When was the last time you enjoyed some time painting just for the delight of it? Not because you wanted to achieve a certain outcome or reach a goal you set for yourself, but just because you wanted to see how your favourite colours look side by side? When was the last time you had fun trying out shapes and patterns just for the sake of it, not caring if the lines were wonky or the paint got smeared? When was the last time you just played like a child, giggled while randomly adding dots here and there, completely forgetting time and without judging if what you just did was considered „good enough“? ・
„Play is not a luxury. Play is a necessity.“ I read these words somewhere, I believe they are by the American psychologist Kay Redfield Jamison, and they deeply resonate with me. It is important for me to let myself play on a regular basis. It brings me so much joy and freedom to let go of my own judgements or expectations and just „do whatever feels good“, no matter if it’s pretty or „artsy“ or advanced enough. It just „is“ and I do it because it is fun. It do it because I enjoy experimenting and exploring without boundaries. I have journals and hundreds of sheets of paper filled with playful, fun, weird and wonky stuff. No one will ever see them if I don’t want to. They serve no particular purpose, and in our society of busyness and productivity they may even seem like a waste of time or resources… but they are tokens of many joyful, carefree and happy hours… and time spent like this is never wasted.