International Creativity Month – January 2025

History of International Creativity Month

The root word in ‘creativity’ comes from the Latin word ‘creare,’ which is connected to the divine act of creation. In the Middle Ages (500 A.D.), it was believed that creativity was a divine power of God. Human beings could only be inspired by this divine force to create a piece of art. Humans were not capable of being the source of creativity. Consequently, artwork from the pre-Renaissance period was not signed since the artists felt that it was not truly theirs and the ownership belonged to some higher power.

In the 14th century, the term ‘create’ was first spotted in a book called “The Parson’s Table.” In this context, the meaning of creating something was still somewhat connected to the divine. However, artists like Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci began to sign their names on their work and started the ritual of ownership.

In the late 17th century, the divine connection to creativity was dismissed. People started to believe that creativity was not a divine thing, but only a few people were capable of it. Thus, creativity was born out of a genius mind.

In the 1920s, the Austrian neurologist Sigmund Freud explored the creative powers of the human mind. According to Freud, creativity was an outcome of the struggle between the ego and the superego. This theory democratized the idea of creativity to some extent, allowing people to think that they too were capable of being creative.

In the 1950s, scientists created standardized and systematic tests to measure creativity as more people show divergent thinking skills. Creativity became a quality that every individual could be capable of.