A Treatise on Doodlists

Imagine for a moment you could collect all the doodle artwork from a given place. Say you were at a high school and you collected all of the available notebooks. It may not come as much of a surprise, but in collecting these materials you also collected an array of ‘adhoc art’ called doodles.This collection would range from the very sophisticated to the mundane. Upon inspection, however, something profound would be observed. From the artist or doodlist, ideas and stories would unfold and become apparent to the viewer.

Without prompting or planning, individuals engage in the common practice of doodle generation. These doodles reveal a level of creativity in places where one's imagination and originality are unlikely to be found. This creativity is most often brought to the surface during moments of idleness when the mind has wondered.

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Imagine now that you could take these pieces of artwork and put them in a gallery. What might you see? What could be learned? What could said of these somewhat random moments of art? The answer to these and other questions is the very reason for Doodlists.

Doodlists removes whatever barriers exists and elevates the form of the doodle. The site is a gallery of sorts -- collecting doodle artwork from those willing to share their creativity and in turn offers a community of art and artists to the world. It should be noted, that doodles themselves are made richer not merely by the artist's rendering but by the canvas, the artist's background, the location where and when doodle was created. These pieces in aggregate provide certain context and help to frame doodle within a larger space.

You might ask, "Why is this important and what would be the point?" In a way, doodles are pointless and carry little to no meaning -- after all, they are just idle drawings and scribble on a page. But there is more. At the same time, doodles suggest a profound raison d'etre and a place within the larger discourse – of life, art, society and so on. Doodles therefore are nothing and at the same time something special and important. It is this dichotomy which fascinates.

As a species of rich diversity, our creativity is extraordinary and without limit. It is this quality which makes each of us unique and further distinguishes us from other living organisms. Doodles, therefore, are a reflection and an extension of our creative ability during moments which may otherwise be unremarkable.

Certainly, we are accustomed to touring the works of Picasso, Rembrandt, Degas and listening to the music of Chopin, Bach, and Mozart. But what about the individual greatness within ourselves, the creativity that is not held up to the light but which contains all the qualities that we admire from those we deem great.

Doodlists.blogspot.com is a place where anyone -- ordinary or extraordinary -- can share without critique, the creative genius which arises without prompting or planning. It is this quality which is so compelling.

What you will find here may very well surprise you. Welcome to the margins. Take part in this project by submitting one of your favorite doodles or simply the one you penned today.