Creativity is political

Every once in a while, I hear this from an artist or scientist or tech whiz: ”I don’t pay any attention to politics. I just want to make my art/ do my experiments/ invent cool new stuff.”

(Actually, something similar emanates from about 92 percent of everybody in the U.S., who just want to watch their fake reality shows, pound beers and buy $300 athletic shoes that they wear to cruise the aisles at WalMart, but that’s another case of willful ignorance altogether.)

My eyes tend to get stuck in the upward-roll position when I hear the oh-politics  statement from anyone who’s trying to produce something new. I guess it seems preposterous to me that a person clever enough to compose opera,  genetically modify food crops or devise digital dancing hamsters could be that clueless but, apparently, creative ability doesn’t always make humans self-aware.  

The fact is, every single creative act is political, because creativity is about changing things. Anytime you mess with what people are used to, you affect how they feel, think, act – toward you and your work, toward life and the world.  And what is politics?  The art of manipulating how people think and feel so they’ll act and react in particular ways.  

Notice how I said art.

But what I’m getting at is mathematical, too, in the rudimentary way that I am so much the master of. So here’s the super-associative property of human invention: creativity = relationships = politics. All you need for proof is to read Geniocity.com’s blog pages today and see how imaginative change creates customer satisfaction (Will Limkemann’s “The Constant Entrepreneur“), legal turmoil  (Peter Friedman’s “Ruling Imagination“), commercial warfare (Charlie Eby’s “Media Man“), and outright fiction in the struggle over the federal budget (Seth Rosenberg’s  ”Inexact Possibilities“).

Still don’t believe me? Make some creative change of your own today – anything, fix the coffee a new way – and watch how fast your inspiration gives a wedgie to someone else’s expectation.

Just try to handle it better than our elected representatives.

Find change – and not just beneath the sofa cushions

Creativity happens on a lot of fronts and, these days, all of them are important. With another Election Day facing us in the U.S., all registered voters here have the opportunity and duty to make sure that needed change takes place in our different levels of government, local communities and larger society.

Everyone who is eligible should vote – it’s one of Americans’ most effective ways of helping new ideas and policies take shape.  Today in Seth Rosenberg’s blog, “Inexact Possibilities,”  you can find out about key races around the nation and the new directions to which they may lead. 

But infinite other paths to innovation exist, as well, and you can explore some of those right here. Read  Matt Charboneau’s blog, “Arts-Entrepreneur Resources,” to find out how social networking offers the fresh, creative means for artists to publicize and promote their work, and Will Limkemann’s “The Constant  Entrepreneur” to learn useful and imaginative tips on managing small business of all kinds.

Take a look at how scientists’, artists’ and your own personal work or business products can be affected by evolving fair-use law, which Peter Friedman examines in “Ruling Imagination“  with perspective on the lawsuit brought against the ’80s Australian rock group Men at Work for allegedly using the music from “Kookaburra Sits in the Old Gum Tree” for their hit song  ”Down Under.” 

And keep an eye out for fresh posts from Terrence Spivey on the just-concluded National Theatre Conference in “Theater of Change“; Charlie Eby on a just-released electronic game in “Media Man“; and Len Steinbach on the latest connections between art and technology in “Culture-Tech Verite.”

You can change the world – it’s happening right now.