Piss Christ

One of the most controversial works in modern art is Andres Serrano's "Piss Christ".  This work was released in 1987 and it has been debated whether this is art at all.  It is a photograph of a cheap white crucifix submerged in Serrano's urine.  Many people found this extremely offensive.  A senator from New York said, "this so-called piece of art is a despicable, deplorable display of vulgarity."  Another Senator from North Carolina said, " I do not now Mr. Serrano and I hope I never meet him because he is not an artist, he is a jerk...let him be a jerk on his own time and with his own sources.  Do not dishonor the Lord!"  In response to these statements Serrano said, "You cannot have the sacred without the profane."- "People ask why I use fluids [blood, milk, semen, urine, etc..]  First of all I feel like I'm painting with light, and the fluids, besides being a symbol of life's vital fluids, loaded with meaning- also give me beautiful light."  This brings up many interesting questions about creativity.  Many people would not consider this creative because it is so offensive to them, but at the same time it seems that Serrano is only using urine to symbolize life and intensify the heaven-like light shining on Christ.  To me this suggests that whether or not something is creative not only has to do with whether it is useful or novel, but also how people interpret it.  If something is misunderstood it is easy to write it off as indecent and discredit it as art.  I believe that one factor or creativity is how something is interpreted so one cannot simply mark something as creative or non-creative, it varies with each individual's interpretation. 

Andres Serrano "Piss Christ" 1987

Einstein's Brain

I have been researching how creativity works in the brain over the past couple of months and I have found some interesting information.  During my research I found that highly creative individuals may actually have a specialized brain that is wired differently then others.  One such is example is Albert Einstein.  It has been recorded that Einstein did not speak until at the least age 4.  This suggests that the left side of his brain developed abnormally which allowed the right side of his brain to become highly specialized.  The right side of the brain in used for spatial computations which is used in mathematics.  Instead of simply memorizing formulas and using numbers, Einstein actually visualized math problems.  I believe that this unique way of solving math problems gave him an advantage because he was a different perspective and maybe more insight than others.  Einstein donated his brain to be studied when he died, and scientists took many pictures of it.  When reviewing the pictures they found that the area of the brain that separates the left and right cortex was so severely underdeveloped that it was almost non existent.  This suggests that Einstein's brain was very highly connected and he could draw connections between parts of the brain that others could not.  This may help explain how Einstein was able to come up with so many important and mind-blowing ideas.  

Left handed creativity?

Some people believe that left handed people are more creative and/or intelligent.  Some people who are considered highly creative who are left handed are Albert Einstein, Benjamin Franklin, H.G. Wells, Lewis Carroll, Jimi Hendrix, Paul McCartney, Paul Simon, Michael Angelo, Raphael, Leonardo Da Vinci, Charlie Chaplin, Jim Henson, and Julia Roberts.  A 1988 study showed that only 7-10 percent of the population is left handed.  I have not come across any scientific studies concerning this belief, but I have given it some thought and come up with some Hypothesis that support this.  First of all many of the everyday things that we do with our hands are made to cater to right handed people.  One example of this is how we write from left to right, door knobs are on the right side or doors, driving (shift is on the right hand side), Scissors are most often made for right handed people, and many instruments are made to be played by right handed people.  This means that left handed people are forced to come up with creative ways to use things that are not necessarily geared toward use for the left hand.  Left handedness has been stigmatized in many cultures and is even considered wrong.  For example in both Norwegian and Scottish the word for left handed implies clumsiness or sloppiness.  In many middle eastern countries the right hand is used for eating and the left hand is used for cleaning ones self after using the bathroom.  The word for left in welsh mean awkward or wrong.  This suggests to me that people who use their left hand are more likely not to follow society's norms and do things in a different way.  This tendency toward novelty could mean that left handed people have a tendency toward creativity.  Although this has never been proven, it is a very interesting idea that cannot be completely discredited. 

Drugs and Creativity

There is definitely a belief by many people that there is  a correlation between drugs and creativity.  Artists such as Jimi Hendrix, the Beatles, David Bowie, and Bob Dylan were known to have been regular users of drugs such as Marijuana and LSD.  Drugs change the way things are perceived and one's thought process, so it would make sense that they would help the creative process.  While it seems like drugs would help creativity, there really has not been any evidence that this is so in studies.  There also have not been many studies conducted on the impact that drugs have on the creative process, so one really can't come to an absolute conclusion on the subject.  It seems to me personally that there would be some kind of correlation- for example The Beatles' Yellow Submarine was inspired by an acid trip, and it does not seem that any one in a normal state of mind could produce such a work.  It is also reported that Jimi Hendrix put a small cut on his forehead and placed a hit of acid on it and placed his lucky headband over it before his shows.  It is hard to deny that Jimi Hendrix is a creative genius and it seems like his unique style may have something to do with his drug use.  I am not suggesting that any of my opinions are facts or have research to back them up, they are merely my opinions.  I do however think that more research should be done concerning this, before scientists come to conclusions about the correlation between drugs and creativity.  I believe that this has not occurred because if there is a correlation found between the two, it may encourage drug use among creative peoples or those who wish to be creative.

Here is a clip from The Beatles' Yellow Submarine

Creativity, or lack there of, in mainstream movies.

Think back to all of the so called "chick flick" love stories you have watched throughout your life.  Notice how many (not all) have very similar story lines.  They meet, not expecting to fall in love, fall in love, there is a misunderstanding or some kind of conflict, then they make up in the end.  I have seen this happen in movie after movie.  For example- How to lose a guy in 10 days, She's all that, Failure to Launch, and 10 things I hate about you.  This happens over and over in Blockbuster hits, but people seem to never get sick of it.  One would view movie making as an art form and highly creative, but because the movie industry is based on revenue, movie makers have to give their audience what they want.  I do think that some blockbuster hits are successful because of their creative aspects, because it is something new and exciting, but more often we see the same pattern of plot lines over and over.

Do Memes Play A Role In Creativity?

A meme is anything that can be transmitted from one human being to another and mimicked.  A meme can be a catchy song, a phrase, a religious belief, an idea, an accent, etc...  One must wonder what role memes play in creativity, or if they play a role in creativity at all.  When first pondering this one may come to the conclusion that memes cannot play a role in creativity because half of creativity is creating something that is novel.  Susan Blackmore (the scientist who saw value in Dawkins' theory of the meme) suggests that memes play a huge role in creativity.  She believes that creativity is part of an evolutionary process where memes are taken and reinvented and presented at new angles and approaches.  She believes that the most creative of human beings are those who are best at copying memes and recombining them.  This is a very interesting concept to me that makes sense, but at the same time contradicts the whole idea of creativity at the same time.  I do not believe that one can blatantly deny that this theory may be of some value.

The wonder that is Antony

Antony Hegarty is a transexual english-Irish singer/songwriter who has created a unique approach to expressing himself through music.  He is heavily influenced by artist such as Boy George and Marc Almond, but remains unique in and of himself.  Each time I introduce Antony's music to someone they either react by hysterically laughing, are at a loss for words, or say "what the hell?".  I believe that Antony comes as such a shock to the system because his voice is extremely strange to most people and the content of his lyrics are usually extremely morbid in the strangest way possible.  The real question that I am getting at is- Is Antony creative by psychologists' definition?  Antony's music is most definitely novel (unique), but is it appropriate/useful?  While I would venture to say that most people would not hesitate to answer "no", some people find Antony's music extremely relatable and valuable. These are a few comments taken from Antony's performance of "The Cripple and The Starfish" on Youtube, 

"I discovered his music when I saw Lou Reed tour Australia. It was the most beautiful voice I'd ever heard."  

"Hauntingly beautiful, Antony is a genius."  

"One of the greatest stylist and lyricist of contemporary music, a truly mesmerizing artist, experienced at Disney concert hall bravo."

"This music is life changing, antony's music owns something else, something deeper and defenetely better."

After learning how touching Antony's music is to many people, it is impossible to say that his music is not useful to some.  This suggests that psychologists' definition of creativity may need some revisions.  It is far to general and I think that different categories of creative may be more useful.  While Antony may not be creative to some, he may be the most creative person ever stumbled upon by others.  

This is Antony's "The cripple and The Starfish" it is a song that is meant to address domestic violence in gay relationships.  Now you can make a judgement about whether you think Antony is creative or nonsensical.

Mr. Muscle forcing bursting 
Stingy thingy into little me, me, me 
But just "ripple" said the cripple 
As my jaw dropped to the ground 
Smile smile

It's true I always wanted love to be 
Hurtful 
And it's true I always wanted love to be 
Filled with pain 
And bruises

Yes, so Cripple-Pig was happy 
Screamed " I just compeletely love you! 
And there's no rhyme or reason 
I'm changing like the seasons 
Watch! I'll even cut off my finger 
It will grow back like a Starfish! 
It will grow back like a Starfish! 
It will grow back like a Starfish!"

Mr. Muscle, gazing boredly 
And he checking time did punch me 
And I sighed and bleeded like a windfall 
Happy bleedy, happy bruisy

I am very happy 
So please hit me 
I am very happy 
So please hurt me

I am very happy 
So please hit me 
I am very very happy 
So come on hurt me

I'll grow back like a Starfish 
I'll grow back like a Starfish 
I'll grow back like a Starfish 
I'll grow back like a Starfish

I'll grow back like a Starfish 
I'll grow back like a Starfish 
I'll grow back like a Starfish 
I'll grow back like a Starfish 
Like a Starfish..

Connor Oberst-Brilliant and Creative

Connor Oberst is the lead singer for the band Bright Eyes. His songs tend to deal with things such as life, love, god, and politics. Although many artists write songs about this content, the way he expresses himself is unique and in a way that most people can relate to at the same time. This coincides with psychologists definition that creativity is measured by how novel (unique) and appropriate (useful) something is. It is novel because he takes a very cliche idea or feelings and puts it into words that make it seem original and much more relatable or he touches on something that you have always thought but didn't know how to explain or put into words in a way that makes sense. I also think that his music is useful in the sense that many times his words capture a feeling or something that an individual is going through and it makes them feel better that someone else has the same feelings.

This an exert from a song called "at the bottom of everything" It begins with dialog between a man and a woman on a plane and the plane suddenly starts falling and they realize that they are all about to die. Then the song starts and it says a lot about life in general.

So there was this woman and she was on an airplane, and she was flying to meet her fiancé seaming high above the largest ocean on planet earth. She was seated next to this man she had tried to start conversations, but the only thing she had really heard him say was to order his Bloody Mary. She was sitting there and she was reading this really arduous magazine article about a third world country that she couldn’t even pronounce the name of. And she was feeling very bored and despondent. And then suddenly there was this huge mechanical failure and one of the engines gave out, and they started just falling thirty-thousand feet, and the pilots on the microphone and he’s saying “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, oh my god” and apologizing. And she looks at the man and says “Where are we going?” and he looks at her and he says “We’re going to a party. It’s a birthday party. It’s your birthday party. Happy birthday darling. We love you very, very, very, very, very, very, very much.” And then he starts humming this little tune, it kind of goes like this: 1, 2, 1, 2, 3, 4

We must talk in every telephone
Get eaten off the web
We must rip out all the epilogues in the books that we have read
And in the face of every criminal
Strapped firmly to a chair
We must stare, we must stare, we must stare

We must take all of the medicines too expensive now to sell
Set fire to the preacher who is promising us hell
And in the ear of every anarchist that sleeps but doesn’t dream
We must sing, we must sing, we must sing

It’ll go like this:

While my mother waters plants
My father loads his guns
He says death will give us back to god
Just like this setting sun is returned to this lonesome ocean

And then they splashed into the deep blue sea
It was a wonderful splash

We must blend into the choir
Sing ecstatic with the whole
We must memorize nine numbers and deny we have a soul
And in this endless race for property and privilege to be one
We must run, we must run, we must run

We must hang up in the belfry
Where the bats and moonlight laugh
We must stare into a crystal ball and only see the past
And in the caverns of tomorrow
With just our flashlights and our love
We must plunge, we must plunge, we must plunge

And then we’ll get down there to the very bottom of everything
And we’ll see it, we’ll see it, we’ll see it

Oh my mornings coming back
The whole world’s waking up
In the city buses are swimming past
I’m happy just because
I've found out I am really no one.

One of the main things that I think makes his songs so real and allows him to express his ideas in a clear way is his use of imagery to really bring you into the story he is telling or the emotion he is trying to portray in each song. This is very creative and unique because most songwriters fail to write a song as if they were telling a story so their audience is not as engaged and isn't able to relate to the song on a deep and personal level.

This is an example of how Conner uses imagery to tell a story and set the scene for what he is trying to say.

Lyrics to Old Soul Song (For The New World Order) :
(feat. Emmylou Harris)

Gray light, new day leaks through the window
And an old song comes on the alarm clock radio
We walk the forty blocks to the middle
Of the place we heard that everything would be
And there were barricades to keep us off the street
But the crowd kept pushing forward
Until they swallowed the police
Ya they went wild

We left before the dust had time to settle
Now all the broken glass swept off the avenue
And on the way home held your camera like a bible
Just wishing so bad that it held some kind of truth
And I stood nervous next to you in the dark room
You dropped the paper in the water
And it all begins to bloom
Ya they go wild

And just when I get so lonesome I cant speak
I see some flowers on the hillside
Like the wars on TV
Ya they go wild