Notes on Communication videos

What really made me think? Why?

In the first talk, I was really interested in Brown’s examples of how play can lead to problem solving and greater creativity (e.g: an employee doing repeated waxes to enter into the mindset of someone with chronic pain). In addition I felt that Brown’s approach to the talk itself helped to prove his entire point. By making the guests play games and experimenting with the boundaries of a traditional TED talk, his point was far more effective. I could take a similar approach to future artwork.

In Hadero’s TED talk about “the unexpected beauty of everyday sounds” her references to John Cage’s “4:33” were really exciting. I liked the idea of a completely empty piece of art, suggesting that the world around it is the true art piece. I found this really interesting as I think a similar approach can be taken to the visual arts, by taking inspiration from my surroundings.

Another thing that really made me think was Paula Scher’s constant ability to think outside of the box and go above and beyond the briefs that were set for her. I also found it fascinating that this was when some of her best work came about. I found her idea that creativity comes as a result of a lack of change / options / being trapped really interesting and accurate.

Which one comment will I still remember next year? Why?

One comment I will definitely remember for a long time is the idea that “we can add to the soundtrack, but it is already playing” from “the unexpected beauty of everyday sounds”. I like the idea that Hadero managed to find musical inspiration from all around in both the natural and man-made world. This is helpful to remember in my own art as often inspiration and ideas can lie all around if we tune in and try not to think too hard.

Which one of these talks would I tell a friend to watch? Why?

I would definitely tell a friend to watch the “Tales of creativity and play” TED talk. I think it offers a reason as to why adults are stuck in routines of working that lead to less innovation and creativity.
Brown’s ideas of play, experimentation and enjoyment when creating things could be a really helpful outlook to have when going forward in any kind of creative career.
In addition, this way of approaching things, while being incredibly helpful in the creative industries, would also be a useful attitude towards many things in life generally.

How could these talks influence my own approach to my work?

I definitely find that I can take inspiration from the first video when approaching my work on the foundation. During the ball task, I wanted to think more literally and didn’t think to go outside of the box or just have fun and play around with different ideas. Going forward, I intend to let loose a little more and experiment with my ideas without thinking about how my peers will judge the quality of my work. Of course, as Brown stated, there has to be a certain amount of order when playing to stop things from descending into absolute chaos. However I still feel that when I’m creating my work I have lots more room to think less literally and more imaginatively whilst overall just having more fun.
Brown’s ideas of using lots of low quality prototypes, rather than a striving for a perfect finished product could also be really helpful advice for my own work. This would stop me from limiting myself to one idea.
I could also take Hadero’s way of thinking, looking to the world around me for inspiration - this would also help me if I’m ever struggling for ideas.
In addition, I found Scher’s ability to take ideas outside of the box when approaching a brief really impressive. This is worth thinking about in my own work, as Scher managed to create very impressive concepts even when the details given to her were “just so incredibly screwed up”.

Preparation for Communication Pathway