Doodles for Noodles Equals Imagination

That’s right! Doodles are good for your brain. People who make a habit of “doodling” when they are at rest, increase imagination and brain power. An artist friend shared this advice from a former teacher. Her brain was in freeze mode, and she wanted to know how to unfreeze it and unleash the powers of creativity.

I tried to get back to my doodle past. I remember making circles and squiggles on my telephone lists and scratch paper, but aside from that I don’t recall anything spectacular.

Last night, I decided to doodle while watching TV. It seems my scrawls have become more complex and sophisticated. I drew children’s faces, boxes, leaves, and an idea for another painting. I’ve included them here, although, I wouldn’t want to show them to many people.

I’m making a pact with myself to keep up the doodling process. Who knows, maybe something good will come from it. I believe I prefer looking at real people or photographs and sketching from them, but that has little to do with imagination. The goal of making squiggles and swirls is to stimulate your imagination; to create something totally new and different.

While I ponder this process, I’m inserting paintings from my last exercise in doing something different. I also prepared another pastel called “Ronnie and Rex,” a pastel drawing of a younger Ronald Reagan with his favorite King Charles spaniel.

The watercolor paintings were done on rice paper. I’m not sure I would ever do this again, but it was fun while it lasted. The point is to stretch your skills and expand your knowledge so that when you come back to your preferred medium it will feel new and wonderful again (at least comfortable).

I consider this meandering pure play, but it also provided relief and release when I found myself in an impossible rut. Try it yourself and share your experiences here!