expected or getting into trouble which causes the self appointed regulators to tighten the screws. They really have very little faith in humanity. They might trust themselves, but perhaps not that much and a few close close colleagues who are superior in some way, but no one else. It is a little sad, more for them than anyone else. We sometimes have to work under them, and at least outwardly play by their rules, but inside, we can never allow ourselves to be constrained by their limited thinking.
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