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Digging doodles

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Recent research reported widely in the popular media indicates that doodling can be a boost to your concentration, rather than a distraction. I always feel vaguely guilty as I doodle my way through boring meetings. But actually, according to cognitive psychologist Jackie Andrade, doodling may be keeping me from daydreaming and consequently risking looking very blank when someone at the table asks me to weigh in on the topic at hand.

USA National Doodle Day is May 7. In observance of Neurofibromatosis Awareness Month, celebrity doodles will be auctioned on eBay May 7-17. Last year’s celebrity participants included Candice Bergen, Jeff Bridges, Ellen DeGeneres, David Duchovny, Scarlett Johansson, Jodi Picoult and Robin Williams, among others.

Kids are natural doodlers. Google sponsors an annual Doodle 4 Google contest for K-12 students. Students are invited to embellish the famous Google logo around a theme. This year’s theme is “What I wish for the World” and the U.S. public will be invited to vote to select the national finalists via the Google main page from May 11-18. The grand prizewinner, to be announced on May 20, will receive a $15,000 college scholarship, with the winning logo appearing on the Google main page the next day.

Even those who don’t doodle can enjoy the artistry of a good doodle. Go to Google image search; type in “doodles”—you can limit the search to any number of types of doodles, such as “geometric doodles,” “crayon doodles,” “flower doodles,” “fun doodles,” “squiggle doodles,” “student doodles,” “alphabet doodles,” etc.

Or take a look at the blog Doodlers Anonymous, where its founders declare: “The need to draw, sketch, and doodle is constant. We doodle on almost anything we can find—pencil in a moleskin, marker on a napkin, ink on a torn receipt and sharpie on concrete. And we do it habitually—while on hold, in a meeting, during class or while we should be sleeping.” Doodlage, “home of creative boredom,” presents a wide range of doodles in its quest “to elevate doodling to the status of an art form.”

And if you want to experience doodle-inspired handmade objects, check out Etsy, “your place to buy and sell all things handmade.” Type “doodles” in the search box and you’ll be amazed at the range of items for sale.

My favorite Etsy “shop” is Doodlage: Rock, Paper, Scissors. Enjoy!

—Gemma DeVinney, University Libraries

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