Harnessing the Power of Joy in Design

{I. Intr

Fo fas no

JOY, DELIGHT AND GROWTH: HARNESSING THE POWER OF JOY IN DESIGN

What i

becom

joy and

in her e

joy is m

delight There define

curiosi

play, su

in whic

DANIEL WIGGINS

words

Joy, Delight and Growth: harnessing the power of joy in design by daniel wiggins

Bachelor of Fine Arts, Graphic Design Appalachian State University May 2008 A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Fine Arts, Communications Design School of Art and Design Pratt Institute December 2011

Joy, Delight and Growth: harnessing the power of joy in design by daniel wiggins

Received and approved:

Primary Thesis Advisor

Pirco Wolfframm, December 2011

Secondary Thesis Advisor

David Frisco, December 2011

Secondary Thesis Advisor

Sandie Maxa, December 2011

Chairperson

Jeff Bellantoni, December 2011

MFA Candidate

Daniel Wiggins, December 2011

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

{acknowledgements} This thesis would never be if it wasn’t for the help from serveral wonderful people.

If it wasn’t for you, I would have never been free to find joy within my creative process and discover what brings joy to others.

I thank you.

Nicholas Misani - for helping me in my countless times of need and always listening to me, through it all.

Theresa Berenato - for inspiring me with your beautiful work and ideas.

Maria Nefeli Stavrinidi - for bringing joy and happiness into our studio everyday and being a positive voice in my ear. my professors in Copenhagen - for teaching me about the great tradition of Scandinavian textile design and believing in me ... when others did not.

My advisors - Pirco Wolfframm, David Frisco and Sandie Maxa, for telling me what I needed to hear, even if I didn’t want hear it. my roommates and friends - for dealing with my shit this year, and especially Jessica Johnson for always listening and giving me new ideas.

And finally to the people that shared their joy with me and sent their letters. This thesis wouldn’t have been possible without you.

xoxo,

Joy, Delight and Growth: harnessing the power of joy in design

{contents} Section 1: Introduction … 1

Abstract … 10

Justification … 12

Statement of Intent … 13

Delimitations … 14

Section II: Context … 16

Precedents/Antecedents in Exploration … 25

Precedents/Antecedents in Making … 34

Precedents/Antecedents in Sharing … 43

Section III: Process & Methodology … 49

MFA Explorations … 50

Joy Explorations … 51

Hello! Project … 54

10 Things I did in 2010 … 55

BIG + little: a pop-up space … 58

Joy Experience in Times Square … 62

Textile Design Process Work … 66

Capstone Project – This brings me joy. The Joy Project. … 72

The Joy Letters … 73

My Joy Poster … 81

Exhibition Poster/Wallpaper … 83

Visual Responses/Postcards … 85

Joy(ous) Notation … 94

Blank Note cards … 95

New Projects – Website, Social Media and Newsprint … 98

Section IV: Conclusions … 104 Section V: Further Directions … 108 Bibliography & Resources … 110

Month Been inateD

hs

Joy, Delight anD growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

happiness lies in the joy of achievement and the thrill of the creative effort. franklin D. roosevelt

{I. Introduction}

For months I’ve been fascinated by the notion of joy.

D By

What is this elusive emotion that appears in song, on billboards and becomes ubiquitous during the holiday season? What is the meaning of joy and how is it different than happiness? According to Gabrielle Esperdy in her essay, Driven to Joy, Joy, “While happiness implies placid contentment, joy is more textured and intense, a vivid combination of exultation and delight.” I believe happiness is closely linked to joy, but they are not equal.

There are numerous other words I consider closely related to joy, but I define them differently. Some of these words include passion, strength, curiosity, skill, delight, ecstasy, love, intensity, enthusiasm, spark, pleasure, play, surprise, and wonder. While these are not direct synonyms to the joy in which this thesis investigates, these words provide a list of alternate words to understand the overall sense of joy I’m articulating.

1

Joy is a powerful and intense emotion, but one that is often hard to define and quantify. How might one define a complex human emotion carrying uniquely personal significance to each individual? Perhaps the famous words of Supreme Court Justice Potter Stewart, “I’ll know it when I see it” applies to joy? I define joy as a unique spark of empowerment, surprise and delight one feels through experiencing an activity, object or situation.

It has the ability to transform and empower anyone who is open to the emotion. Because it is intimately connected to the individual, whatever brings joy can also bring a deep sense of fulfillment.

Funny things happen when we acknowledge and talk about the subject of joy. We become embarrassed and ashamed. “Although Thoreau called it ‘the condition of life,’ there is something faintly embarrassing about joy.

Like sex, its necessity may exist in direct proportion to our lack of interest in discussing it,” writes Esperdy. My interest lies in establishing joy as a legitimate topic for discussion and relating it to the field of design. Marian Bantjes touches on this subject in a recent Design Matters podcast. When speaking about assigning value to work that inspires, creates wonder and excites joy, Bantjes says, “This work influences all different kinds of people, you don’t know who it’s going to influence, and in what way it will influence them. This is undervalued because we can’t measure it.” There is no universal equation to measure joy and no one-size-fits-all prescription to experience it. It might even be problematic to create a finite definition for the word, but for the purpose of this thesis, I have done so. It is my hope after reading this paper, each reader will create his or her own definition of joy to adapt for use in their own life and creative process. In this way, each reader creates legitimacy for the investigation and use of joy within their own life and process.

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

Just as joy has the power to adapt and transform on a general level, so has

With r

my inquiry into the subject itself. My initial spark came during the during

Melbou

Pratt’s Design Advocacy course in summer 2010. For six weeks our class investigated the United Nation’s Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

Throug

Created in the year 2000, these eight goals serve as 15-year benchmarks for

at the

the UN to direct relief in solving some of the world’s greatest humanitarian

and an

problems. These goals address Global Development, reduction of HIV/AIDs,

a centr

improving education, and protecting the environment. In the course, we

the Con

specifically centered our efforts on MDGs 4 and 5: Reduce Infant Mortality

Design

and Improve Maternal Health. During the course I attended a United

with N

Nations Youth Pre-Conference in New York City and entered a poster into

changi

their call for entries. As the only student from my class and one of a few

by them

“youth” in attendance, I felt completely out of place. The speakers lectured

as a gr

about public health and digging wells in Africa. As a graphic designer, I

travel a

felt little connection to the topic at hand and wondered why I attended.

Near the end of the day, a young woman spoke about the non-profit she

While

started in high school. In her speech, she asked the question, “Where does

and sh

your joy meet the world’s greatest need?” Several days later the question

change

was still in my mind; I couldn’t stop thinking about it. On the subway it

meet n

hit me! I can use my skills as a graphic designer to make a difference. I

denom

can contribute from New York doing exactly what I love: design. There’s

inquiry

a misconception that the only way to help in humanitarian efforts is to

relate t

raise money and travel abroad to build hospitals or dig wells. While these actions are desperately needed, they are not the only solution. This is where joy enters the equation and why the quote made so much sense to me. I don’t need to change my life to make a difference. I can make a difference now, doing what I already do and using skills I already have.

Our project was so successful within this course that I was asked to travel to Australia to install and represent Pratt Institute at the Conference.

3

With renewed interest in graphic design and social issues, I traveled to Melbourne, Australia for the 2010 United Nations DPI/NGO Conference.

Through contacts at Pratt I was also asked to design the “Youth MDG Village” at the Conference in partnership with students from Fordham University and an Australian team of volunteers (see page 8). This area became a central meeting hub for the exchange of information and ideas during the Conference. I also represented Pratt Institute and Art Center College of Design advocating the unique opportunity design creates when partnered with NGOs. In Australia I met so many youth and NGOs passionate about changing the world around them. I was blown away and inspired; not only by them, but also through all the doors design had opened. I never thought as a graphic designer that I would attend United Nations conferences and travel around the world.

While this served as my initial starting point, my thesis began to morph and shift. I broadened my investigation beyond social issues. My thesis changed to “Where does my joy meet my need?” to “Where does joy meet need?” and finally to, “Joy + Need.” It was clear joy was the common denominator within all these directions, so my thesis simply became an inquiry into the subject of joy. But for what purpose and how does this relate to graphic design?

Right: Maternal Health Poster for United Nations Youth Pre-Conference, Summer 2011.

As a woman of color, I am 3x more likely to die as a result of childbirth in the United States.

CHANGE MUST START AT HOME

SUPPORT MATERNAL HEALTH IN THE U.S. AND ABROAD

where yoU Jo the wo

e Does oy Meen orlD’s Joy, Delight anD growth: harnessing the power of joy in design

{Abst

In I’m th an as cr Joy is

This se

in desi

where does your joy meet the world’s greatest need?

7

Below: Women Deliver poster at YouthMDGVillage at the 2010 United Nations DPI/NGO Conference in Melbourne, Australia.

MDG 1: Eradicating Poverty

Eradicating Poverty

Women around the world have higher rates of unemployment and poverty and smaller retirement funds than men. These factors mean that households headed by women shave less of a buffer when crises strike. The greater longevity of women leaves them especially vulnerable to impoverishment in old age.

WOM DELI

MDG 5: Maternal Healt

If women fail, the whole family suffers Women are essential to

WOMEN D

MDG 2: Universal Education

Universal Education

Having fewer, healthier children can reduce the economic burden on poor families and allow them to invest more in each child’s care and schooling, helping to break the cycle of poverty. Having fewer children mean education is more likely for all family members–a particular benefit for girls.

Materna

MDG 3: Gender Equality The loss of women’s income usually has greater negative implications for the welfare of poor households than an equivalent loss of men’s income. In Bangladesh, Brazil, Kenya and South Africa, evidence shows that children’s welfare in poor households improves more when income is handled by women rather than men.

Infant M

Gender Equality

MDG 4: Infan

Being able to choose when and how to exercise a basic human right. Resear family planning could save the lives Increasing birth intervals to at least deaths of 1.8 million

MEN IVER

th is tied to ALL the MDGs.

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

MDG 6: HIV and AIDS Women account for half of all people living with HIV worldwide. In sub-Saharan Africa, nearly 60 per cent of people living with HIV are women, and three out of four infected young people are female.

Young women comprise two-thirds of those under 25 who are HIV-positive.

HIV and AIDS

s, and entire villages feel the effects. o achieving each MDG.

DELIVER.

al Health

MDG 7: Environmental Sustainability Empowering women to decide how many children they want to have will reduce fertility and slow population growth. Slower population growth may result in lower greenhouse-gas emissions and will ease the challenge of climate change adaptation.

MDG 8: Global Partnership

Mortality

nt Mortality

many children to have allows women rchers estimate that universal access to of about 175,000 women each year. t 36 months could also prevent the n children under 5.

Environmental Sustainability

Global Partnership

Women are disproportionately affected by crises. It is they who typically care for the young, the injured and the infirm, and who keep the frayed social fabric from falling apart. This is true in every country, and in every society.

Women deliver.

For more information, please visit UNFPA.ORG

9

n My th M nvesti {Abstract}

In my thesis, I’m investigating the power of joy and delight to grow as a designer and creator.

Joy is an opportunity and has the power to transform and empower.

This sense of empowerment can take countless applications, especially in design.

hesis, Joy, Delight anD growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

By using one’s joy, skill, love or talent as an entry point to design, the user will create work with more enthusiasm and interest. The designer feels a greater connection to the design problem at hand and therefore creates a more-powerful and unique solution. I defi ne joy to be a powerful emotion with adaptable and transformative qualities, and propose harnessing its power for use within the creative process. In the Happiness Project, Gretchen Rubin studies happiness, creates new opportunities to experience it, and transforms her life and that of her family, friends and thousands of readers.

Rubin uses happiness as a tool. In this thesis I’m doing the same with joy for the purpose of growth as a designer and the creation of new work.

igatin I believe joy can be, and should be, present during the entire design process.

This inclusion will ultimately inspire better work with greater opportunities for growth as a designer and creator. When I mention growth I’m talking

about progressive development, or evolution. This development can be

professional, skills based and (or) personal. It can also be all of the above, and in fact, I hope it’s a combination of each. This investigation into joy and my creative process inspired me to design a personal methodology for the

creation of new work. By designing a useful methodology and sharing it, this process serves as an opportunity for others to adapt my process to suit their needs and interests within design.

11

{Justification} One issue I’ve experienced within my short career as a designer is a sense of dissatisfaction within my work and creative process. After college I worked for a non-profit research organization with strong ties to the government and military. The work I created felt uninspired and presented little creative challenge. I felt my design senses becoming increasingly dull as the months passed. I received no joy from my work and I felt no connection to what I created. There was no surprise in experience and no joy in creative discovery. I began to lose sight of why I fell in love with design in the first place. A lack of connectedness is harmful to design and the creative process. It inhibits one’s sense of empowerment through creation, experience and spontaneity. As designers, work will fill a significant portion of our lives, therefore what we do, how we do it and most importantly, how we feel doing it, is important.

Joy, Delight anD growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

{Statement of Intent}

{Delim

sh explor ma Within my thesis investigations, I isolated three distinct stages of study within the creative process: exploration, creation and sharing.

The first stage, exploration, centers on the idea of immersion to playfully

investigate the design problem at hand. These explorations involve writing, investigations of physical space, mapping with digital technologies,

sketching, collecting found materials and creating process sketchbooks.

The second stage, making, involves creating and producing. The third

stage, sharing, is a call to action or exchange of ideas that involves an audience. This is sometimes called collaboration.

To cle no

The de In the

iitt was

a nd no and

what w hat o

design d esign

A psyc While

the liv

emotio e motio

tthis his em

iis s a sh

13

m he nd w nd

power.

ecially

{Delimitations}

To be specifically clear, my thesis is not:

The declaration that my joy is design.

In the early stages of this thesis, I equated design and joy in equal terms; it was a one-to-one ratio. I investigated joy and design as nouns or things, and not as verbs or action, for the use within a creative process. Joy is what one should experience through the act of design. Joy is not equal to design.

A psychological study of the emotion joy.

While I’ve spent a lot of time investigating joy within my own life and the lives of others, I’m not interested in a psychological study into the emotion itself. I’m not interested in theories of why humans experience this emotion and its specific root cause. In this thesis, I establish that joy is a shared human experience.

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

A defense, validation or quantification of joy.

I realize that joy, happiness, delight, etc are hard subjects to talk about.

Why this is so hard for certain people to admit to baffles me, but as I stated earlier, this paradox could be a thesis into itself. Certain people are happier dwelling in negativity and living in anxiety than admitting to feeling joy or happiness. They will never admit to experiencing joy, and that’s fine. My thesis isn’t about that, or them.

A universal prescription for experiencing joy, within design/life in general.

Joy is uniquely experienced within each individual and this reinforces the value and “specialness” it is an emotion and experience. I created a methodology centered on adding a sense of joy and delight within my creative process. There is no one-size-fits-all perception and no universal solution to experience joy within life or a creative process. Csikszentmihaly states in Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience, “A joyful life is an individual creation that cannot be copied from a recipe (10).” Therefore, I hope each reader will create their own unique recipe for the experience of joy in their own life and creative process.

A “happiness project” created to change my life or the lives of others.

While I found tremendous value in reading Gretchen Rubin’s the Happiness Project, the aim of this thesis is not to change my life through joy. I am not advocating being a more joyous or happier person. I am however reflecting on this emotion’s power to me personally and in the lives of others. This reflection allows for the design of an adaptable creative methodology, which can adapted for use by any user.

15

people who love their work bring an intensity and enthusiasm that’s impossible to match through sheer diligence.

- gretchen rubin

{II. Context} about.

In this thesis, I pinpoint artists and designers that show a strong interest

stated

in exploration, making and sharing, which serve as pillars within my

appier

creative methodology. This list of precedents and antecedents validate

ing joy

the adoption of a methodology centered on these pillars, or stages of my

ne. My

design process.

life in

In addition to precedents and antecedents that specifically relate to stages of my methodology, I discuss additional sources that support the overall context of this thesis. Their views and ideas are more expansive and

nforces

speak to several stages of my methodology, the importance of happiness

eated a

and joy, and outline methods for experience of “Flow� or growth within life

hin my

and work.

iversal

mihaly

e is an

efore, I

ence of

thers.

piness

am not

flecting

s. This

dology,

ar

in t thes pinpo rtists Joy, Delight anD growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

Gretchen Rubin

design

The first source that appears through the entirety of this thesis is Gretchen

tthat hat re

Rubin and her book, the Happiness Project.

Project. Rubin started her career as an

greate g reate

attorney but quickly learned her interest in writing was far greater than her

energy e nergy

desire to practice law. In her book, Rubin “chronicles a year-long project to

tthe he cre

test-drive wisdom of the ages, current scientific research, and lessons from

tthroug hroug

popular culture about how to be happier (15).” While my thesis is not itself

a “happiness project” Rubin’s book repeatedly mentions the subject of joy

Rubin

and the importance of happiness in work and life. While I identified a clear

happin

difference between joy and happiness, many comparisons can be drawn

especi

between the two emotions. Rubin researches the subject of happiness,

adapta

identifies what does and does not make her happy, and develops a plan to

or wor

change her life centered on these explorations. The Happiness Project is

situati

Rubin’s methodology to increase happiness within her own life. I created a

becom b ecom

methodology centered on the study of my creative process for the purpose

atmosp a tmosp

of experiencing joy and staying vital as a designer. I am using joy as a tool

A first

for growth as a design professional and the creation of new work. Despite

experie

Rubin’s investigations into happiness and not joy specifically, she makes

growth

a compelling argument for the value of investigating human emotion, and

metho

its power in our lives.

or cont

of grow

Early in the book, Rubin is told her investigations into improving personal

saying

happiness were self-centered and would not translate well. In response, Rubin writes, “Contemporary research shows that happy people are more

Rubin,

altruistic, more productive, more helpful, more likable, more creative, more

To imp

resilient, more interested in others, friendlier, and happier (14).” Rubin

about

adds, “People who love their work bring an intensity and enthusiasm that’s

satisfy

impossible to match through sheer diligence (71).” The same holds true for

and do

joy or happiness in the practice of design. Creating work with a sense of

wanted

joy and play has countless benefits to the designer as creator, and to the

idle tim closer

17

I wanted to use my leisure to cultivate my creativity. Play wasn’t merely idle time but an opportunity to experiment with new interests and to draw closer to other people - Gretchen Rubin

designer as an individual. This work will better connect to the audience that receives it, making it more successful and giving the designer a greater feeling of creative fulfillment. It creates a positive transfer of energy, from maker to receiver and back to maker. This was my aim in the creation of my capstone project and the feeling I experience to excite through the utilization of my creative methodology.

Rubin also talks about the importance of growth as a concept within her happiness search. Rubin mentions the adaptability of human emotion, especially when it comes to happiness. Rubin writes, “People are very adaptable and we quickly adjust to a new life circumstance—for better or worse—and consider it normal. Although this helps us when our situation worsens, it makes that when circumstances improve, we soon become hardened to new comforts and privileges.” Rubin adds, “An atmosphere of growth offsets that (67).” The same is true when designing.

A first experience might bring a user immense joy but during the second experience the joy diminishes. Creation combined with an atmosphere of growth will endure. That is why growth is an important goal within my methodology. It creates a process or method. For a sustained feeling of joy or contentment in regards to one’s work, both a process and an atmosphere of growth are necessary. Debbie Millman added to this in our interview by saying, “being surprised, in the pursuit of something, can be joyful.”

Rubin, like Charles and Ray Eames, also stresses the importance of play.

To improve happiness, Rubin spends an entire month being serious about play. In the chapter, Rubin defines play as, “an activity that’s very satisfying, has no economic significance, doesn’t create social harm, and doesn’t necessarily lead to praise or recognition (113).” Rubin says, “I wanted to use my leisure to cultivate my creativity. Play wasn’t merely idle time but an opportunity to experiment with new interests and to draw closer to other people.”

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

Warre The importance of exploration in the Happiness Project is mirrored in my methodology. She encourages the reader to go off the path. Rubin writes,

Anothe

“Instead of always worrying about being efficient, I wanted to spend time

is Bruc

on exploration, experimentation, digression and failed attempts that didn’t

practic

always look productive.” On the subject of failed attempts, Voltaire states in

in betw

La Bégueule, “Don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good.” It’s important

Bruce M

to explore in a playful sense and not always be afraid of failure. Failure can

Glimm

be an important part of the process, and ultimately informs the designer

as an a

more than unchallenged success. Within my thesis I experiment with new

motiva

ideas creatively, with activities that bring me joy, and invite others to join me in these experiences. By inviting others, collaborating and sharing I

Mau o

am expanding my investigations to a greater audience.

willing

You pr

experie

someth

letting

about g

is not n

growth

Later M

discus

“Proces

proces

outcom

to be t

you wo

in cast

and er

proces 19

Warren Berger and Glimmer, featuring the ideas of Bruce Mau Another designer that greatly influenced the creation of my methodology is Bruce Mau. Mau is known as a multidisciplinary designer that regularly practices graphic design, architecture, industrial design, and everything in between. In Glimmer, Warren Berger shadows Bruce Mau and his studio, Bruce Mau Design, to get a peek into the process of this legendary designer.

Glimmer builds on Mau’s Incomplete Manifesto for Growth, written in 1998 as an articulation of statements exemplifying his beliefs, strategies and motivations.

Mau opens by saying, “Allow events to change you. You have to be willing to grow. Growth is different from something that happens to you.

You produce it. You live it. The prerequisites for growth: the openness to experience events and the willingness to be changed by them.” Growth is something that comes from inside each designer, and we must be open to letting events change us and how we design. Secondly, Mau says, “Forget about good. Good is a known quantity. Good is what we all agree on. Growth is not necessarily good. As long as you stick to good you’ll never have real growth.”

Later Mau talks about the importance of process, as I advocate when discussing my textile design work (see MFA Explorations). Mau says, “Process is more important than outcome. When the outcome drives the process we will only ever go to where we’ve already been. If process drives outcome we may not know where we’re going, but we will know we want to be there.” On experimentation, Mau adds, “Love your experiments (as you would an ugly child). Joy is the engine of growth. Exploit the liberty in casting your work as beautiful experiments, iterations, attempts, trials, and errors.” Mau mentions the importance of production within a design process, “Use the necessity of production as an excuse to study. Everyone

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

Mihaly will benefit.” This is the hallmark of the learn-by-doing approach I advocate

Anothe

within the making portion of my methodology. On the importance of

happin

exploration, Mau writes, “Drift. Allow yourself to wander aimlessly. Explore

In Flo

adjacencies. Lack judgment. Postpone criticism.” Approaching new design

develo

projects in this way will open new doors for new possibilities. Finally Mau

quality

gives what I consider to be the best advice, “Begin anywhere.”

people

experie Glimmer gives insight into adopting a creative process focused on

for the

exploration, making and finding happiness within in act of design. The

of flow

ideas of Mau, compiled by Berger, serve as an invaluable source in the

task. T

creation of my methodology. Jane Fulton mentions in Glimmer, “Deep

largest

down, people want to be healthy and happy and to live a good life. If we

with m

can figure out how to help them do that, then we are fulfilling the potential

transfo

of design (124).” On the subject of exploration, Mau says, “To get originality

concep

and innovation, designers must be given free range to be able to venture

create

far and wide in their thinking (50).” This freedom to explore leads to the

Csiksz

creation of new design solutions. He later adds, “When you don’t know what

same l

should be done, or how something is supposed to work, it’s a brief pocket

to enjo

of possibility - you’re free to speculate on something unencumbered by

opport

conceptual structures.” Later in the book, Berger writes, “Engaging in

rule-bo

creatively stimulating activities, they are also meaningful activities that

is perfo

tend to make people happy - these involve using what you’re best at to

growth

serve others or participate in a cause bigger than yourself (264).” This

should

relates to Abstract in this thesis, where I propose using one’s joy, skill, love

create

or talents as an entry point to design. Developing new work in this manner

of a go

establishes a greater connection between designers and their work, which

writes

is transferred to all those who receive it.

neurtra

and th

connec 21

the hallmark of flow is a feeling of spontaneous joy, even rapture, while performing a task. -Mihaly csikszentmihalyi

vocate

Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi and “Flow”

nce of

Another useful source in crafting a methodology centered on work and

Explore

happiness is the concept of “Flow,” developed by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi.

design

In Flow – The Psychology of Optimal Experience, Csikszentmihalyi

ly Mau

develops a plan to help improve happiness, self-confidence, and the overall quality of life. Csikszentmihalyi defines “Flow” as, “The state in which people are so involved in an activity that nothing else seems to

sed on

matter; the experience itself is so enjoyable that people will do it even

n. The

at great cost, for the sheer sake of doing it (4).” Csikszentmihalyi adds,

in the

“The hallmark of flow is a feeling of spontaneous joy, even rapture, while

“Deep

performing a task. This creates optimal experience.” He adds, “Most people

e. If we

spend the largest part of their lives working and interacting with others,

tential

especially with members of their families. Therefore it is crucial that one

inality

learn to transform jobs into flow-producing activities (6).” The centerpiece

enture

of his concept, the Flow Diagram (see right), depicts a working method

to the

to create flow activities within a work context. In explaining the diagram,

w what

Csikszentmihalyi writes, “One cannot enjoy doing the same thing at the

pocket

same level for long. We grow either bored or frustrated; and then the desire

red by

to enjoy ourselves again pushes us to stretch our skills, or to discover new

ging in

opportunities for using them (75).” His method creates a goal-directed,

es that

rule-bound action system that provides clear clue as to see how well one

st at to

is performing (71). This is necessary in a creative methodology focused on

).” This

growth and creating new work. While free exploration is important, work

ill, love

should be created with clear objectives or in pursuit of something. This will

manner

create an atmosphere of growth in the creation of new work or attainment

which

of a goal. On the psychological benefits of adopting this method, Berger writes in Glimmer, “Being in a state of “design flow” raises the levels of neurtransmitters in your brain, such as endorphins and dupamine, and that keeps you focused and energized (265).” It’s clear to see many connections between the work of Bruce Mau and Csikszentmihalyi,

Joy, Delight anD growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

and their approach to working within a methodology. Csikszentmihalyi writes, “The best moments usually occur when a person’s body or mind is stretched to its limits in voluntary effort to accomplish something difficult and worthwhile. Optimal experience is thus something we make happen (3). My methodology seeks to create the same experience through the acts of exploration, making and sharing, which are important steps within any design process.

“FLOW” CONCEPT BY MIHALY CSIKSZENTMIHALYI

CHALLENGE

ANXIETY

FLOW CHANNEL

BOREDOM

SKILL

23

mihalyi

mind is

ifficult

happen

he acts

hin any

Above: Image from And the Pursuit of Happiness by Maira Kalman

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

Precedents/Antecedents in Exploration Maira Kalman Many know Maira Kalman as the wife of late graphic designer Tibor Kalman, children’s book author, and illustrator of the Elements of Style.

I heard about her book, And the Pursuit of Happiness (see left and page 26) and thought it would serve as an example of an artist investigating happiness or joy. In actuality And the Pursuit of Happiness follows Kalman on a yearlong investigation into our nation’s democratic system.

The title alludes to the Declaration of Independence … not the emotion of happiness per say. In the book readers follow Kalman on a journey of selfdiscovery. The author travels all over the United States and inquisitively investigating the workings of our political system. The people Kalman meets in her essays become characters in a larger narrative. Kalman turns these investigations into visual essays and works of art. Touching and communicative, each essay tells a personal story through handwritten words and images. I admire how Kalman turns a topic most consider boring, US politics, and writes a touching narrative. Her book greatly inspired my interest into the genre of visual essays. After reading it I was flooded with ideas for new projects and inspired to perform my own explorations into sources of joy within the lives of others and myself. A sense of Kalman’s playful approach to exploration is what I advocate within the exploration phase of my creative methodology.

25

alman, heard

hought or joy.

arlong

s to the

say. In

author

ng the

essays

gations

e, each

ages. I

cs, and

st into

eas for

ources

playful

hase of

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

Left and Above: Images from And the Pursuit of Happiness by Maira Kalman 27

Frank Chimero Frank Chimero is a Portland, Oregon-based graphic designer/illustrator, educator and self-described “creative person.” My initial attraction to Chimero’s work came through his blog and the “Inspirational Posters ” he created during a period of unemployment early in his career (see right).

This series serves as an example of an designer using self-initiated projects to reach new audiences. Personal projects don’t have to be small are best when shared. One of Chimero’s biggest hallmarks is his desire to inspire delight within or by design. In talking about delight, Chimero states, “To delight means to present an audience with something that is different in its point of view, but achieves a clarity in communication.

It makes others see the world in new and different ways,” later adding, “To delight someone is to give a small lesson in how to see the world as something good.” That’s exactly the sense of delight and joy I seek to inspire within my own work and share with others. Chimero states, “You can’t download experience, you can only live it. So, stop waiting and just go out and try some thing. You’ll feel empowered.” This speaks to exploration and discovery, important activities within my creative process.

Another important aspect of Chimero’s ideology is his value of play within the creative process. In his essay, Play is Serious, Chimero writes, “I’ll let you in on the “secret” of my process: I play. It’s nothing new: Saul Bass called it fooling around, and there’s a lot of material out there about how ardent a supporter of playing Paul Rand was.” Here Chimero is referencing Paul Rands famous essay, the Design and the Play Instinct. In this essay, Rand makes the case for play within the field of design, and its value in the creative process. This idea did not start with Rand however; it goes back as far as the Renaissance. In Gilbert Highet’s The Art of Teaching, Highet states, “The best Renaissance teachers, instead of beating their pupils, spurred them on by a number of appeals to the play-principle. They made

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

Stefan games out of the chore of learning difficult subjects.” For a contemporary

Stefan

view, Chimero adds, “The idea is this: if process is typically such a

the wo

strenuous task, you should try your best to make it enjoyable. Fooling

publish

around is serious stuff, whether it’s for the sake of our work or for the sake

person

of our sanity.” The importance of play is often forgotten in the practice of

on jou

design today. We must constantly remind ourselves to play and explore.

display

“Somewhere in the myriad of analysis and tight deadlines, we’ve revoked

aphori

our permission to play around with ideas and experiment,” Chimero states.

Including a sense of play and joy within exploration and making phase of

6. Ever

design is an effective tool to counteract the often-harsh realties of design

9. Over

practice.

10. Mo 11. My

12. Kee

Daniel

“Each a

that we

are sim

hold o

sought

Joy Pro These

project

roughl

off, wo

practic

ways. I

- expre 29

Stefan Sagmeister

emporary

Stefan Sagmesiter New York City-based graphic designer best known for

y such a

the work he produces with this studio, Sagmeister Inc. In 2008, Sagmesiter

e. Fooling

published the book Things I Have Learned In My Life So Far based upon

r the sake

personal journal entries in his diaries (see right and page 32). These

ractice of

scribbles on journal pages were later transformed into aphorisms and

d explore.

“maxims” displayed as large-scale projects throughout the world. Some of

e revoked

these aphorisms include:

ero states.

g phase of of design

6. Everything I do always comes back to me.

9. Over time I get used to everything and start taking for granted.

10. Money does not make me happy.

11. My dreams have no meaning.

12. Keeping a diary supports personal development.

Daniel Nettle, author of Happiness: The Science Behind Your Smile writes, “Each aphorism captures something timeless and true, and yet something that we all too easy forget as we go about the business of our lives. They are simple, and in a way obvious, yet it takes great skill in living to keep hold of and not lose sight of them.” These simple messages are what I sought to gather as part of my capstone project, This brings me joy: The Joy Project and Sagmeister’s work is a direct inspiration.

These “truths” as Sagmeister describes, were turned into new design projects during a self-imposed break from client-driven work he takes roughly every seven years. His first sabbatical was a risk; would it pay off, would the clients stay? It did pay off. “After the hiatus he returned to practice design refreshed and his experiment paid off in unexpended ways. In addition to garnering more assignments, he mined a vein of self - expressive notions collected in diaries ultimately were into typographic

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

spectacles,” Steven Heller writes in an essay about Sagmeister’s work.

During the sabbatical, Sagmeister focused on developing projects prohibited by the workday life and then determined whether some of these new discoveries could eventually inform client-driven commissions.

This sense of free exploration is incredibly important to Sagmeister and has a profound effect on his work. The methodology he adopts during these periods of client-free work later informs client work in his studio.

Sagmeister now plans these breaks at regular intervals and his work flourishes because of it. While we don’t all have the luxury of taking extended sabbaticals from work, designers should approach their work with the same freedom in exploration when possible, especially with selfinitiated projects.

31

Joy, Delight and Growth: harnessing the power of joy in design

33

Precedents/Antecedents in Making Charles & Ray Eames The legendary design duo Charles & Ray Eames are best known for their contributions to architecture, furniture and industrial design, but they also dabbled in graphic design, fine art, and created several films. One of their most well-known films the Powers of Ten chronicles the relative scale of the universe in factors of ten. It was selected for preservation by the US National Film Registry by the Library of Congress for being “culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant” in 1998.

In their explorations into architecture, film and industrial design, the Eames explored a playful approach to their work. One of their most famous quotes, “Take your pleasure seriously,” illustrates this point. Your pleasure, interests and joy should not be separate from design. Take what you’re passionate about and use it as a tool for discovery, invention and creation.

This approach is one reason the Eames were so successful and productive.

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

The Eames also employed a “learn by doing” approach to their work. While the Powers of Ten and their other films are widely respected today, the Eames had no film background, but they knew they wanted to create these works. In speaking about the legacy and production of their work, Demetrios Eames states, “If you want to learn to make films, go make a movie, and try something out. It’s a learn-by-doing-thing. That’s how Charles and Ray learned to create so many different things.” This method can be the most frustrating and yet the most rewarding approach to learning and creating.

When designers solve problems through new methods, that sense of discovery is empowering and lasting. This approach leads to more unique and innovative design solutions. Just look at the unmatched legacy the Eames left behind. Their playful approach to exploration and learn-bydoing method of creation has ensured the uniqueness and innovation for which they are known. This importance of making, and a learn-by-doing approach to design is a key pillar within my methodology.

35

Joy, Delight and Growth: harnessing the power of joy in design

Take your pleasure seriously.

-Charles & Ray Eames

37

Alex Gilliam Alex Gilliam is the founder of Public Workshop, an organization dedicated to using design to help individuals, schools and communities achieve great things. Gilliam fundamentally believes that great design, empowerment, innovation and having fun are not mutually exclusive. Gilliam lobbies for education reform and writes for several design blogs in addition to his work for Public Workshop. I came across Gilliam after reading his article, Learning from Snowstorms, which first appeared on core77.com.

In Learning from Snowstorms, Gilliam writes about winter weather as a catalyst for better learning, civic engagement and design of our cities.

Gillman writes, “The first major snowstorms are so utterly magical because they completely reset what was true just a few hours before. Hard becomes soft, what was formerly loud is now a mere murmur, boundaries are erased, wide shrinks to narrow and decades of layered infrastructure and regulation disappear in just a few short hours.” The disappearance of boundaries allow for great possibility. Gilliam writes, “without hesitation you can play in the streets, you can easily reshape the world around you without permission and deeply satisfying challenges abound everywhere.”

It is during these times we often come up with the most inventive solutions for use of our newly snow-covered environment. Gilliam asks readers to consider, “how much micro-experimentation, learning and innovation occur on these days; the jerry-rigged sled, the simple lever you devised for extricating your car from the ditch, the surprisingly tasty meal you were forced to cobble together from all that was left in the cupboard.” This experience can be an opportunity for learning and growth for anyone open to experiencing it. There will always be those that look at the negative aspects of a snowstorm, but those aspects are generally not what we remember.

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

In January 2011, I interviewed Gilliam about joy, educational reform and

I asked

the difference between designing “with” and “for” in design. On his blog,

“Funda

Gilliam states “Public Workshop is happiest when they are designing with

innova

others, not for others.” In our interview, Gilliam added, “I’m trying to be a

in my

greater teacher by having a greater impact. When you combine work, joy,

suppor

and interest, it gives you so much more ... If you merge everything together,

about i

the “with,” you have a greater impact.” Gilliam mentioned there are always

make.”

separations in our world, school vs. work, office, vs. community, citizens vs.

out by

government, etc. In regards to boundaries within the classroom, Gilliam

imagin

stated, “When lines are erased, conversations happen in a fluid or honest way. I’m not interested in teaching in situations where I’m not learning

Tucke

with the group. Amazing things happen when I’m designing with the

In Febr

people I’m designing for.”

at SVA

multid Gilliam is a vocal supporter of a “learn by doing” approach to education and

Vieme

worries about the state of today’s classroom. Gilliam mentioned, “When

preced

I’m doing a workshop, teaching a class, or running a program, I don’t let

his list

students draw and plan. All we do is plan and think, and it inhibits design.

Play an

When showing/doing is an act of making, everything happens faster. That

is the

said, I’m clear and honest about what can be accomplished and where we

joy, fre

can set goals.” In Learning from Snowstorms, he mentions, “When surveys,

out fro

scantron test sheets and powerpoint presentations are the tools of the

to Cha

trade, its little wonder that our schools are suffering. Public participation

Frank L

in planning processes is minimal at best and the great white hopes of

and th

innovation are not big corporations but the garage start-ups.” Gilliam said

played

we should create situations that ask more of people, instead of looking for

had th

opportunities that eliminate challenge. This, Gilliam said, “reminds us of the value of designing opportunities that encourage a sense of innocence and opportunity, taking advantage of the transformative power of ‘doing’, and the deep seated desire of people to positively impact the world around them.”

39

m and

I asked Gilliam to define joy within his work and process. Gilliam said,

s blog,

“Fundamental to the work I do is the belief that good design, empowerment,

ng with

innovation and having fun are not mutually exclusive. That’s the joy I find

to be a

in my work.” Gilliam later adds, “When the existing culture isn’t there to

ork, joy,

support the work you do, and you’re doing things that are different, talking

gether,

about it just doesn’t do it. It’s not going to get done, you must act, do and

always

make.” In closing our interview, Gilliam mentions, “Letting people figure it

ens vs.

out by going through the motions is liberating, it’s joyful and can capture

Gilliam

imagination. Joy can really be a tactic.”

honest

arning

Tucker Viemeister + Friedrich Froebel

ith the

In February 2011, I attended Viemeister’s lecture “Play=Learning=Design” at SVA. Viemeister currently resides as Lab Chief at Rockwell Group, a multidisciplinary design studio. Integral to his success is the sense of play

on and

Viemeister adds when making his work. In his lecture, Viemeister listed

“When

precedents of innovation linked to a playful approach to design. First on

on’t let

his list is Friedrich Froebel, the father of Kindergarten, and creator of the

design.

Play and Activity Institute. In the Education of Man, Froebel writes, “Play

er. That

is the purist, the most spiritual, product of man… It produces, therefore,

ere we

joy, freedom and satisfaction. The springs of all-good rest within it and go

urveys,

out from it. (98)” Viemeister mentioned the importance of play in regards

of the

to Charles & Ray Eames and how they freely created without constraint.

pation

Frank Lloyd Wright was cited due to the direct influence of Froebel’s blocks

opes of

and the structural geometry designed into Wright’s Falling Water. Wright

m said

played with Froebel’s blocks as a child. Imagine the state of design today

ing for

had the Eames and Frank Lloyd Wright not learned to play? Viemeister

s us of

lists the reinvention of Apple and the colorful iMacs as a present-day

ocence

success story of integrated play in product design, marketing and use.

‘doing’,

People became excited, intrigued, and delighted by the Apple story and

around

the products they created. This set Apple apart, a strategy for which Apple is renowned today.

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

Viemeister’s examples illustrate the importance of play in different stages of the design process. Viemeister uses exploration and making as a tools for engagement within his own work. In the lecture, Viemeister used Csikszentmihaly’s “Flow” concept (see page 23) to illustrate success in design. In the digram, a healthy balance of both challenge and skill are needed for design to create positive growth. If there is too much challenge, the user experiences anxiety, and quits. If the amount of skill is not appropriate to the designer, one experiences boredom. Both anxiety and boredom are harmful and prevent the attainment of reaching growth. In their theories and methodologies, Viemeister, Froebel, and Csikszentmihaly all mention the connection between joy and creation, learning and the experience of life. Csikszentmihaly writes, “The hallmark of flow is a feeling of spontaneous joy, even rapture, while performing a task,” which helps to create “optimal experience (28).”

While Frank Chimero does not mention Flow specifically, his ideas show similar considerations. In Play is Serious, Chimero writes, “I sincerely believe that work that is more enjoyable to create will, inherently, be more enjoyable to consume. In a world where clients are starved for audiences, I see the benefits of allowing “creatives” to play as nothing but beneficial for all parties involved. Clients will finally be able to retain captive audiences.

Our audiences will finally be presented with something captivating.”

The inclusion of flow, joy, happiness, etc, with a creative process creates stronger connections between designer and user.

41

Above: Image from Look Both Ways by Debbie Millman

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

Precedents/Antecedents in Sharing Debbie Millman Debbie Millman is a President of Sterling Brands, Chair of SVA’s Masters in Branding Program, former President of the National AIGA and host of Design Matters, a Cooper Hewett Design Award-recognized podcast on design. Millman is also the writer of several books on design. One of these books, Look Both Ways is a collection of essays each written in different visual styles (see left). Some essays hand-lettered in colored pencil, while others are cross-stitched or written on a chalkboard. I’d never seen a book like this before. I was also struck by the poetic writing in her essays and the personal subject matter. Look Both Ways is composed of essays about love, loss, branding and design. Could these things be related? Millman proved they are, and in beautiful presentation. Her ability to weave personal narratives into a design context inspires me. Her work is genuine, honest and relatable. Millman’s ability to relate life experiences to the act of design is an inspiration to the design of my capstone project.

Millman continues to share these essays on Print Magazine’s Imprint website. This is an example of a side projects turned into fulfilling and continuing work. Millman’s essays are shared online, and by this act of sharing the work is transformed. What makes Millman so remarkable is her courage to share struggles with an audience and weave these experiences back to a design context. The personal life of a designer is not separate from the designer-designing. Everything else informs our work and Millman is very open in acknowledging and sharing this. I believe this to be is great source of delight and satisfaction to Millman, almost like therapy in a sense. People respond to her stories, which gives Millman motivation to continue creating more. If this work weren’t shared it wouldn’t be the same, for designer and audience.

43

n orDe strive reMar

er to e for a rKaBle Joy, Delight anD growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

in order to strive for a remarkable life,

you have to decide that you want one.

Because if you expect less, less is all you’re going to get.

-Debbie Millman

45

“We Feel Fine – An Almanac of Human Emotion” I was first introduced to the We Feel Fine project in an interactive studio during my first year at Pratt. The site is as an example of an interactive project gathering data online, visualizing this data and engaging an digital audience. We Feel Fine was started in 2005 as a project between Jonathan Harris, an artist with a computer science background, and Sep Kamvar, an applied mathematician working at Google (16). The Internet was a different place ten years ago, void of human emotion and feeling, or so many thought. Harris and Kamvar suspected different. Together they developed a computer program that searched the Internet looking for posts with the tag, “I feel …” This data was found, collected, extracted, and visualized from a database on their website. These visualizations make these emotional expressions of emotion and pictures come to life in a new way. Unrelated blog posts and status updates hold greater meaning when combined with contributors worldwide. The data can be searched through, narrowed down, and analyzed in countless ways: by gender, location, weather and time of day. It shows the opportunities data collection creates and all the design projects and visualizations they can inspire.

I knew after seeing the project and reading the book, I wanted to create my own database of information based on an inquiry into the emotion of joy. It was a topic I’d investigated for months and while I created my own definition for joy, I needed to open the investigation to others. I also had many questions, “was joy an universal feeling, what are the differences in experiences, what are the similarities, could a single definition of joy apply to everyone? To answer these questions I designed an experience to collect this data. We Feel Fine is a direct inspiration of turning data collection into visualizations and new work in this thesis.

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

The Book of Awesome and 14,000 Things to be Happy About

Whil

After reading We Feel Fine, I searched for more sources that specifically

Pasr

dealt with the emotions of happiness, delight and joy. I needed to examine

mom

the landscape of these emotional listing projects to see what others were

yes t

doing and most-importantly, come up with something new and relatable

proje

to design. 14,000 Things to be Happy About is a project and book written

an o

by Barbara Ann Kipfer. In Kipfer’s project, at an early age she began to

word

keep a spiral notebook where she would list sources of happiness in

in th

her day-to-day life. This list, entirely composed of words, now contains

as th

over 95,000 sources of happiness identified by Kipfer. The book is the

and

published form of her project, spanning over 40 years. A sampling of her

narra

list includes, “Copenhagen, sharpie pens in every color, tranquility, chef’s

to cr

outfits, gravity, 21st century explorers, and walks along long piers (43).” In

desig

the introduction, Kipfer calls these sources of happiness “word-images.”

coun

Kipfer writes, “words, and the images they create can be a great inspiration.”

The entire book is a simple list in no particular order of 1400 things to be happy about, in black serif text on plain white paper. The words come to life when readers picture these moments, places, objects or situations in their minds. This is far more effective than if Kipfer represented all these things to be happy about visually. Word-images are easier to relate to because their lack of specificity does not prevent a reader from creating their own picture of that thing in their minds.

Another similar project is Neil Pasricha’s 100 Awesome Things blog, later turned into The Book of Awesome. Inspiration came to Pasricha one chilly spring night to create a blog about things that are awesome or create happiness, as a “getaway from everyday (1).” Pasricha writes, “What started as a whim has changed me for the better. The website grew into a warm place where people around the world came to curl up under a blanket and think about all the small joys we often overlook (2). While Kipfer’s list is 47

composed of tiny statements, usually just a few words, Pasricha’s blog entries resemble small short stories about an awesome moment, object or situation. At the end you can’t help but smile and say, yes that truly is awesome, or I know how that feels. Pasricha takes his project a step further than Kipfer by encouraging participation from an online audience.

Blogs are meant to be living things, sparked by the words and images their entries contain. Both projects are direct sources in the inspiration of This brings me joy. The Joy Project, which serves as the capstone project in this thesis. In my project, After reading Kipfer and Pasricha’s books, I knew lists of this nature would create a touching narrative when read and could inspire ideas for new projects. I was inspired to create something beyond

metho these books and the We Feel Fine project. As a designer I could approach

my collected information in new ways creating countless ideas for new projects.

Joy, Delight anD growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

this odology III. Process & Methodology

MFA E

As earlier stated, in my thesis I’m investigating the power of joy and delight

This fi

to grow as a designer and creator. Joy is an opportunity and has the power

during

to transform and empower, and this sense of empowerment can take

progra

countless applications, especially in design. I developed a methodology

on the

with three distinct stages (exploration, making and sharing) that define

at wha

my design process. Following this method ensures the work I create is

sharin

more creatively fulfilling and that sense of fulfillment is passed to all who

focus. W

view it.

each e ach in

me m e joy

After reading my thesis, I want each user to think about their creative

I was a

process and identify their interests and strengths. It’s possible that some

design

users will only feel a connection to certain parts of my methodology,

much m

such as making, but not sharing or exploring. And that’s fine. I want each

alike.

user to approach the act of design from a place of strength and genuine interest. The benefit of my methodology is its versatility. I do not believe

each user must utilize all three stages in their process to feel a sense of satisfaction with their work. However, I do believe a process that uses all

three components is more well-rounded and creates more fulfilling design solutions, for designer and client alike. This methodology is a creative

approach that finds ways to interject excitement, connection, joy and delight into the creative process. It is important to spend time exploring

new ideas, learning through making/creating and sharing that work with

others. In the following section I discuss the projects that informed the creation of my methodology (MFA Explorations), my capstone project (This (This brings me joy. The Joy Project) Project) and my textile design process work during

my summer in Copenhagen at the Danish Institute for Study Abroad (DIS).

49

MFA Explorations This first set of projects was designed from Fall 2010 to Summer 2011 during my final year in Pratt’s new MFA in Communication Design program. These projects and explorations are examples of work that center on the use of my methodology. By examining these projects and isolating at what stage(s) I felt the greatest connection (exploration, making or sharing); I’m able to approach new projects with greater intensity and focus. While some of these early explorations better received than others, each informed the design of my final thesis capstone project, This brings me joy. The Joy Project. By taking bits and pieces I learned along the way, I was able to funnel all these lessons into one larger and more complete design solution. Because of which, the outcome of my thesis capstone was much more joyful in all stages of production for participants and viewers alike.

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

Joy Explorations The first of these early explorations centered on an inquiry into the emotion of joy. The primary goal of these projects was to explore the topic and to create my own personal definition of the emotion. Before I could address methods for others to include joy within their process, I had to identity sources of joy within my life and define their significance.

My first project was to build a vocabulary of joy. I needed to understand how the word was used, so I began taking pictures. Any time I saw the word used, I took a picture. The word joy turned up in the most unusual places. While walking in Midtown, I stumbled across Joy Curry and Tandoor. A few days later, joy appeared on a McDonalds bag on the sidewalk in Williamsburg.

Joy is on the small Pepsi cans in C-town near my house. I began to find messages, “Joy is here. Oh Joy! Cranberry is back. Give the joy. So much joy needs extra napkins, etc� I began compiling these photos and expressions on a tumblr blog. There I found other users interested in joy and we began sharing these visualizations. It was through this research that I found the Joy is BMW campaign, a multi-million dollar advertising campaign using a sense of joy to sell cars. I took these pictures, quotes and objects and created a visual narrative based on my explorations entitled, What is joy?

An Exploration (see page 52).

These representations of joy are used by brands for a specific purpose, like propaganda. Companies realize joy is a universal emotion that translates to many people, especially during the holidays. It is a feeling that people strive to experience. Is joy truly Starbucks? No, of course not. But some experience joyful moments at Starbucks and by drinking their coffee.

Others have positive associations with that brand. And Starbucks is just one example. These explorations show where, how, and who utilizes this emotion in communicating with consumers. If joy can successfully used in advertising to reach consumers, then its powers can be harnessed in design.

51

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

53

After expanding the idea of what joy can be and the countless forms it takes, I needed to define other words similar in use. Early in my thesis process several people expressed discomfort relating to joy as a concept. While some resist the emotion’s application to their life, everyone experiences a sense of joy; they just call it something else. I created a list of closely related words in the family of joy. Some of these words include, passion, strength, curiosity, skill, delight, ecstasy, love, intensity, enthusiasm, spark, pleasure, play, surprise, and wonder. If someone is not comfortable discussing their “joy,” they can talk about what brings them delight, what they love, what brings them pleasure, surprise, and creates wonder in their lives. This list creates a project I call Joy in 50 Other Words. I used this project later in the design of my thesis exhibition when I ask people, what makes you smile, what brings you a sense of fulfillment? By using these words interchangeably, I was able to combat people’s reluctance in talking about joy specifically.

The last exploration into joy purely as an emotion deals with technology.

Just as the We Feel Fine project visualizes feeling in digital space, I was curious how joy is expressed online. I performed an experiment with Twitter. I assumed searching for joy on Twitter would result in few matches. To my surprise, hundreds of results per hour surfaced. If I could gather so many examples of joy online in such a short time period, this was clearly an emotion audiences relate to.

Hello! Project After spending weeks exploring the appearance of joy, it was time to focus relating this emotion back to design and focus on “making.” The first investigation in the subject of “making” was my Hello! Project in Technology Studio. In this assignment, we created machines inspired

by Rube Goldberg that said hello in 12 steps. As someone from the South,

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

focused on “Southern” ways of saying hello. I thought of gatherings, social

import

events, and church on Sundays, holidays and the way people in the south

of desi

greet one another in the street. I realized most of these events involved

you’re

food in some way and it hit me, food is the perfect way to say hello. As

that do

with most things, food is also best when shared. A recipe is like a machine

your s

in many ways. A recipe uses a list of ingredients, or parts, combined in a

acts of

certain order to produce an action. In this case, the machine (a recipe) is

own gr

being used to say hello. The best way to say hello “southern-style” with

can be

food is buttermilk biscuits. I looked through stacks of Southern Living

creatin

cookbooks, called my Mom and looked online for the best biscuit recipes.

I want

Everyone has their secret trick to making biscuits and it is something of a

project

science. I made several test batches before I settled on a recipe I liked. The

a “Flow

day of the critique I made two batches and brought enough for the entire

people

studio. For a few moments, my studio mates gathered around and shared

experie

memories associated with food, family and growing up. In those moments

the she

the effort and energy I put into making that food was transferred to all

and th

whom enjoyed it.

10 Things I did in 2010 Another project where I focused on making is 10 Things I did in 2010.

This project contains a series of typographic illustrations of 10 important things I did within that calendar year (see page 57). While this wasn’t a thesis investigation centered on my methodology or the subject of joy per say, it was my first attempt at creating self-initiated projects. These projects serve as an escape, giving designers the opportunity and freedom to create the work they feel compelled to create, not the work they’re hired to create. A motivating idea in the creation of my capstone project was to using an inquiry into joy to create new projects for myself. While my thesis capstone relates to joy and illustrates a methodology in use, much of this work is self-initiated, and will continue to be after this paper. It’s very 55

important for designers to stay connected and excited with the practice of design. Self-initiated projects are a way to encourage this. If the work you’re doing to pay the bills doesn’t inspire you, create work for yourself that does. Do the work long enough and that same work will promote your skills as a designer. In Glimmer, Berger writes, “Through constant acts of creative design, you also re-create yourself. You help propel your own growth spiral, feeding off the energy of creation (265).” This work can be very empowering, and it’s important for all designers to always be creating and thinking. In 10 Things I did in 2010, I was free to do whatever I wanted and excited to share this work with others. It became a design project I was excited to create and put time into. This project turned into a “Flow” producing activity, as Csikszentmihaly writes, “a state in which people are so involved in an activity that nothing else seems to matter; the experience itself is so enjoyable that people will do it even at great cost, for the sheer sake of doing it (4).” This is the strength of self-initiated projects and their importance to designers.

2010 2010 2010

diane von furstenberg

things i did in

Joy, Delight anD growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

went

moved to

WilliamsLYN burg, BROOK

down under

(how sweet it is)

LOOK learned to

BOTH WAYS

nia

with help from debbie milliman

And The Pursuit of Happiness

Lost L

sophronia

sophronia

ophronia

got

at the

n

Thig

M F A

OTHER

UCKING

RT

with maira kalman

and began my search for

Pie

ate

became a

considered life

SOPHRONIA sophronia

Merma at Para

57

s

Here’s to celebra everything it tak enjoy true succe

BIG + little: a pop-up space BIG + little is an early example of developing a project that placed a great emphasis on collaboration and sharing (see page 60). When the MFA program moved into the West 18th studios, the new space lacked a sense of community. In Transformation Design, we were placed in groups to design need-based solutions to transform the space. My group, (Rebecca Weiner, Skyler Balbus, and Betsy Medvedovsky) focused on one of the neglected open lounges in the studio. Our group noted in early observations, “The space’s white walls and anonymous look felt more isolating than inviting, and the overall studio layout was awkward. The main space was large and open, but there were no focal intersection points that served as natural gathering spaces. Two windowless rooms were designated as student lounges, but they were too small, clumsy, and out-of-the-way to function as water-cooler areas.” There was no centralized place to eat, to gather, to lounge, to “not work.” In short, the space was missing a sense of place and identity, and it certainly didn’t feel like an environment for creativity and collaboration. We transformed this neglected room it into a pop-up space, with rotating events and workshops. A modular identity was created to reflect the range and flexibility of the space. The pop-up space could be used by anyone to hold events, installations, or display work. When the identity was in place, each group member created at least one event or workshop within the space. For weeks I’d been trying to find an excuse to resume screen printing and BIG + little turned into the perfect opportunity.

For my workshop, I screen printed 30 tote bags with a giant Pratt “P” on one side. I designed these “Pratt bags” to create an identity and sense of belonging to a Pratt student group. Students could carry their bags around and show their school pride. I encouraged participants to customize their bags on top of what I printed. This event allowed students to leave their studio desks and interact others while engaging in a creative activity. While participants customized their bags, conversations started and students

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

were free to socialize while making. By the end of the workshop, I had documentation of 30 uniquely designed bags. Many bags were displayed around the studio for the entire semester. Other students used their bags and I would see them around campus. In the coming weeks the pop-up space was transformed by hundreds of balloons, student workshops, aura coloring books, MS/MFA ComD installations and thesis projects. All it took to get these projects in started was establishing a space where students were encouraged to explore, make and share. We designed a space that served as a platform for all these activities. This project inspired the creation of new work and serves as an example of a project using all three stages within my methodology.

59

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

61

Joy Experience in Times Square One of the final MFA studio projects to have a major influence on the creation of my thesis capstone was the Joy Experience in Time Square.

For this Cross-Disciplinary studio assignment, each student designed an experience with “information pods” in Times Square and posters advertising the event (see page 65). The assignment was half architecture and half graphic design. At this point in my thesis, I knew my capstone project would be an exhibition displaying letters participants wrote sharing moments of joy, happiness and delight within their lives. This CrossDisciplinary assignment became an opportunity to expand this project into a digital form and a site-specific space, Times Square. Essentially, if I was given the opportunity to take This brings me joy: The Joy Project to Times Square, this is the digital experience I would design.

Similar to my thesis exhibition, the primary goal of the Joy Experience in TS was to design an interactive experience where users would freely share something that brings them a sense of joy. I envisioned people walking into the experience I designed where they’d be prompted to enter a statement of joy. This statement would be input on touch screens at the entrance. The structure of the space would be made of digital screens that start from ground level at the entrance and rise to 15 feet at the center.

This height allows the screens to surround the viewer and block out the interference of Times Square. After each user enters their statement and walks into the experience, their joy statements would appear on the walls and float through the space. These expressions or statements become alive. As participants travel inside, their statements would merge with others creating a large text cloud. When people reach the center, a cloud of text with statements surrounds them. Statements that appear again and again grow larger in size and move across the screens. Viewers would notice links between their responses and those of others. By keeping the visualizations typographic, the viewer is free to create their own picture of

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

what these statements look like. Memories of joyful moments would flood

me co

their minds and this experience would be shared with others in the space.

viewer

Conversations could happen between viewers with similar experiences.

experi

Just before the user exits, they will see the logo for the project, This brings

about

me joy. The ____ project. One of their statements would fill the blank. For

exhibi

example, the logo could change to The love Project, The coffee Project, or

space

the Friday night with my girlfriends Project. During the Joy Experience

and sh

in TS experience, every response would be complied into a huge master

model

list, which could be tagged, analyzed, and live online to create a website

promo

version of the instillation.

projec

in Apri Creating the promotional posters for this project was my first attempt at designing with the text I’d gathered from the Joy Letters (see Joy Letters on page 73) at that point. I used text from my Joy Letters (part of my thesis capstone) to serve as content for these posters. In designing the poster, I combined architectural renderings of the space and text from the Joy Letters. The form of the s-shaped walls that rise from the ground symbolize growth, and that form is important in regards to the design of the experience. The posters are abstract representations of this idea.

They also had to be visually compelling and contain enough information to adequately promote the event. The changing color gradients on the posters reference the glowing light and spectacle of the experience. Each poster also displayed unique joy statements. Once a viewer sees several posters together, they could read all the different statements and better understand what my project is about. This would inspire them to visit Times Square and participate with the experience.

This Cross-Disciplinary Studio project served as a digital Times Squarebased extension of This brings me joy. The Joy Project, and was very informative into the physical design of my thesis exhibition. It helped 63

me consider designing spaces for viewers to read about the emotional experiences of others and think about their own. In my thesis exhibition, I designed an intimate space for reflection, consideration and sharing. Creating a physical model,

site

plans

and

print

promotion served as a pre-flight project before my thesis exhibition in April 2011.

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

65

Textile Design Process Work To complete my remaining MFA credits, I traveled abroad to Denmark in summer 2011 to study textile design. While I welcomed this trip as a break from thesis work, I learned a lot about the value of exploration, making and the importance of process. In the course, the final product was a digital repeat pattern based upon inspiration-gathered and methodslearned during the entire six weeks. Early into my search for inspiration I noticed naturally occurring patterns in nature, like those found on wood or tree rings. I liked the idea of finding existing patterns and creating new applications for their use. Why couldn’t a pattern inspired by tree rings be used as wallpaper, on a bedspread or for fashion textiles?

The greatest lesson I learned through this course was the importance of process. This resonated with me as within my thesis I’m developed a methodology for the creation of new work. Much of the process I utilized to design my textile easily applies to the practice of graphic design. Textile design is a practice centered on process, production and inspiration.

These components are necessary to create design for many different applications. A textile designer must come up with many ideas and color combinations in short periods of time. Ask any designer, this is no easy task, especially in graphic design. If a designer has good working methods and process, the designer is better positioned to create interesting work faster.

In the course, each student was assigned to keep a sketchbook (see page 69). We were told to draw as much as we could, collect anything we found, and write about what we liked. We were to think about the pages of our sketchbooks as compositions and were encouraged to experiment with color, collage, textures, and mixed media to create interesting compositions. By “sticking things together” in new and unexpected ways

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

draw s we would get new ideas by looking through our sketchbooks. While this

learned

was presented in a textile design context, this is incredibly useful for

in my b

graphic designers. During the study tour, I collected as many printed

and lea

pieces as I could. I collected free booklets, brochures, tore down posters, picked up things from the trash, and glued everything in my sketchbooks.

During

I wrote notes about what I found interesting on each page, mixed text and

these s

images, and experimented new color combinations on spreads through my

gather

sketchbook. Most designers I know collect posters, brochures, magazines,

Finlan

and other printed materials they find interesting. I’ve always kept these

In the

in “inspiration” folders in my studio. Then I forget about them. Every now

docum

and then flip through them when I really need ideas. While this is good

textile.

practice for designers, you will learn more from those pieces if you cut

inspira

them up, assemble the pages in new ways, or write about that you find so

and m

interesting. This act of creation keeps that source of inspiration fresher

sketch

in your brain. These items should not be treated as precious objects and

treatm

never used.

I inter Another way to practice this is by drawing. In many museums, we were not

of proc

allowed to take photos. But we were allowed to sketch and draw. For many

approa

this was their first time being forced to draw what they saw and not take

educat

pictures. There is benefit to this, much like the example of print inspiration

design

I just mentioned. Drawing is an act of creation, an active activity, and like

in a tea

Milton Glaser says, “drawing is learning.” When someone takes the time

develo

to really figure out how something works through drawing, it is a far more

not ye

intense study of that object, than just photographing it. In The Accidental

already

Masterpiece, Michael Kimmelman echoes this notion. He writes, “cameras

the fin

make the task of keeping a record of people and things simpler and more

experie

widely available, and in the process reduced the care and intensity with

in you

which people needed to look at the things they wanted to remember well,

doing/

67

because pressing a button required less concentration and effort then composing a precise and comely drawing (33).” When I took the time to draw something and study its form, or figure out how a pattern worked, I learned so much more. That source of inspiration also became embedded in my brain. Designers should learn to use drawing as a means of exploring and learning about the world around them.

During my textile course, I complied enough information to create two of these sketch/process books. The first is centered on the study tour and gathered inspiration from my travels through Denmark, Sweden and Finland (see right). The second book is more textile design and processcentered (see page 71). In the second book I looked for interesting color combinations and documented observations from the process of creating my final digital textile. Now I have a written and visual record of my explorations and inspiration in one place. I don’t have to search through folders in my studio and make sense of collected inspiration. Every time I flip through these sketchbooks something new stands out to me. I notice new colors, type treatments, and get ideas for new projects.

I interviewed one of our professors, Gunhild Pedersenon on the value of process, a learn-by-making/doing approach, and the Scandinavian approach to design. One large difference I noticed between design education in Scandinavia and the US is the importance Scandinavian designers place on process. My professor mentioned, “Process is important in a teaching situation because you as a student (and indeed later) must develop yourself and always find sides of your own creativity that you’re not yet familiar with. If you focus on the outcome from the start, you’ve already closed a lot of opportunities and may already have a picture of the finished result. You are not using your full potential and only using experiences you already have and are not letting yourself go new places

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

69

As a designer you should know your theories, your history and references on a theoretical level, but you also need to know your disciplines on a practical level - Gunhild Pedersenon

in your visual language.” After asking her about the value of a learn-bydoing/making approach to design, she said, “As a designer you should know your theories, your history and references on a theoretical level, but you also need to know your disciplines on a practical level.” Theories and concepts will only get you so far, you must also know how to practice and produce. Finally, I asked her if she’s ever run into instances where she’s felt uninspired or run out of ideas. Gunhild responded, “No it does not happen to me but sometimes my work is not as interesting as I thought it would be. Therefore I always look at my work with fresh eyes to see what is interesting and what is not. Things do not always turn out as you thought they would, but there can still be parts of it that can be taken forward.”

She added, “If you are uninspired, you must continue to work, it is in the process that the real good ideas emerge and you can not sit and wait for them to come. You can do investigations that are extensions of the work you are doing. For example a material, a form, a color study combined with reading and research on the idea as part of your process can be inspiring.”

Taking these cues and lessons from my time in Copenhagen, I began a third inspiration sketchbook. This final book documents the process in creating my final visual project with in my thesis capstone. This book serves to visualize my headspace as a designer during this period. Now I will have a visual record of my inspiration to look back through and pull out new ideas. The process I learned during this course has been so valuable to me and will have lasting effects in the way I approach future work. I’m planning to continue gathering inspirations and creating sketchbooks as part of my design process backed on exploration, making and sharing.

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

71

Capstone Project – This brings me joy. The Joy Project.

One of the primary goals within the design of my thesis exhibition was to design projects that anyone could understand and relate to; designers and non-designers alike. I created an experience that would touch and effect people within a designed environment. My challenge became, how do I get viewers to open up and contemplate joy, in the true sense of the word?

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

The Joy Letters The first official capstone project I designed is the “Joy Letters� where I

be as b

asked 40 friends the following:

images

object.

I want to know what brings you a sense of joy? What makes you smile,

and im

makes you happy, gives you a sense of fulfillment? It can be anything,

envelo

coffee in the morning, a sunny day, a rainy day, seeing snow falling at

me. On

night, finishing a project, hearing your favorite song, seeing your best

source

friend, listening to Mariah Carey (ok, that’s one of mine, but you get the

everyo

idea). For just a few moments, create a list in your head, of as many objects,

partici

experiences, places, etc that bring you moments of joy and delight...

expres

I spent months exploring/defining the meaning of joy to me, it was time

Within

I created an experience for others to do the same. I used this inquiry into

I was m

joy for the creation of new work and shared it with new audiences. I asked

While

others to think about, what brings them joy? Sending letters in the mail

that sa

was a great medium for this investigation. This choice was important

arrivin

for several reasons. I knew if I created a Survey Monkey or Facebook

one. By

questionnaire about joy I would not get the type of responses I was looking

(visual

for. I wanted people to personally open up and reflect on joy. For this to

before.

happen I created a special experience; something intimate, and something

shares

people were excited to do. Sometimes people are uncomfortable talking

everyo

about joy, so this activity had to be written, and something each person

expres

could do in an environment where they felt comfortable, such as their

about t

homes. Having a physical object to touch and interact with was extremely

due to

important, for both participant and designer (me). Hand written letters

hand s

on paper are more impactful than text on a computer screen. With the

experie

letters, I designed a two-letter, two-envelope experience that I mailed to

of text

40 friends. The first letter introduced the project and invited the receiver

receive

to participate. By designing this project with multiple folds and envelopes,

object

I intrigued people enough to participate. These letters were designed to

the exh

73

Joy J y

Sometimes your

is the source of your smile,

but sometimes, your smile can be the source of your joy. ~ Thich Nhat Hanh

For several months, I’ve been fascinated by the subject of joy, what it means to me, and what brings joy and delight to others. In my thesis, I’m hoping to turn these moments, objects, or experiences of joy, delight, and happiness into new work.

Can the work I create then bring joy to others?

Joy J Jo oy

That’s where you come in! Your mission, should you choose to accept it, resides in the small enclosed envelope.

xoxo,

Joy, Delight anD growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

Happiness

Joy y

lies in the

of achievement and the

thrill

of creative effort.

Franklin D. Roosevelt

For months, I’ve been fascinated by the subject of joy, what it means to me, and what brings joy and delight to others. In my thesis, I’m using these moments, objects, or experiences of joy, delight, and happiness for the creation of new work.

Can the work I create then bring joy to others?

That’s where you come in! Your mission, should you choose to accept it, resides in the small enclosed envelope.

Joy J Jo ooy y

xoxo, 75 www.thisbringsmejoy.com

be as beautiful as possible, with script typography, quotes, and collaged images. I designed more than a letter; I created a piece or art, or an art object. The letters were visually rich, with unique combinations of type and image that created an aura of nostalgia and reflection. Each larger envelope contained a second smaller letter/envelope addressed back to me. On this smaller enclosed letter I asked each person to list as many sources of joy that come to mind. By sending a letter of the same design to everyone, the letters became uniform template for customization by each participant. These letters could later be examined for their individually expressive appearance exhibited.

Within three weeks I received a majority of the smaller Joy Letters back.

I was more and more excited everyday to see new letters in my mailbox.

While my letters brought each receiver an initial feeling of excitement, that same feeling was transferred to me when the smaller letters began arriving. My favorite part of this project was reading each letter, one by one. By holding the letters in my hands and observing their expressions (visually and in words) I could see a side of each person I’d never seen before. It is a deeply touching experience, when someone opens up and shares a part of themselves with you. As more letters arrived I saw that everyone completed the assignment differently. This content added expression, individuality and meaning to the letters. It said something about the author of the letter. People connect to things that are handwritten, due to the scarcity of this in our increasingly digital lives. The mark of the hand stands out as something special and unique. Many also enjoy the experience of sending/receiving letters through the mail in our digital age of texting, email and social media. In the exhibition, I hung each letter I received on the wall in a grid. Each Joy Letter was presented as a design object displaying the information that inspired the other visual projects in the exhibition.

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

From the first set of mailed letters I received 36 of 40 back. Together these

My Jo

letters list over 800 definitions or ways to experience joy. These 800+

While

definitions were compiled into a master list, where I identified duplicates

Inspire

and analyzed patterns. The most popular responses were art, coffee,

to try i

champagne, gin & tonics, sex, sleeping, sun/sunshine, coffee, wine, and

many

working out. Many listed love, being in a relationship, their significant

ride ho

other, and family as sources of joy in their lives. These things bring the

minute

most people joy.

include

the sun

my bal

this vis

list (se

momen

to crea

the pos

and fel

any rea

the pos

falsely

design

my MF

from m

than v

and my

be muc

77

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

79

fall

the colour blue Raleigh Times music McDonalds IN BROOKL outdoor dinning serifs hazelnut iced-coffee mac BENNY’S BURRITOS cheese with wti hotdogs g The

english spelling of words

Margaritas thunder storms t

A

OUSE SALAD BLUE CHEESE DRESSING

h

PIZZA

& gingerale

THOUGHT provoking

quote

at

LILLY’s

B O gin E s &

rain showers in the

Mariah Carey

NI POSTER TALIC

coffee cuddling

summer

Sunday brunch

and thoughts of summer

eggsFROMbenedict The

from a can with a s

SOUTHERN FOOD

Me and Mariah, so back like babies & pacifiers.

ace

coke

the smell!

s2h1 rt

SHOR

NAPPING

neo

Super Target

Smith ON 2ND AVE

the

sign

PLAYING

tENNis

Ft.

LYN

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

snow

e

e

straw

e taste!!

RTS

on

ns

s

GREEN PARK

My Joy Poster While waiting to receive letters, I began working on new visual projects.

Inspired by Barbara Ann Kipfer’s 1400 Things to be Happy About, I decided to try it for myself. I performed a free writing exercise where I listed as many sources of joy, delight and happiness as I could during a subway ride home. Anything that came to mind I wrote it down. In less than five minutes I created a list that held close to 60 items. Some entries on this list included, Dr. Pepper, mac and cheese, rain in the summer, thunderstorms, the sun, the sound of waves at the beach, the smell of sunscreen, sitting on my balcony overlooking the Williamsburg bridge, and coffee. To translate this visually, I designed a large typographic poster from my personal joy list. I wanted to create “art” from each object, experience or moment of joy I had listed. I spent hours arranging the letters and words to create interesting arrangements on screen. After I printed and hung the poster on the wall, something felt wrong. The text looked too logo-like and felt overly designed. There was no honest sense of my personality, in any real way. I thought about projecting it onto canvas and then painting the poster by hand. This didn’t work conceptually because I was trying to falsely simulate the touch of the hand with something that was obsessively designed on the computer. In the end I decided not to display this project in my MFA exhibition. This project helped me establish what I truly wanted from my exhibition. I was far more interested in what brought others joy, than visualizing my own. I decided the exhibition would be about others, and my role was the designer/facilitator of this experience. I found this to be much more rewarding than designing for myself.

fall ni

The

sUN

DR. Peppe

sex with mr. right

(now)

Neutr

BO 81

Arc

Exhibition Poster/Wallpaper As letters arrived, I noticed some joy statements appearing again and again.

The best way to track these “trends” was to compile them on the computer.

After reading each letter I entered the text into an Excel spreadsheet.

This allowed me to turn their statements into data, which opened up new projects ideas. While each letter was beautiful and expressive in it’s own unique way, the actual text was interesting in a different way. When the statements were reduced to plain text the language stood out on its own.

The viewer could consider the simple text statement free of visual clues from handwriting and graphic representation. This served as a different method to experience the same information.

I created a project where individual joy statements could be read as plain text. Statements assembled in a designed order could be read as a narrative, as each statement begins to tell a story. The first visual project was a massive poster, listening every response in alphabetical order without duplicates. This poster displayed over 800 unique ways to experience joy in plain text. I designed the text into a massive block where every statement was visually equal. The only way to understand the poster is to read the statements. After reading the text, the written language creates images in the mind of the viewer, and the poster comes to life.

In the physical design of my exhibition space, I lacked room to hang this massive 5-foot poster. I adapted this same concept into the design of wallpaper for the removable wall (see right). The text was handled visually the same way as the poster and was repeated to cover the entire wall. From a distance the wallpaper looked like stripes, or simply text on a wall. Upon close inspection the viewer could read all the statements in alphabetical order. They could also pick out statements from letters they’d just read in the grid of mailed Joy Letters.

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

er • 80’s music • 80’s new wave, esp. duran duran • a backhand winner in tennis • a big bowl of ice cream • a big hug when you • a delicious cocktail(s) on a summer afternoon • a good book • a good cocktail • a good critique • a good dj and an awesome • a lazy sunday morning with my husband • a learning moment with a student • a leisurely stroll on one of those first spring really good home cooked meal with my parents, my brother, and fiancé • a simple quiet moment with my thoughts • a smile fr hts • adventure • airplanes • america • amy sedaris • an inspiring quote from an unknown source • and did i mention sex? • a t the • beach really • architecture • art • art museums • art, museums, galleries, etc • artist studio visits • babies • babies and Visual okies • baltimore • beautiful type • beautifully designed building • because by td jakes • becoming a character for a play/mu le • being in grad school • beingininthe lovedesign & being of loved something who totally me • being book One interest mybyoverall exhibition wasgets creating an in the middle of a great Param y comments • betty white • beyond the valley of the dolls movie and soundtrack • big dinners, drinks with few friends • birds experience where same information from one data set (in this case, define solitude • bright colors • brooklyn brunches • bubble bath + candles + black keys • bucheyer, the dessert • bunches of balloons the Joy Letters) be displayed in multiple ways. First there •was r heels • carpe diem. talking risks can and unexpected shots at life • cashmere sweaters chaithe latte from starbucks • chaiinclude tea la • children learning • chips • chocolate • chocolate cake • chopping veggies • christmas songs • christmas trees • chubby bab individual letters themselves, as handwritten objects. I took information inform r theory • conversations • cooking • cooking and the people you feed like it so much they don’t talk • cooking for people i love appearing on• the letters the• cupcake text of visual meaning and • cute babies • cute boys of whic cuddling on a cold winter day cup of coffeeand and stripped a good book with friends • cupcakes •c represented equally in a giant text block in the design of • decorating for the holidays work th cing with my friends • danice each musicstatement • daniel wiggins • daydreaming about places i want to go • discovering new wallpaper. objects as art • dna • dogs • doing hospice work • doing my nails • dolly parton • doodling • drinking cocktail When the joy statements were stripped of their expressive or raisin ice cream on a hot day • editing-getting rid of junk • electric blankets in the winter • elvis presley • espresso in the mor visuallove content (ie handwriting, size, color, design etc) thesolution text was reducedaid to raw am feeling unconditional • feminism • figuring out a great • financial • finding new songs i love •As finding s due • finishingdata cleaning apartmentThis at last • finishing this thesis flip flips+the first time you wear them in sprin and my information. data was later bedamn analyzed to• find trends and partici pisodes • free food • freebies in general • freedom • fresh air • fresh flower bouquets • fresh fruit • fried okra • friend dates wit patterns. might s where you can see athletic teams interested in winning • getting letters • getting a text message (that magical sound) • gett was to on saturdays • getting free bagels at bergen • getting lost in a familiar city • getting mail • getting my great grandparent’s n mail • getting sweet text messages • gin & tonics • giving gifts • giving my knowledge to someone else to help them learn •g perfect museums • going to the movies with my fiancé in our sweat pants • good cheese • good food • good food and wine • good frie explora t friends and laughing • hanging out with my mom • hanson • happy music • harmonizing • harmony • having a good idea for th he g train come right as i get on the platform so i don’t have to wait • having tummy butterflies • hearing chirping birdstoinbe the g thunder • helping friends • helping others • helping others in need • helping people • hiking in late afternoon/evenings wh Then I gging my parents • hugs • hugs from my dad • ice cold vodka • ice cream • iceland • illustrating • in my single days, hook-up these v erry • ke$ha • kenneth del rosario • kittens • kiwi • knitting • knowing someone life is better b/c of something i have done • k writer pid things • laughing so hard i can’t breathe • laughter • laying in a park • learning • leaving it all behind & moving to nyc • leg ning to a song that just exactly fits my mood • listening to britney spears “till the world ends” and wynter gordeon’s “dirty talk statem ggae • listening to someone else • little notes from charlotte • live theatre • living different experiences • living in nyc • logic it beca ng for inspiration • looking for shapes in my everyday life • looking out the window on christmas eve • losing weight • love • ly play.

Is g people proud • making people smile and laugh • making someone happy • making something happen • making things • ma movie and my dog • meditation • meeting interesting people • meeting new people • melanie’s food fantasy (vegan biscuits books keys dressed as humans • mountains • movie nights • murder mystery & costume parties • museums • music • music in the into th ne the way i envision it • my family • my family; mom, dad, brother, grandparents • my fancy chelsea apartment • my fiancé to ow nito & anisa • my nephew laughing • my rav4 • my sister’s dad-especially when he wears • my studio mates • my twomy wheat g as a critical thinker • oatmeal • obama • ocean water at night • old coins • old people swearing • old trees • old whitney hous text; m en sitting in the sun • philippians 4:6-9 • pictures of my grandparents • pink .. barbie pink • pizza, pizza, more pizza • plaid • joy s • pretzel croissant from city bakery- when i feel like i’ve deserved it • pudding (my cat) • pumpkins • puns • puppiesthe • pupp things ) • quitting my job • rachel maddow • rainbow sprinkles • rainbows in the sky • rainy days • random texts that say nicesometh good coffee • receiving a hand written note • receiving a letter • receiving letters form old friends • red wine • riesling • riesling letters ol day • saab: quirky swedish cars • sailing • salt bagel with veggie cream cheese • samurai • sand between my toes • saving m was eam seeing old friends • seeing random acts of kindness on streets of nyc • seeing students accomplish their goals (and telling ransit • sharing experiences • shaving with a new razor blade • shoes - lots of them! • shopping • shopping with my friends • person ake • sleeping • sleeping in • sleeping in till noon • sleeping makes me joy • smell of bacon in the morning • smiles from cute build up • songs that tag at your heartstrings • soul food • southern italy • spending quality time being silly with my young ni 83 ng through central park south by the pond in the morning • strong coffee, a great beer • students enjoying music • success a unset at the beach • sunsets • sunshine • sunshine and warm weather • sunshine on my face • sushi • sweatpants • sweet tea at kirk isn’t as good as picard • that moment when my solution reveals itself within my process • the bachelor • the beach • th

Visual Responses/Postcards

rojects.

Paramount to my inquiry of joy was the creation of new work. I sought to

ecided

define and identify this emotion in the lives of others and find ways to

sted as

include a sense of joy and delight into my creative process. This process

ubway

informed my methodology centered on exploration, making, and sharing

an five

of which this thesis describes. My visual responses are a large group of

his list

work that embodies this process.

storms,

ting on

As a method to turn the Joy Letters into new visual projects, I gave each

anslate

participant something I designed. My goal was to create something that

nal joy

might evoke a sense of joy and delight in each person. The best way do this

ence or

was to create a visual response to each person’s letter. This provided the

words

perfect opportunity to put my creative methodology into use. I started with

d hung

exploration. First I read each letter and wrote down the statements I found

go-like

to be the most poetic, evocative, unique, or symbolic of that particular letter.

ality, in

Then I examined the list of ideas that letter had inspired. The purpose of

ainting

these visual responses was to establish a connection between the letter-

ying to

writer and myself, through the act of design. I transformed a selected

ssively

statement on their letter by visualizing it. After beginning these projects,

oject in

it became clear this was no easy task. This is where exploration came into

wanted

play. I searched magazines, newspaper, collected photos, quotes, blogs

ers joy,

and books for visual inspiration. I collected a huge stockpile of images to

others,

scan into the computer. After scanning I manipulated the images to make

this to

them my own. Some responses contained only images and others were only text; most were a combination of both. I avoided literal interpretation of the joy statements in my visual responses. I wanted to show each person something they hadn’t expected and create a surprise. In the first set of letters, I visually responded to letters from people I knew and process was easier. I made judgment calls based on information I knew about that person. I might know that such and such person likes a certain

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

I repea song, or a certain typeface, and I used that on their visual response. In

visual

an example, one person listed, “thought provoking poetry” on his Joy

respon

Letter to me (see above left). Since I knew this person, I knew he loved

most s

the poetry of Staceyann Chin. After reading her work, I felt a connection

all the

to her poem, Stain Me a New Heart. One great thing about this process is

be mor

that I’m learning something new from each letter. I’m reading poetry by

employ

poets I never knew, I’m discovering songs I’ve never heard, and I’m looking

“rainbo

into places I’ve never been. I’m learning new methods to experience joy. In

magaz

this exploratory phase in the design of each visual response I felt a great

sprink

source of joy. I learned so much before even designing.

right, a

specia When it came time to design the visual responses, I utilized the stockpile of

To vis

images I complied when looking through books, magazines, newspapers,

circles

photos I’d taken, and what I gathered from the Internet. Returning to the

“multip

earlier example of “thought provoking poetry” I narrowed in on a line of

The ov

the poem that really stuck me, “part the waters of a purple sea, show me

solutio

a small miracle, un-tarnish me a skin, thin and carefully forming, under

“rainbo

these old ways of seeing.” This line really struck a chord with me and I

Letter.

wanted to share it with the person who wrote that letter. I found that line

else th

to be rich both emotionally and visually because of the images it created

I had t

in my mind. The design challenge became, how do I graphically represent

to be i

this statement and feeling? In this case, I wanted that line from the poem

of rain

to stand out. I wanted viewers to read the text without too much distraction

illustra

from visual imagery. I used simple white typography on a background

that sa

image I’d taken of a beach in Australia. I de-saturated the color to create

sprink

a moody and nostalgic setting. When the type was combined with that image, it created the same visualization of that poem in my mind when I

After t

first read it.

friends

this po 85

I repeated a variation of this process again and again in the creation of my visual responses. In my capstone exhibition I designed 60 unique visual responses each tied to a specific letter and joy statement. Some of the most successful visual responses are those where I completely illustrated all the artwork and didn’t rely on found images. I found these solutions to be more original and unique. Two examples of visual responses where I employed that approach are the solutions for “bunches of balloons” and “rainbow sprinkles (see right).” To design both responses, I scoured magazines and the Internet to find good photos of balloons and rainbow sprinkles. I thought these images would be easy to find, but nothing looked right, and nothing did the statements justice to me. Nothing I found was special enough. Therefore I created my own visuals if none could be found.

To visualize the balloon response, I had the idea to draw very simple circles illustrating a bunch of balloons overlapping one another. I used the “multiply” tool to mimic light shinning through a bunch of colorful balloons.

The overlapping shapes created interesting overlays and the visual solution looked happy, just like the picture in my mind. In representing “rainbow sprinkles,” I was struck by what that person wrote on their Joy Letter. This person wrote, “Rainbow Sprinkles, I don’t care what anyone else thinks. You’re never too old to enjoy them.” After reading her response I had the biggest smile on my face. What she wrote was so special; it had to be incorporated into the visual response. Since I couldn’t find photos of rainbow sprinkles I liked, to drew them by creating tiny rectangles in illustrator and turning them different colors. I spread these over bold type that said, “I don’t care what anyone else thinks.” The playful lighthearted sprinkles contrast with the bold typographic statement.

After the exhibition, I opened this process to a new audience, friends of friends. This was an important test of the project cycle I’d been using at this point. Could this exercise of reading letters and designing visual

Joy, Delight anD growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

respon

design

way m

During

wave, I

that ei

nine p in the

and ma

mailed

thrill fr

withou

batch w

enough

respon

One go

(see fig

The fi

excitem

me a s

girl, are

could I

were th

this res

any wa

within

I began

“ss� wo 87

responses still work when I didn’t know that people for which I was designing? And would people I didn’t know open up about joy the same way my friends had done?

During the summer, I sent out another round of letters. In this second wave, I mailed two Joy Letters (same design as the first set) to nine people that either participated before or were familiar with the project (see above). These nine people gave their two letters to someone they knew to participate in the project. Those new participants read the letters, filled it out for me, and mailed it. From the second batch I received almost half of the letters I mailed. In this second batch I felt less connection to the writer.

Part of the thrill from before was guessing the person who wrote it. I read each letter without looking to see who wrote it until after. Designing for this second batch was more of a challenge. The images I picked needed to be vague enough to not apply too specially to anyone, or else I would visualize their response “wrong,” and they would feel no connection to what I designed. One good example of this is the design for, “the first kiss” visual response (see right).

The first kiss is an experience (I hope) everyone can relate to. The excitement and thrill of that moment with a potential mate certainly brings me a sense of joy. Here comes the challenge; am I designing for a boy or girl, are they gay or straight, single or married, liberal or conservative? How could I know? Therefore typography and images that aren’t too specific were the only solutions. The receiver of this postcard, and anyone viewing this response within the project, can interpret the statement “the first kiss” any way they want. That was my goal; that viewers can place themselves within any of the visual responses. To create the design for, “the first kiss” I began playing with the word “kissed” typographically. I noticed the two “ss” would be fun to play with. I reflected one ‘s’ so the letters themselves

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

In rega

related

each v

each p them.

throug

that ea

what o

postca

Anothe

partici

divided

I creat decks While to see decks

front a could kiss, freeing me from finding a photo of a kissing couple. The two

experie

flipped “ss” together also create a heart which speaks to love. I added the

tangib

song lyrics to the response that say, “and then we kissed” which speaks to

viewin

the moment I was trying to visualize. In this design solution, anyone, gay, straight or otherwise can relate to the response. This is how I approached the design for the second batch of 15 additional responses. This group was harder to create and definitely a unexpected challenge. While it is harder to create work for people you don’t know it’s still a great exercise and helps make This brings me joy. The Joy Project more well-rounded, by creating connections through design with new audiences.

89

he two

ded the

eaks to

ne, gay,

oached

up was

harder

d helps

eating

In regards to the form of the visual responses, I designed something that related to the form of the Joy Letters. Since I mailed letters first, I designed each visual response as a postcard. At the end of the exhibition, I mailed each person their unique postcard so they could see what I designed for them (see below). This created a transfer of joy to anyone receiving the postcards, through sharing, the final stage within my methodology. It was important that each participant see the larger pool of joy responses, and to consider what others wrote. To ensure this, each participant received additional postcards of other people’s visual responses.

Another idea was to package the project in different ways so others could participate, experience, give or receive it. The 60 visual responses were divided into two decks of thirty postcards for the exhibition. For each deck I created packaging, like postcard sets found at the MoMA store. These decks served several purposes during the exhibition (see right). While I framed each visual response on the wall, I wanted the viewer to see the specific text statement that inspired my visual work. These decks served this function within the exhibition as each viewer saw the front and back of each postcard. These postcards were held, touched and experienced on a one-to-one basis. It was important to create something tangible, human-centered, and small enough in size to create an intimate viewing experience, much like the experience of reading the letters.

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

91

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

93

Joy(ous) Notation One of the last projects created for the MFA exhibition are the Joy(ous) Notation books. These pocket-sized books were inspired by data and language patterns I noticed while creating the wallpaper for the exhibition (see page 96). I removed duplicate joy statements so the viewer could read 800 unique statements from the Joy Letters. On the wallpaper, it was not important to see which statements repeated and how many times.

However, this information was interesting and I knew people were curious to see which statements were the most popular. I created these booklets as companion guides to the wallpaper, and the digital animation on the screen. I divided this book into eight different sections, all based upon patterns in language. For example, there were 37 responses that start by saying “joy is a …” Some of these include, a backhand winner in tennis, a clean apartment, a clean house, a cool breeze, a good cocktail, a good critique, etc. I designed each spread to be chiefly typographic drawing attention to the language. Many statements also used the words being, cooking, dancing, finding, feeling, having and making in regards to joy.

Some of these examples include, “joy is being in love and being loved by someone who totally gets me, joy is cooking and the people you feed like it so much they don’t talk, joy is dancing all night long, and joy is feeling confident.” This collection of statements was the exact same text that appeared on the wallpaper but I drew attention to these statements by giving them a new form. While the wallpaper made me statement equal with the same visual weight and appearance, this project brought out the special nature of the selected statements.

Joy, Delight anD growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

Blank Note cards One final project within the MFA exhibition are the blank cards I left in the space during the opening. By walking through the exhibition and experiencing the joy-related projects, I hoped viewers would contribute their own joy responses at the exhibition. They could participate like those who sent the letters. I stamped white cards with the same green line that appeared as branding for the printed pieces. On the screen above the blank cards, the project logo animated and “This brings me joy. The ___ Project” was filled with statements from the wallpaper. Viewers saw this and it was their chance to add what they didn’t see in the letters, on screen or on the postcards. I also experimented with form. The cards are much smaller and only leave room for about one or two statements. Every card was filled out by the opening’s end. These cards were hung on the wall to add another layer of statements in the exhibition. It was very important that the final project within my exhibition was a platform for others to share and contribute. I wanted to create ways to have a conversation and an exchange. This relates again to the final step in my methodology, sharing, and the value of collaborative work.

95

hange • changing careers • changing leaves • checking things off on to-do ubby ice cream • church • claudia (my dog) • cleaning • coffee • coffee with ooking to people i don’t • cooking something yummy • copious amounts of • daily chats with the boys in 103 • dan savage’s column • dance parties • ood • desert in general • designing • diet coke • dilly dallying • dipping my s • driving • drunk babies • eating a home-cooked meal • eating fresh fruit y • family and friends • family dinners • family reunions • fashion • feeling pockets/purses • finding the perfect design solution on a project • finding ersity and appalachian state university football games • flowers • flowers s • friends & family • friends gathered and laughing • fruit loops and pretty otic destination • getting accepted for a job • getting an expected text mesents and realizing i’m eligible to be an italian citizen • getting my makeup than taking/getting) • glee • glitter • goat cheese and olives • going home nd family • good get in tennis • good movies • good olive oil • goodRESULT(S) photogy being able to afford it • having a mentor who cares • having a really good amily history • hearing my mother laugh • hearing my niece & nephew say ng to the top the mountain • holding my teddy bear when going to sleep • orrible pain of life • independence • inside jokes • intelligence • irish soda elp others • kosher salt • kylie minogue • la vie en rose by louis armstrong ntire project on meditation • let it be by the beatles • letting someone know go out • listening to music • listening to music on a road trip • listening to g talks with old friends • looking at maps, namely a world map • looking at making a difference • making a difference in someone’s life • making and urritos with my gays • martin luther king holiday (to recognize him) • masmushroom (pesto pizza) • memories • memories of my mom & sister • mimy best friend • my best friends dimitrat & alexia • my bonkers family • my wiggins my friends deb, lan,daniel erin, and jenn • my godson kingston • my house being d • new math artist craig gamramer • new smelling deodorant • noah • not organizing • outdoor dining • oysters • paper crafts • paris • passion • paygetables • playing a new record for the first time • playing hooky • playing ying they make me so happy • puppy kisses from bear • putting up a good he bed in the middle of the night and feeling a warm softly sleeping body • miniscing • reminding myself of childhood and how free & fun life is or can uring work for exhibition • seeing a brand i love live • seeing children smile m • seeing tom help mom’s with strollers up/down subway stairs • seeing he roof • silence • singing • singing frogs at night • singing from the heart • aughing • smooth rocks-visually • snorkeling • snow storms • snow! • soft, ending time with family • sports related to water • spring • spring cleaning tenacity • sugar • summer • summer nights and a starry sky • sun + sand BACK(GROUND) ming in the rain • switzerland • taking baths • taking photographs • taking mily dog • the feeling after a good workout • the feeling at the beginning of e gnocchi with butter and sage my mom makes when i go home • the idea of lavender • the smell of rain • the smell of sunscreen • the sound of fresh arm • the tender lick of my dog teddy • the urge to dance to subway drumvoking poetry • thunderstorms • thunderstorms in summertime • tofurkey ed successes • unicorns • upsetting a ranked team • urban settings • usuuponin a the time, 1 joyful person on the beach • walks at chele warm dayOnce • walking woods • walking sent 40 joyful letters. Several g dogs play with other dogs in central park • watching mike pole dance on weeks later, this 1 person received o one but myself • wearing sexy lace clothes • wedding cake • weekends • 33 joyful letters in return. This 1 vu’s played in my coffee shop • whipped cream • white lilies • wi-fi • wine • person once again was filled with diana • 5 minutes before it starts to rain • 7am in the winter • 80’s music • boundless joy. apartment • a clean house • a cold sunny day • a cool breeze • a delicious se friend • a last second winning shot at a basketball game • a lazy sunday This story is about those ice on a hot afternoon • a nice white bed • a rainy day • a really good home 33 joyful letters and the 33 vances in gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender equal rights • adventure wonderfully inspiring people • ants • any good book but especially harry potter • anytime at the • beach who wrote them. bad bad barbershop quartets on youtube • baking • baking cookies • balti• being drunk & riding the subway with my friends • being flexible • being ing slim & fit • being with my family all together • betsy’s funny comments ad and olive oil • breakfast • breakfast in bed • brief moments of solitude •

JOY(OUS) NOTATION em er gin g trends from this brings me joy PROJECT ONE

LETTERS. 34 34

760

DEFINITIONS

OR WAYS TO EXPERIENCE JOY. TREND(S)

JOY IS ... a backhand winner in tennis a big bowl of ice cream a big hug when you need it most a bottle of rose wine in the sun with huge sunglasses and listening to the waves a call from a friend a candle a clean apartment a clean house a cold sunny day a cool breeze a delicious cocktail(s) on a summer afternoon a good book a good cocktail a good critique a good dj and an awesome club a good glass of red wine a good nap

a a a a a a a a

a a a a

a a a

a t a a a a

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

TREND(S)

JOY IS ... cooking and the people you feed like it so much they don’t talk.

a good shower a good tv show a great book a great meal with friends a hug from a close friend a lazy sunday morning with my husband a learning moment with a student a leisurely stroll on one of those first spring days of the season a letter from a friend a letter from grandma viaiti a new song from a favorite artist a nice weiss beer with orange slice on a hot afternoon a nice white bed a rainy day a really good home cooked meal with my parents, my brother, and fiance a simple quiet moment with my houghts a smile from a stranger a snowy night a walk a well designed poster that beautifully conveys a good idea

TREND(S)

JOY IS ...

cooking for people I love and brag about my cooking to people I don’t.

having a good idea for a project and actually being able to afford it • having a mentor who cares • having a really good home cooked meal with people who are close to me • having moo greet me when I get home

finding random cash in my pockets/ purses 97

• h com the hav tum

(W

H

ing the G train right as I get on atform so I don’t to wait • having my butterflies.

WORTH)

AVING.

-

New Projects – Website, Social Media, and Newsprint My last visual projects relate to completing the circle with This brings me joy … by addressing an unknown audience. In the spring I sent 40 letters to friends I knew. During the summer I mailed letters to friends of friends; a group once removed from myself. In this final exploration, I addressed a completely unknown audience, strangers in NYC. To address this audience focused on gathering new data or joy statements. Today I have close to 1,000 unique ways to experience joy and still want to collect more to expand the project. The first ways I went about gathering new statements was by creating online extensions of This brings me joy ... At this point This brings me joy … was only experienced in print, through the mail or in person during the MFA exhibition. In order for me to continue the project and for it to grow itself, I had to reach out to online audiences. First I created the website, thisbringsmejoy.com. The purpose of this site was to document all the visual responses I created and mimic the grid I laid out in my exhibition. The visual responses were impactful as a large unit within the exhibition so my challenge was to create that same layout online. After hours of photoshopping, resizing, and tweaking code, thebringsmejoy.com was launched in summer 2011 (see page 101). While I couldn’t be happier with the appearance of the site, there is limited functionality. As I am not a programmer, I don’t know how to code more interactivity into the site.

Therefore, I created a blog that serves as a more interactive extension of the website. On the blog (thisbringsmejoy.tumblr.com) users are free to reblog things I’ve uploaded (such as the postcards, text statements, letters, and process photos) or add their own statements of joy. Since the launch, countless photos have been reblogged and I’ve gathered many new statements by asking, what brings you joy? To expand the project even further online, I created a “This brings me joy” Twitter account. On the Twitter account I post the text statements and visual responses I’ve collected/created in the last eight months.

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

The very last visual project that makes up my thesis capstone is the

Twitte

newsprint version of This brings me joy. The Joy Project (see page 103).

appear

In this print piece I expanded what I started with the Joy(ous) Notation

more n

booklets. What I love so much about my capstone project in general is that the information I collected is interesting in so many different forms.

By exp

First there are the letters, which are beautiful, individually expressive and

engagi

personal. The visual responses are colorful and showcase my abilities as

by sha

a designer and allowed me the opportunity to create countless new visual

inform

projects. The joy statements as text are so rich with information and

This re

meaning, they can be turned into books, posters, weaved into a narrative

that fa

or typeset in huge blocks to create wallpaper. I wanted to create one last

while g

visual project dealing with the richness of the joy statements as text I

audien

had collected. To expand upon the Joy(ous) Notation books, I created a

explora

double-sided newsprint poster that served several purposes. First this

of new

printed piece advertised the project and helped gather new statements through digital means. This project opened This brings me joy … to a unknown audiences. I used the folds of the poster to create a booklet that opens larger and larger until the back is a full size poster. As the viewer opens the newsprint piece, they learn more and more information about the project. The pay off comes at the end when viewers see hundreds of joy statements and the words, “things brings me joy” overlaid in bold typography. There are several QR codes on different folds of the piece that link to the twitter account to gather new statements. On the back I advertised the project website, thisbringsmejoy.com. I printed 1,000 of these newsprint booklets and distributed them all over New York City. An additional related project within my neighborhood was the wheat paste version of the newsprint project. I designed a full-sized poster to be wheat pasted poster on construction sides or open lots around Williamsburg.

The bold typography got the viewer’s attention first and upon closer inspection the viewer paused to begin reading responses. If they had a 99

is the

Twitter account, they could share a statement of joy or read others that

e 3.13).

appear on the site. In the coming weeks I look forward to gathering even

otation

more new statements from people I’ve never met.

eral is forms.

By expanding this project outside of the walls of an MFA exhibition, I’m

ve and

engaging with a real audience with new possibilities. This is what I mean

ties as

by sharing within my methodology. When collaboration or the exchange of

visual

information takes place, opportunities arise for the creation of new work.

on and

This relates back to our role as designers. We are visual communicators

rrative

that facilitate the exchange of information. My thesis capstone does that

ne last

while giving me a platform to create new self-initiated work involving an

s text I

audience. My subject matter happens to be joy but projects that emphasize

ated a

exploration, making and sharing create rich opportunities for the creation

st this

of new work and growth as a designer.

ements ‌ to a

et that

viewer about

ndreds

n bold

e piece back I

000 of

City. An

t paste wheat

rg. The

pection

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

101

103

i hypot that c worK IV. Conclusions

In this paper, I hypothesized that creating work using one’s joy, skill, love or talent was an entry point to design would create work with more

enthusiasm and interest. This would establish a greater connection between designer and user. A positive exchange would take place tied to

designed work the creator is passionate about. I argued that creating work with this approach has powerful benefits. Since our work as designers

is created for use and communication, designers, clients and audiences alike will experience benefits of work created in this way. This is also

advantageous for staying vital as practitioners of design. Designers need

to adopt a process that is always replenishing the creative well of ideas. If this is not done, designers will present the same solutions over and over

again. Designers become burned out and adapt to uncreative situations

by becoming complacent. In the Happiness Project Project,, Gretchen Rubin mentions that an atmosphere of growth can help offset adaptability of

human emotion. Growth can do the same thing in design. Work produced in an atmosphere of growth is far more fruitful to designer and client alike.

One way to achieve an atmosphere of growth within the creative process

is through the use of my methodology centered on exploring, making and sharing.

My MFA explorations served as opportunities to explore, refine and develop my process in the creation of a larger over-aching methodology

that can be applied to future design projects. This was chiefly used in

the creation of my thesis capstone, This brings me joy. The Joy Project.

In regards to evaluating the success of this work, I couldn’t have created it without a process that encouraged me to dig deeper and explore new options. The fact that I was still able to create new and interesting visual projects months down the road speaks the strength of my process. Even today I have ideas for new projects, and that’s the mark of a successful process in application.

thesiZ creati K Usin Joy, Delight anD growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

In evaluating the success of my thesis capstone, I couldn’t be happier with

the results. I’m thankful I was given extra time to complete my inquiry into the emotion of joy within the lives of others. By opening this process to three audiences (friends, friends of friends and strangers), I gained a greater understanding of this emotion. The fact that people unknown to

me opened up and wrote letters and participated in the project shows its relevance and importance. This also illustrates why sharing is such an important component within my methodology. The statements I gathered during this inquiry shaped the creation of my design work. I thought about

joy in ways I’d never considered, and through exploration and making, I

designed new projects unlike my earlier work. This new work held greater meaning to me and any who experienced it. From the beginning I knew

I wanted to design with and not for. for. Designing for is a closed cycle and

designing with speaks to collaboration and sharing. Though this process I learned I’m happiest when I’m designing with people I know and have a

Letters, from friends I knew, personal connection with. The first set of Joy Letters, gave me the most inspiration and I was excited to create something truly

special for each person. Once I expanded this process to a group once removed (friends of friends) and later to unknown audiences (online,

newsprint and wheat paste posters) I didn’t know whom I was designing with. At that point I felt I was designing for someone, not with someone.

This process was not as rewarding to me and I didn’t have any feedback

saying if my design was “successful.” For example, many people told me

receiving their postcard in the mail made their day or made them smile.

Something I designed delighted and touched people. Designing situations where this can happened is unique. Designing situations where this also inspires the creation of countless design projects is even far more rare.

Project. This This speaks to the success of the This brings me joy. The Joy Project. project brought me to an important realization: personal relationships 105

with clients are important and can help foster better design solutions and opportunities for collaboration. In the future I will seek to cultivate relationships with clients in the hopes of creating work I’m more excited about and work they are happier to receive.

The greatest compliment during this process came when one of the letter receivers wrote me saying my inquiry into joy inspired him to take more time to consider joy in their own life. He created an inspiration board where he hung my letter as his first piece of inspiration. Over the weeks he added more to wall, pictures of family, friends, quotes and objects. Everyday sees that board and thinks about what makes him happy and all the things has to be thankful for. Knowing that something I designed produced this positive reaction makes this all worth it.

To prove the effectiveness of my methodology in practice, one can examine the results from my textile design process work. As stated, in the course we were encouraged to explore, learn by making and share ideas and experiences to ultimately design a repeat digital textile. The three sketch/ process books I created serve as artifacts exemplifying this process. It was through creating these books that I was awarded the “best overall student” textile design award. My teachers said in these books they could see that I took my skills as a graphic designer and successfully applied them to the practice of textile design. They also mentioned that I let myself free and fully embraced a new process. This happened for several reasons. Being in a new country with new people and ideas allowed me to think in new ways.

I also had the freedom to explore new ideas through a discipline I’d never practiced before. The learn by making approach and our concentration on process is why this six-week course was so impactful on my creative methodology. This course also serves of an example of many of Brue Mau’s belief in practice. I was able to “being anywhere, use the necessity

THIS BRINGS ME JOY: 60 VISUAL RESPONSES TO JOY

Joy, Delight anD growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design POSTAGE STAMP

of production as an excuse to study, perform and experiments,” in the same

V. Furt

way Mau advocates in this Incomplete Manifesto for Growth. I was given

In rega

the opportunity to “drift, wander aimlessly, explore adjacencies without

brings

judgment and criticism.” In this freedom I found my process.

letters

What brings you joy?

Share at thisbringsmejoy.com

when I

and I b

I’d also

joy new like to THIS BRINGS ME JOY: 60 VISUAL RESPONSES TO JOY

What brings you joy?

Share at thisbringsmejoy.com

statem POSTAGE STAMP

things

I would

so muc

May your walls know joy; may every room hold laughter and every window open to great possibility.

what I

Maryanne Radmacher-Hershey

gather

sketch

Collect

gather

referen

becom create textile

During textile

visits, b

as a de like to

I notic

design 107

thoU stU articU V. Further Directions

In regards to future projects, I’m interested in furthering the growth of This

brings me joy. The Joy project. I’d like to gather more joy statements through

letters and digital means. As earlier discussed, I experienced the most joy when I received letters from people I knew. This gave me the most reward

and I believe that energy was passed to those receiving my responses.

I’d also like to create more projects centered on the text, much like the joy newsprint poster. The words and text statements are so powerful, I’d

like to focus on creating a form that communicates the meaning of these statements to others. This form could be a book, possibly like Kipfer’s 1400 things to be Happy About or Pasricha’s the Book of Awesome.

I would also like to get back into the practice of textile design. I learned

so much from that process and I feel I’ve only scratched the surface of what I can do with textile design. First, I will to keep creating the process/

sketchbooks as I transition into the professional practice of design.

Collecting, documenting, manipulating and assembling inspiration I gather is a fruitful way to interject new ideas in the design process. By

gathering this inspiration in book form, I’m creating documentation for reference anytime I’m searching for new ideas. The books themselves

become design objects, and years later a collection of these books

will create a library of inspiration. Secondly, I want to resume blogging

about textile design and searching for modern and historic examples it in practice. During the course I blogged everyday for two weeks about Scandinavian textile design, and not only didn’t I receive a massive

volume of new site visits, but I learned a lot in the process. That speaks to growth and learning as a designer, which truly is the capstone objective in my thesis. Finally, I’d like to design an complete collection of patterns

based on the wood motifs I noticed in Denmark. I had so many ideas in addition to the one pattern I designed and look forward to the opportunity

Ugh th UDy an Ulatio Joy, Delight anD growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

for those ideas to be realized. Another idea is to create new patters once a

week, month or day as a personal challenge to myself. This would form a

series of self-initiated projects which I advocate an important activity for any designer.Â

Finally, I’d like to apply this entire process and infuse it to my typical day-

to-day practice of design (i.e. my job). If I can find ways to make the work

I do for money more enriching, it will make that work more fulfilling to me

as a designer. This will allow me to stay vital and connected to the process of design, for clients large and small. The beauty of investigating a thesis centered on process and not a final project, or collection of projects, is

that I can apply what I learned to anything I create in the future. Through

exploration, making and sharing I have unlimited ways to approach new

design problems in the future. Though this study and articulation of my process, I found countless future opportunities for growth as a designer and creator. And now the challenge becomes, where to begin?

Begin anywhere.

109

Bibliography and Resources 1. Millman’s Look Both Ways was a primary inspiration in researching visual essays and the value of sharing. Her book was my first introduction to Millman as an author and designer, and months later I to meet and interviewed her.

Millman, Debbie. Look Both Ways: Illustrated Essays on the Intersection

of Life and Design. Ohio: HOW Books, 2009.

2. And The Pursuit of Happiness follows Kalman’s yearlong investigation into the US political system. The book is a collection of visual essays she wrote for the NY Times. Kalman’s strength comes from elevating the everyday into something poignant and special. She is great inspiration on the value of the personal and shows how to explore new subjects.

Kalman, Maira. And the Pursuit of Happiness. New York: Penguin Press,

2010.

3. This book is one the most important sources in my inquiry into joy. The ties between happiness and joy are very close, but joy is more powerful and lasting than happiness, and harder to come by. The Happiness Project follows Ruben in her yearlong quest to test the knowledge of the ages and be happier.

Ruben, Gretchen. The Happiness Project. New York: HarperCollins, 2009.

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

4. This book was a great inspiration to my thesis. Csikszentmihalyi talks a lot about joy and happiness and how they relate to work. This source helped add theoretical and academic research about the Flow theory and its relation to my creative process.

Csikszentmihalyi, Mihaly. Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience.

New York: Harper Perennial. 1990.

5. Frobel, the farther of Kindergarten advocated the importance of play in learning. He developed much of the Kindergarten concept of teaching that is still in use today.

Frobel, Friedrich. Education of Man. New York. Appleton, 1995.

6. This source was particularly useful in creating my creative methodology.

I was interested in how play, and a sense of excitement could be used for learning, and that is dated back from the Renaissance. This source closely related to the work of Frobel in Education of Man. Gibert, Hignet. The Art of Teaching. New York: Knopf, 1950.

7. Everyone knows Rand for his iconic logo work, but I found this article useful in making the case for play in a graphic design context.

Rand, Paul. “Design & Play Instinct.� Education of Vision. 1965. 28 Jan. 2011

<http://www.paul-rand.com/>

111

8. In Learn from Snowstorms, Gilliam talks about the ingenuity and creative potential that arises when a city is hit with a snowstorm. Gilliam also makes the case for making in this article, which in his view is joyful.

Gilliam, Alex. “Learn from Snowstorms.” Corr77. 13 May 2010. 11 Jan. 2011.

<http://www.core77.com/blog/events/learn_from_snowstorms_

by_alex_gilliam_16554.asp >

9. In this article, Esperdy researches the connection between advertising and joy. When BMW switched their marketing to “Joy in BMW” Esperdy showed this wasn’t the first time. Her article shows joy is a persuasive force in to communicate with consumers.

Esperdy, Gabrielle. “Driven to Joy.” 8 May 2010. 11 Jan. 2011

<http://www.core77.com/blog/events/driven_to_joy_by_gabrielle_

esperdy_16533.asp >

10. Frank Chimero is an important source in my thesis due to his value of play within the creative process. Both his essay Play is Serious and his SVA lecture were very informative for making this case.

Chimero, Frank. “Play is Serious.” 19 Nov. 2009. 15. Jan. 2011.

<http://blog.frankchimero.com/post/249808119/playing-is-

serious-every-once-in-a-while-i>

11. In Glimmer, Warren Berger writes about the ideas of Brue Mau and his studio. This was an inspiring source due to Mau’s Incomplete Manifesto for Growth and the value Mau places of exploration, making and sharing.

Berger, Warren. Glimmer. New York. The Penguin Press. 2009.

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

12. This source served as an example of an interactive project that explored human emotion in digital space. It showed how raw data could be collected and transformed for the creation of new visual projects. We Feel Fine also explore happiness and feeling in social media, which I explored in the MFA Exploration section in my thesis.

Kamvar, Sep and Harris, Jonathan. We Feel Fine: And Almanac of Human

Emotion. New York. Scribner. 2009.

13. Kipfer’s book served as inspiration for the creation of my capstone project. I asked participants to list moments of joy in an experience inspired by Kipfer.

Kipfer, Barbara Ann. 14,000 Things to be Happy About. New York. Workman

Publishing. 2007.

14. This book is as another example of a project dealing with human emotion online. Pasricha’s blog was turned into a successful book where people discuss sources of joy and awesome things to be happy about.

Pasricha, Neil. The Book of Awesome. Berkley Books. New York. 2010.

15. Kimmelman’s book gave valuable insight into a large range of topics including life and art, the creative process and the importance of drawing.

It was instrumental in helping to define my creative process.

Kimmelman, Michael. The Accidental Masterpiece. Penguin Books. New

York. 2005.

113

Interviews 16. In 2011, I met Debbie Millman at the Masters in Branding studio at SVA. Millman was helpful in giving me her unique views the adaptability of human emotion.

Millman, Debbie. Personal interview. 13 Jan. 2011.

17. During our telephone interview, Alex Gilliam explained his work for Public Workshop, joy in making, doing, learning and the need to education reform. This information was especially helping in drafting my creative methodology.

Gilliam, Alex. Telephone interview. 18 Jan. 2011.

18. In this podcast, Millman interviews the graphic designer Marian Bantjes. I quote a portion of the interview when Bantjes talks about the value of work that inspires and creates wonder. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Marian Bangjes.â&#x20AC;? Design Matters. Debbie Millman. Design Observer. 2 Nov. 2010.

19. I interviewed one of my professors in Copenhagen to learn about her creative process, and the value of making and exploration in her work.

This interview was helpful in articulating the Scandinavian approach to design.

Pedersenon, Gunhild. Email interview. 5 Nov. 2011.

Joy, Delight and Growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

Lectures: 20. This lecture helped expand what I knew about Chimero after reading his blog for several months. He was a valuable source on the subjects of play and being excited about the work you create.

Chimero, Frank. “Cut My Teeth.” Fall Lecture Series. MFA in Interaction

Design. The School of Visual Arts. 8 Oct. 2010.

21. This lecture introduced me to the work of Frobel and Csikszentmihalyi and their connections to joy, play, and learning. His work at Rockwell Group was very inspiring for the design of my Cross-Disciplinary studio project in Spring 2011.

Viemeister, Tucker. “Play=Learning=Design.” Spring 2011 Design Criticism

MFA Lecture Series. MFA Design Criticism Department. The School

of Visual Arts. 15 Feb. 2011.

Ted Talks: 22. This Ted Talk about Charles and Ray was particularly interesting. I loved learning more about the Eames from a first hand source, their Grandson. He talked about their learn by doing approach and helped shed light on the design genius that was Charles and Ray Eames.

Eames, Demetrios. “The Design Genius of Charles and Ray Eames.” Ted.

Feb 2007. July 2009. <http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/eng/the_

design_genius_of_charles_and_ray_eames.html>

115

Joy, Delight anD growth:

harnessing the power of joy in design

architecture • art • art m day • babies laughing • • baking • baking cooki play/musical/opera • be ing • being drunk & ridi totally gets me • being i • being optimistic • bei beyond the valley of the the dog • bow ties • bra brief moments of solitu loons • buying girl porn darkest hours • candlel sweaters • chai fro For months I’velatte been to-do lists • cheering on means to me, and wh chocolate • chocolate ca others.

In 2011, 50 part • Claudia (my dog) • cle me, asking them to lis memories • color theory and experiences that b and brag about my cook delight.

Together the sauce • creating anythi containing 900 • cupcakes • over cute babies experience joy.

• dancing all night long gins • daydreaming ab dilly dallying •d Incoke this• project, I'm tur new objects a orcovering experiences of joy a friends • driving drun new work.

I hope• these eating popcorn at the m understanding of joy Presley • espresso in th and help you•define doing ballet feeling joy co inayour life.solution greatown design solution on a project • fi finishing cleaning my a sity andThis Appalachian s Brings Me our troops •www.thisb foxes • Fran ums • art, museums, ga animals • bacon: the sm Baltimore • beautiful ty able to help a friend, esp subway with my friend middle of a great book over-caffeinated • being movie and soundtrack kicks and the amazing FOLLOW & SHARE colors • Brooklyn brunc magazines) • buying pe may • car trips • carolin • chai tea latte • champa • cheese and crackers & gies • christmas songs @thisbringsmejoy coffee with real cream • cooking • cooking and don’t • cooking somethi moons • cuddling • cud • cute old men walking all night with

About t

y smile, makes you happy, of fulfillment? It can be the morning, a sunny day, a lling at night, finishing a our favorite song, seeing itting your job or starting a .

BRINGS Y? ERE

THE GL OM OF THE W RLD IS BUT A SHAD W; BEHIND IT, YET WITHIN OUR REACH, IS J Y. TAKE JOY. -FRA GIOVANNI GIOCONDO OPEN HERE

PULL DOWN

117

“A thing of beauty is a joy forever.”

In my thesis I’m investigating the power of joy and delight to grow as a designer and creator. Joy is an opportunity and has the power to transform and empower. This sense of empowerment can take countless applications, especially in design.

IV. Conclusions In this paper, I h love or talent was enthusiasm and between designer designed work the with this approac is created for use alike will experie advantageous for to adopt a process this is not done, d again. Designers by becoming co mentions that an human emotion. G in an atmosphere One way to achie is through the use sharing.

My MFA explora develop my proce that can be appli the creation of m In regards to eval it without a proce options. The fact t projects months d today I have idea