The following "Researcher Reflection" from Dr. Tara B. M. Smith is part of an ongoing series where we spotlight CSWR scholars and their research.
Flow is a positive state of mind achieved when engaging a physical or mental task with great focus. You might feel flow in an interesting problem at work, driving long stretches of road, or reading a good novel. Warhammer 40,000 (or 40K) was first produced by Games Workshop Players in 1987 and in 2023 was published in its tenth edition; it is a wild success. Players describe entering flow states during game play, but they also describe experiencing flow when painting intricate miniatures built and decorated for use in competition. Some painters encounter a sort of out-of-body experience akin to meditation or transcendence. These flow states, they report, contribute to greater overall mental health, clearing minds and providing respite from everyday problems.
My research explores why and how Warhammer 40K player-painters enter states of flow by spending hours daily painting tiny bits of grey plastic. But this flow state is not passive. It does not just happen. Player-painters engage a sequence of contexts in order to paint successfully and enter flow states while painting. Images embedded below depict the physical steps to create finished miniatures.
Step 1: The Ritual. Painting miniatures generates flow because painting is a repetitive activity that enables skills to develop while complexity gradually increases. Painters create rituals to support the effectiveness of their hobby. A designated space with a workbench or desk separates painting activity from ordinary daily activities. That space must suit individuals, guiding them into flow rather than causing boredom or anxiety. Some participants choose music to match the specific model being painted: one describes gothic chants to create “ambiance and mood,” another prefers heavy metal music. Some participants create ordered spaces and regulated times with preferred tools for their hobby. Others prefer organised chaos in their space so they can easily start and stop. One informant describes a “ritual to when I start” that it is followed the same every time: fill the cup with water, place the chosen model in front, lay out all the paints required, begin to paint.
Step 2: The Right Model. Flow occurs when reasonable challenges arise that can be met by developing skills, not so hard they inspire failure but difficult enough to improve technique. Flow does not come easy at first. Focusing on the mechanics of painting technique and “doing it right” creates anxiety. Painters must, therefore, pick an unpainted model that fits their current skill level, not so hard they give up and not so easy there is no challenge. According to one painter, you need to add new techniques to avoid the flow becoming stagnant.
Step 3: The Goal is not the 
Destination. The painting is not always fun. It is frustrating when a miniature is not completed in the way imagined or intended. The completely painted miniature used for gameplay is only one part of the hobby. Flow theorists find that goals for a task must be clear, but these goals are generally “just an excuse to make the experience possible.” When asked whether they paint to fulfil goals or for the experience itself, informants respond variously. Some answer they do it for “the experience” and “do not care how long it takes.” Others state that goals and the experience are both important. Initially a player might paint to complete miniatures for use in gameplay, but the flow states regularly encountered during painting make the craft valuable on its own. That said, some players don’t paint at all, buying pre-painted miniatures.
Step 4: “The Flow”. During deep concentration people forget their individuality, time dilates, a “merging of activity and awareness” arises, problems disappear. One participant feels catharsis and can “just ignore what’s going on in my mortal shell, and just put paint to plastic.” Some lose track of their “corporeal form sometimes”. Another feels no individual identity, becoming just two hands painting. Still others describing feeling calm or being in a “trance.” Other descriptions include such adjectives as hypnotic, mesmerising, therapeutic, mindful, and peaceful.
Flow has a positive impact on mental health, “I like to paint after especially hard days at work and given the time of year and the even more difficult day I had, I knew I was going to be painting for a while this evening. Painting is very therapeutic for me. It allows me to become lost in my work and help give life to otherwise lifeless plastic”. As I discover more about flow in Warhammer 40K miniature creation, I am curious about other situations when flow arises and can be cultivated, even those situations without paint. If you have had any fruitful flow experiences, I would love to hear about them. Through recognizing and cultivating flow perhaps we can all transcend and transform.
Photos taken by Luke Keanelly and included with his permission.
—by Dr. Tara B. M. Smith, Postdoctoral Fellow, Spirituality and the Arts, Transcendence & Transformation Initiative