Abstract

It has been suggested that exercise can improve our creative ability (Blanchette, Ramocki,
O'del and Casey, 2005) but to date there is scant research upon the lived experiential
elements of this relationship. This presentation is based upon the initial phase of a doctoral
research project, which explores in depth the interactions between physical activity and
artistic creativity through the concept of simultaneous recreational running and creative
drawing. ‘Run-to-draw’ is a collaborative endeavour in which the researcher creates
drawings on Phidippeddes, an original engineered product designed by, and worn on the
back of, a co-runner. In this paper, we focus analytic attention on the richly textured lived
experience and physically-active embodiment of the running-drawing-researching self,
drawing on an innovative autophenomenographic research approach (Allen-Collinson,
2011). We examine, amongst other aspects, the nuanced, sensory dimensions of the lived
experience of run-to-draw engagement. Our ‘data’ are explored and displayed through
initial drawings and reflective texts used to interpret and relive what is experienced,
imagined, drawn, remembered and felt. In addition, Phidippedes will be present to offer
further insight into the research process, and to stimulate dialogue with the researcher and
audience pertaining to its methodological and pedagogical possibilities, including for use
with children in an educational context.