"The Consumer Culture Garden"
EAT (Pat FitzGerald, Ted FitzGerald, David Millsaps, Dana Raymond and Amanda Robertson) will be presenting their interactive exhibit "The Consumer Culture Garden" at the
CrossCurrents Exhibition in the North Carolina Museum of ArtOpening is on SAT 24th at 7pm. Tickets are $30 dollars in advance and $35 at the door. The next day is free!
American Cities That Best Fit You
Finding your place and settling in... depending on what you like in your surroundings maybe having just another test to find out where you really should hang out for a while is the best way to go:
Cities that fit me the best...
55% San Diego
50% Atlanta
50% Chicago
50% New York City
50% Seattle
Creative Whack Pack
I looked through the set of
Innovative Whack Pack during the first few sessions of the class and it felt very similar to the Creative Whack Pack... I got my first whack pack as an undergrad design student at NCSU. I don't think they repurposed it and just briefly flipping through the cards they've approached it from a different direction so it's nice to see them branch out with this concept. You can access an online version of the WhackPack here which randomly pulls a card from their database:
http://www.creativethink.com/?470This idea of using cards to guide or reshape your thinking isn't anything new per se... it goes as far back as reading tarot cards. Although the old adage is that you should never really "play" the Tarot cards alone using them as a way to think differently about a problem couldnt' really hurt. I have a few different styles (Classic Rider Waite, Sandman, etc) and each gives an interesting spin to the flavor/history of the Tarot as well as allowing for you to get different images to work with. If you do happen to object to using paranormal means to get through a creative block there are plenty of series of different cards, writings and books that could be used in place of the Tarot Deck or WhackPack... The collectible trading card games like
Magic:The Gathering and Heresy: Kingdom Come(great technology as religion card game, out of print) have gorgeous images as well as interesting quotes and symbols that can be used to generate a different mood or thought. Out of print and basic, introduction decks can be purchased fairly cheaply at stores, eBay or flea markets...
I managed to get a hold of a fantastic book, at Reader's Corner - $4.00 (used), called "
Suggestion" (Chronicle Books, $12.95), created by some New York artists -
Illegal Art... they basically got people to submit a suggestion on a card and drop it into a box. The artists say they collected about 2,500 suggestions. They came up with the idea for the suggestion box while brainstorming ways to get people to connect with one another. They carried the box through all five boroughs, speaking with children, the elderly, the rich and the homeless. The artists combined them into this book and they range from radical to whimsical but all approach life, problems and solutions from very personal and innovative ways...
Make a suggestion here.
The Official Rules
I had originally thought about using mindmapping as the creative technique to mention in class but this one seems more like fun...
This is not my original idea... It's an interesting creative exercise that seems to have been derived from ideation and brainstorming but it has some refined rules to help out folks that need some guidelines and structure. It would be curious to combine this with an affinity exercise in a group setting and see how many like ideas their are or if the group develops completely radical ideas for answering a question or solving a problem.
10 Ideas in 10 Minutes™Here is a simple process called 10 Ideas in 10 Minutes™, or
10 in 10™ for short. It is a simple creative approach to creativity problem solving. Try it right now!
Get out your stopwatch (it’s a selling feature on almost every new phone), or set the timer on the microwave, or look at the analog second hand on your watch, or dust off that old box of Boggle sitting in the basement and steal the hourglass egg timer, but figure out a way to mark the passage of time. Count if you have to, or mark the length of your shadow (only works outside during the day).
Prepare 1 question or creative problem you would like to solve or brainstorm on.
Write down 1 idea every minute.
Repeat as needed.
It’s that simple. Don’t lag. Don’t hesitate (or you’ll be lost don’t forget). Don’t self-edit. Partners or groups are okay with me if they’re okay with you. Go back and take your time exploding the ideas that resonate.
Caution: rules may change at any time.
It's borrowed (in its entirety) from Jason Theodor, he's an Associate Creative Director. His blog can be found here:
http://jasontheodor.com/
Keirsey Temperament Sorter
It appears that I'm a rational human being... Rationals, are the problem solving temperament, particularly if the problem has to do with the many complex systems that make up the world around us. Rationals might tackle problems in organic systems such as plants and animals, or in mechanical systems such as railroads and computers, or in social systems such as families and companies and governments. But whatever systems fire their curiosity, Rationals will analyze them to understand how they work, so they can figure out how to make them work better.
In working with problems, Rationals try to find solutions that have application in the real world, but they are even more interested in the abstract concepts involved, the fundamental principles or natural laws that underlie the particular case. And they are completely pragmatic about their ways and means of achieving their ends. Rationals don't care about being politically correct. They are interested in the most efficient solutions possible, and will listen to anyone who has something useful to teach them, while disregarding any authority or customary procedure that wastes time and resources.
Rationals have an insatiable hunger to accomplish their goals and will work tirelessly on any project they have set their mind to. They are rigorously logical and fiercely independent in their thinking--are indeed skeptical of all ideas, even their own--and they believe they can overcome any obstacle with their will power. Often they are seen as cold and distant, but this is really the absorbed concentration they give to whatever problem they're working on. Whether designing a skyscraper or an experiment, developing a theory or a prototype technology, building an aircraft, a corporation, or a strategic alliance, Rationals value intelligence, in themselves and others, and they pride themselves on the ingenuity they bring to their problem solving.
Rationals are very scarce, comprising as little as 5 to 10 percent of the population. But because of their drive to unlock the secrets of nature, and to develop new technologies, they have done much to shape our world.
The Four types of Rationals are:
Architects (INTP) |
Masterminds (INTJ) |
Inventors (ENTP) |
Field Marshals (ENTJ)
