LA DOLCE FAR NIENT
L E E J I N G L I N | 17750 | B A DC 6A | C R E AT I V E P R OCESS JOURN AL
LA DOLCE FAR NIENT
SWEET IDLENESS
I've been in Rome for three weeks... ...all l've done is learn a few ltalian words and eat. You feel guilty because you're American. You don't know how to enjoy yourself. l beg your pardon? Americans know entertainment, but don't know pleasure. You want to know your problem? Americans. You work too hard. You get burned out. Then you come home and spend the whole weekend... ...in your pajamas in front of the TV. That's not far off, actually. But you don't know pleasure. You have to be told you've earned it. But an ltalian doesn't need to be told. He walks by a sign that says, "you deserve a break today"... ...and he says, "Yeah, l know. That's why I'm planning on taking a break at noon... ...to go over to your house and sleep with your wife." We call it "dolce far niente." It means... ...the sweetness of doing nothing. We are masters of it.
Taken from the film EAT PRAY LOVE.
What if you did just nothing?
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SUMMARY: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7.
Photography Catch up with friends [BBQ, Supper and JB] Preparation for presentation Interviews for dissertation Short trip to Taiwan Global Design Initiative Ideation for studio work
“Design is more about observing the world around you, then about personal creativity.” QUOTE BY: CAM SHAW It is through we add to the to be open to our attention
registering impressions of our surroundings that storehouse of our internal experience. In order such impressions, we need to slow down and turn outwards – to look.
ANALOGUE PHOTOGRAPHY:
D E C E M B E R H O L I D AY S
CATCH UP WITH FRIENDS:
Travelling to JB with classmates: Dan, Stef and Marcus
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
CLASS BBQ:
Barbeque with new students at ECP
D E C E M B E R H O L I D AY S
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
During the holidays, I received an email from the teaching team to present my studio work. The following pages contain the presentation slides and script.
I think this is a great opportunity to explain my work to my fellow classmates and faculty. This allows them to gain an in-depth understanding of my projec.
D E C E M B E R H O L I D AY S
In the beginning,
Before I start to explain what I did for last sem’s studio, let me take you back to the start. In the beginning, I came across this project that talked about introducing periods of absence into our daily lives.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
In the beginning,
I felt inspired by the topic and decided to combine it with my compendium which was called The Creative Paradox where it talks about unusual ways to stimulate or enhance creativity.
D E C E M B E R H O L I D AY S
LEE JING LIN
17750
BADC6A
THE PRODUCTIVE
PAUSE
My project is called The Productive Pause which is about promoting periods of idleness to creative practitioners to enhance creativity.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
THE PRODUCTIVE
Historical:
Conceptions on creativity
PAUSE Over time, conceptions of creativity have changed and evolved. until today, there is no fixed and agreed way to define creativity.
D E C E M B E R H O L I D AY S
THE PRODUCTIVE
Framework:
The Creative Process by Graham Wallas
PAUSE However, in the present day, one of the frameworks on creativity that is heavily cited across research papers is based on Graham Wallas’ theory on the creative process.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
THE PRODUCTIVE
Stage 1:
Preparation
PAUSE The framework consists of four stages. the first stage being “Preparation�. During preparation, the creative practitioner, like you and I will define the problem and spend time understanding the brief. this involves gathering information and ultimately entails engaging the conscious mind. essentially, this phase is when we ideate and we may use strategies and tools such as mind maps or sketching.
D E C E M B E R H O L I D AY S
THE PRODUCTIVE
Stage 2:
Incubation
PAUSE Moving on, the second stage is the Incubation phase whereby Wallas proposes that the creative practitioner would step back from the creative problem and let their mind wander. an example of this phase is when we decide to take a break from work and do nothing. I will explain more on this later.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
THE PRODUCTIVE
Stage 3:
Illumination
PAUSE This follows by the insights arrive from “Eureka/AHA” moments.
third stage, ‘Illumination’ whereby the mind, commonly associated with
D E C E M B E R H O L I D AY S
THE PRODUCTIVE
Stage 4:
Verification
PAUSE Finally, the ‘Verification’ stage involves carrying out activities to demonstrate whether the insights that emerged from the previous stage satisfies the problem.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
THE PRODUCTIVE
Problem:
Intention
PAUSE This sums up the Creative Process, in the four stages. However, the problem that creatives face today is that they are highly involved in the first stage during the period of generating ideas and they don’t actively and intentionally move on to the second phase, which is to let their minds wander as a method to produce ideas.
D E C E M B E R H O L I D AY S
THE PRODUCTIVE
Activated brain region:
Default Mode Network
PAUSE It is during the second phase that a person idles from the work at hand. idling has a cultural notion that it is unproductive as we are seen doing nothing. However, as the advancement of science has evolved and improved, we now know that during periods of mind wandering, a region in the brain known as the Default Mode Network is activated. This is an interesting piece of information as many scientists have always speculated that the “noise” that they observe during the MRI scans were nothing significant. However,with the invention of fMRI, has since proven this theory wrong. What fMRI does is that it scans the brain and detects blood flow in the brain, and they realised that when a person’s mind is wandering, the DMN, a region that supports creativity is activated. this goes to show that the unconscious processes in your mind are the foundations of the incubation period.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
THE PRODUCTIVE
Discussion:
Conscious / Unconscious
PAUSE Essentially, what it means is that, instead of activating our conscious mind, to constantly think of ideas, we should allow ourselves time to step away from the problem and let our unconscious mind do the work. But why should we do so? when we can rely on our conscious mind, you may ask?
D E C E M B E R H O L I D AY S
THE PRODUCTIVE
Research:
Insight versus analytical solutions
PAUSE The reason is, according to a research study, insights that arrive through unconscious processes are generally more novel and correct than analytical solutions.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
THE PRODUCTIVE
Condition:
Mundane activities
PAUSE So is the key to take breaks and idle all day??? Nope. In order for the incubation period to be effective, there are conditions that have to be followed. The key thing during incubation is to do nothing. To do nothing, I know that sounds ridiculous. What is nothing? Doing nothing is not doing nothing at all, I mean, we are always doing something, we are breathing, living etc... what I mean is by performing mundane activities. Mundane activities refers to menial tasks that you do, that requires very little of mental activity. Tasks such as going for a walk, taking a shower. These could be routine activities that you do everyday. Since they are so simple to perform, your mind would naturally wander and when you do so, that’s when the magic happens. So instead of just taking a break and performing stimulating activities like playing ping pong or say using Facebook, unless they’re really really easy to you, perhaps what we can do is to embrace the boredom and mundanity in simple tasks. Hence, by merely taking a break alone will not give you ideas. What you do during so is crucial.
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THE PRODUCTIVE
Semester One: 1. Preparation 2. Incubation 3. Historical 4. Theoretical
PAUSE With that, my studio submission for last semester is designed in four separated studies that cover all 3 mandatories. 1. 2. 3. 4.
Peparation Incubation Historical Theoretical
For Mandatory 1, the the first stage of he when creative people encounter a creative
first study is named preparation, after creative process. It demonstrates that rely on conscious hard work, they will block.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
THE PRODUCTIVE
Semester One: 1. Preparation 2. Incubation 3. Historical 4. Theoretical
PAUSE The next stage is the ‘Incubation set up’. What I did was to ask creative people to pen down their thoughts during a period of mind wandering.
D E C E M B E R H O L I D AY S
THE PRODUCTIVE
Semester One: 1. Preparation 2. Incubation 3. Historical 4. Theoretical
PAUSE For mandatory 2: this is the historical context where I displayed the conceptions of creativity from the Italian renaissance to the present day.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
THE PRODUCTIVE
Semester One: 1. Preparation 2. Incubation 3. Historical 4. Theoretical
PAUSE Also, this piece of work showcased the moments of insights, revealing the different anecdotal accounts of Eureka moments. stories like Newton’s account where he sat under the tree and the apple fell on his head and he had a sudden idea that led to the theory of relativity.
D E C E M B E R H O L I D AY S
THE PRODUCTIVE
Semester One: 1. Preparation 2. Incubation 3. Historical 4. Theoretical
PAUSE Lastly, the ‘Idle Brain Tank’ shows the theoretical concept of how when you are doing nothing, your idle brain is actually active in the regions of the DMN which supports creativity.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
This semester,
Moving on, for this semester, the creative challenge is to promote mundane activities to creative practitioners. Thank you.
D E C E M B E R H O L I D AY S During the December holidays, I aimed to clear primary research. My goal was to conduct 15 interviews and I managed to get 19 interviews, though not all were face to face.
Interview with Mark De Winne from Parable at Porta restaurant - one of the places he designed.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L My family and I also took a short trip to Taiwan for the countdown to 2017. While I was on the trip, Stanley contacted me for an opportunity to audition for the Global Design Initiative.
Although it was a short trip, we had a fun time. We had to climb up 蹥幹 for this picture. It was exhausting HAHAHA.
D E C E M B E R H O L I D AY S
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L I agreed to participate in the tryouts and that meant I had to submit an essay while I was travelling. I did not bring my laptop with me, so that was quite a challenge. The question for the essay was:
I was required to submit a short essay (minimum of 1000 words) responding to the following statement: Art poses questions, Design provides answers. What could be the meaningful connection between art and design? RESPONSE: When I first read the essay question, I was caught for a moment by how beautifully phrased it is. I enjoy how the question summarised the
contrast between art and design so succinctly as a matter of asking questions or answering them. As a design communications student, I have always been taught design in tandem with art. In theory, we
D E C E M B E R H O L I D AY S are supposed to never separate the creative dreaming from the technical skill. But more than just theoretical concepts, reading this question made me realise that I have actually been unconsciously pursuing the balance of art and design in my work as a goal, even if I am not fully cognisant of it. What do I mean? Let me explain.
that. If I can take time to brainstorm longer, think beyond the restriction lines given, play with different ideas - the resulting work is always more novel, creatively presented and innovative. These concepts tend to belong to “art” and less of “design” - but I understand the merits of including them in my creative process.
In school we are taught that art is the product of personal expression, that it is birthed from a place of little limitation; minimal restriction for dreaming. We learn that on the other hand, design is the work produced under a unique set of demands. In design, direction is set and not discovered. It is free from personal expression unlike art, where emotions are freely conveyed.
In other words, designers should not think of themselves as merely solution-providers, but understand that having room to explore beyond the given boundaries like artists do, is important and beneficial to their craft.
What does this mean to my craft? As a student, I tend to receive assignments that resemble more design-based briefs. During my internship stints at two different design companies, I worked on numerous real-world client briefs as well. I believe what makes a piece of work good design is if it is understood accurately and achieves its objectives. But instead of striving merely to communicate the requirements of a brief over to its intended audience, I bear in mind that there is so much more to my craft than
This is an area I am still growing in. Sometimes my pitfalls as a designer come from a place of not wanting to ask questions. Sometimes for the sake of tight deadlines and strict demands, we prefer to believe that ignorance is bliss, and not want to dig further for fear of uncovering potential areas of improvement. But that’s exactly what “Art poses questions” means. Because artists thrive on exploring subject matters and topics, they develop their work by expressing those thoughts and emotions and ideas that they cannot answer. I believe this is what the meaningful connection between design and art is. is
My school, Lasalle, already a symbol of the
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L they cannot answer. I believe this is what the meaningful connection between design and art is. My school, Lasalle, is already a symbol of the meaningful connection between design and art. We brand ourselves as the ‘School of the Arts’ but offer the two specialties and incorporate elements of each branch design and art, in both the subject matters taught. I am privileged to be able to pursue an undergraduate course in a teaching system like this, where faculty understand the merits and differences of both, and is reflected in their teaching styles. On the other hand, we learn that there can be good design and bad design, but there can be no bad art. Art can be expressed and interpreted any way it is. This leads me to wonder - does it matter for people to know if what they are perceiving is design, or art? Both art and design are communication, which means there is no way of determining how they may be received and interpreted by its viewer. If someone approaches a piece of art as design, and tries to make meaning out of it, would that be render the artist’s work entirely meaningless? Maybe there is no way we’ll ever know, or maybe that is the meaningful connection - that it is always up to personal interpretion.
Another connection between art and design that I consciously incorporate in my life is to consume art. Designers need to view, watch or listen to art because art expounds on the human condition. Art reflects society and the state of the world. Designers are always pursuing their target audience, and to speak to them with more relatability and understanding. There is no way a piece of design can be effective if it doesn’t relate to its audience in some way. Art offers designers such as myself insight into what people are thinking, and what they feel about it. For example, watching a modernday musical doesn’t just offer ideas of current affairs and topics that affect the masses, but hones my perceptivity, my sensitivity, and provides rich inspiration as well. That is why I always strive to consume different forms of art to improve my craft as a designer. If I only draw my knowledge and information from design-related materials like typography videos or books, I would end up being more distant to my target audience, and end up designing more for designers. In closing, perhaps another of way saying it would be: Art is expression, design is communication. And it is safe to say that there are many meaningful connections
D E C E M B E R H O L I D AY S between the two. I look forward to continuing my growth as a design apprentice, and would greatly appreciate the opportunity to learn from fellow designers and students
around the world. Thank you.
Shortly after, I received an email from the Dean, notifying me about the interview session with her. I had to prepare myself for the interview by thinking of questions that she may ask me. I also tried to Google more about GDI.
Moving on to the last semester of school is the studio work and dissertation. Here are some of the research that I had conducted for studio. Recap on my design brief: DESIGN STATEMENT: This project aims to provoke the concept of sustained attention and conscious thought towards the task at hand in the creative process - the phenomenon that hinders creative breakthroughs. Instead of perceiving breaks in attention or activity as unproductivity, this project explores
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L such alternative methods to idea generation for creative practitioners - through a study of the Incubation stage of the creative process, as proposed by Graham Wallas. COMMUNICATION OBJECTIVE: This project aims to shed light on the value on idleness as well to encourage creatives to enter the stage of incubation by deliberately fostering periods of inactivity into their life. This project highlights the importance of investing time into performing mundane tasks that promote mindwandering. These are effective alternative solutions to the creative process, that creative practitioners can employ instead of sustaining conscious effort. Finally, this project also explores the ideal conditions that affect the effectiveness of entering a period of inactivity. It aims at redefining distractions – they should exist without mental stimulations: the value of mundane distractions. PROJECT SCOPE AND MISSION STATEMENT: In order to navigate the VUCA (volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous) world, creativity is an increasingly valuable asset, and no longer just for the creative professional. Extensive research has been conducted over the years to explore the intricacies of the elusive creative process, with the goal of determining ways one can consistently generate novel ideas. In recent years, neuroscience has shown that while engaging in undemanding and unrelated tasks, we activate the “Default Mode Network (DMN)” whereby we allow ourselves to mindwander. For example, in the workplace, an undemanding and unrelated task would be snacking. According to the data, such periods of inactivity are crucial to the domain of incubation, one of the four proposed stages of creativity. In other words, when we enter the DMN, original connections between ideas and thought are formed, sparking the “aha” moment when novel ideas are birthed. However, conventional society’s work ethic is inherently problematic. The widely-accepted principle is that creativity thrives solely on extensive conscious thought on the task at hand. Instead of spending time to let our minds
D E C E M B E R H O L I D AY S wander, we are goal-oriented and spend most of our energies focused on activities to fulfil agenda, in order to be more efficient. However, it is in moments of “idleness” or mindwandering that creative breakthroughs are incubated. The idea of productive inactivity here does not mean not doing anything at all. Rather, idleness refers to being engaged in mundane activities that are simply unrelated to the task at hand, and that require low amounts of concentration to perform (e.g. taking a shower, going for a walk etc). Hence, it is not about bypassing work, rather, to intentionally take a productive pause and engage in mundane routine activities. Therefore, this project aims to improve levels of creative productivity among creative professionals in Singapore by introducing the notion of “productive idleness”. By raising awareness on the productivity benefits of idleness, my research aims to provide the industry with an alternative solution to the elusive creative process. TARGET AUDIENCE - Primary Creative practitioners Type: Designers in creative industries from graphic to motion design May work on creative projects as designated by external party e.g. client Including employers and employees Have experience in a physical office/studio environment Age: 21 to 50 years old Budding designers Type: Students from creative institutions Ranging from first-time creatives to those who have been honing their craft for a while May be still refining their raw working style, as learned in school/taught by teachers Age: 19 to 25 years old – Secondary Target: Freelancers Type: Full-time or part-time freelancers Handle creative projects as designated by external party More flexible schedules, not bound by formal office hours/ physical environment Age: 19 to 40 years old
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L DEFINING BOREDOM: Boredom is thought by some (e.g. Fisher, 1993) to be a distinct emotional state in which the level of stimulation is perceived as unsatisfactorily low. The lack of external stimulation leads to increased neural arousal in search of variety – failure to satisfy this leads to experience of boredom. // Boredom is also connected to surfeit — surfeit, coupled with monotony, predictability, and confinement, produces boredom. KEY CONCEPT: The default mode network is known to be involved during mindwandering. The default mode network is active when a person is not focused on the outside world and the brain is at wakeful rest such as during mind-wandering and daydreaming but it is also active when the individual is thinking about others, thinking about themselves, remembering the past, and planning for the future. The network activates “by default” when a person is not involved in a task suggesting mind-wandering is spontaneously activated within the brain. CASE STUDY RESEARCH: 1. THE BORING CONFERENCE
goo.gl/Jl0b3D
D E C E M B E R H O L I D AY S According to the event’s website, “The Boring Conference is a one-day celebration of the mundane, the ordinary, the obvious and the overlooked; subjects often considered trivial and pointless, but when examined more closely reveal themselves to be deeply fascinating.”
So it’s actually only the topics that are boring – the speakers are expected to find a way to make their talks interesting.“The basic idea is that the theme needs to be boring, but the content shouldn’t be. So in the past, a talk about electric hand dryers has been made made interesting with a story about “a man so fascinated by them that he had installed a Dyson Airblade in his house.” And a speaker scheduled to talk about the relative weights and densities of different kinds of metals enthralled the audience by rollerblading around the hall the entire time. 2. HEADSPACE
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“We all need to get a little head space” – it’s a catchphrase that has become ingrained into the psyches of more than a million people worldwide. And it’s all thanks to the quiet
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L ambition of one man who wanted to help stressed-out executives achieve more calm. A few years on and the app to which the phrase belongs – Headspace – has not only transformed the lives of those who use it, but also that of its founder, Andy Puddicombe.
Bristol-born Andy set up Headspace to bring meditation to the masses in a way that would cut the airy-fairyness out of it. But what began as a simple concept to help people cope better with the stresses and strains of everyday life, has now become a global phenomenon worth £25 million. The app, which he narrates, has been downloaded by people in 150 different countries and even has an army of celebrity fans including Emma Watson and Gwyneth Paltrow. They all swear by the soothing 10-minute bites of daily “timeout” prescriptions. 3. MIND WANDERING BLOOM
goo.gl/mR1KMk
This project is a discovery on potential of materials to encourage a state of mind wandering. That is, allowing us to temporarily disconnect from technology and our everyday lives to provide a moment of light relief, while introducing an element of the extraordinary and fantastical. Just as the rabbit hole in ‘Alice in Wonderland’, or the taste of the madeleine in the novel ‘In Search of Lost Time’, these ‘wander materials’ aim to facilitate mental time travel through material design, evoking your imagination and providing a short escape.
D E C E M B E R H O L I D AY S
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L 4. BORING COLLECTION
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The Boring Collection does not pretend to be more beautiful, in fact the Boring Collection does not claim any attention. “We can totally relate to the idea that furniture should not demand too much attention,” said Lernert Engelberts. “For this project, we worked with the most iconic gesture of boredom: the attempt to throw a ball of crumpled paper into the trashcan until the clock turns five.”
D E C E M B E R H O L I D AY S 5. SKY-LIT
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A 16-channel sound installation by the Swedish composer BJ Nilsen filled the room with a collage of ordinary sounds sampled from around downtown Los Angeles. The artwork produced an ambient noise familiar to airports or shopping malls and muted the sound of individual conversations. Not bright nor dim, loud or quiet, the effect was, in a word, boring. The architecture succeeds in dampening the urge for entertainment, and makes the spectacular simply mundane.
5. THE AESTHETICS OF BOREDOM
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“I would like to write an article someday, when I feel up for it, on THE AESTHETICS OF BOREDOM,” wrote Ray Bradbury in a 1960 letter to writer and architectural historian Esther McCoy. “Boredom plays a great role in the revising of current architectural forms, it always has.” “The eye roams, the eye prowls, the eye wants not ever to be bored.” And as we struggle for a moment not to search for the next bit of excitement on any number of digital devices, one has to think: he’s got a point. 6. ON LUXURY DESIGN
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Surely the whole point of luxury brands, sitting as they do at the apogee of capitalist consumerism, is the creation of
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L value? Instead, they rely on things – often on substances themselves, as well as signs and symbols – that already have value. There’s no fun, no risk and no imagination in that. Surely the role of luxury design is to make us want what we never imagined we wanted, not what we always knew we wanted? If this is the place where our wildest dreams are supposed to take material form, it seems depressing that these dreams are so mundane and predictable. 7. DON’T WAIT
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Video for “Don’t Wait,” by British songwriter Tom Rosenthal, features a fair amount of twirling and other random gestures of boredom.
D E C E M B E R H O L I D AY S 8. COUNTING THE RICE
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In art, we’ve seen this growing for some time too. Conceptual artist Marina Abramović, for example, started to flirt with this idea of boredom back in 2014, and then again later last year, with installations that required visitors to sit at a table and count rice for hours on end. “If you can’t count the rice for three hours, you can’t do anything good in life,”said Abramović. This beyond boring grain-counting exercise explores our psychological limits in dealing with a tedious, repetitive task in a fast paced, fast-moving world.
It highlights a need for patience, for tolerance ,and how feeling bored in the short term can lead to feeling less bored in the long run. The exercise involves separating and counting grains of rice and lentils for a minimum of six hours while remaining seated, exploring the performer’s physical and psychological limits and transforming an everyday action into a meditative ritual. Counting the Rice helps participants to develop endurance, concentration, perception, self-control, and willpower. 9. SLEEP WITH ME
goo.gl/EGhnI8
Take Sleep with Me. It’s a podcast built on being boring, but it’s popular. In fact, it’s downloaded roughly 1.3 million times each month, and typically ranks in the top 50 most
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L popular podcasts. Drew Ackerman – the host – calls it “the podcast the sheep listen to when they get tired of counting themselves”. As for Ackerman, he’s been described as a human sleeping pill, and is becoming a cult figure because of it. 10. CREATIVE IDEAS HAPPEN WHEN YOU STOP CHECKING YOUR PHONE goo.gl/JTsGnm This entertaining video starts off on the subject of our current obsession with checking our phones—according to the data presented in the video, “most people check their phones between 50 and 100 times every day”. This means that with a smartphone at hand, we no longer have to feel bored and our minds no longer have the opportunity to wander, with nothing to stimulate it.
Drawing the link between boredom and creativity, New Tech City radio host Manoush Zomorodi brought Hablin through an experiment so as to let him experience “purposeful boredom”, which is based on the concept that one has the tendency to come up with a creative idea when one is bored.
D E C E M B E R H O L I D AY S 11. THE SOUND OF SILENCE
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Of the nine kinds of silence that Sontag’s contemporary and friend Paul Goodman outlined, “the fertile silence of awareness, pasturing the soul” is the kind we seem to have most hastily forsaken — and yet it is also the one we most urgently need if we are to reclaim the aesthetic of silence in the art of living. Silence is not the absence of sound but the presence of an inward-listening awareness, an attunement of the mind’s ear and an orientation of the spirit toward a certain inner stillness — perhaps the positive counterpoint to loneliness, which so often thrives amid the crowd.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L 12. AM I BORING YOU?
goo.gl/JTsGnm
Freakonomics Radio published a podcast on boredom entitled Am I Boring You? This episode delved into why we get bored and what it means for ourselves and the economy. As well as exploring the upside of boredom and why it’s crucial for learning, the podcast analysed boredom on a broader scale. Topics ranged from the birth of boredom to the different types of boredom, and even featured an interview with a woman who wrote her PhD on the subject. 13. MEMORY
WGSN FUTURE TRENDS S/S 18 THE VISION
Sometimes the best strategy for moving forward is looking back. More companies are investing in institutional knowledge by making chief memory officers a fundamental role in the executive team. Brands need to resurrect the archives and rediscover what collections drove success – or not. What about the concepts and designs that were the right ideas but the wrong time? How can forgotten ideas become future concepts? In 2018, looking back will be your secret way to get ahead.
D E C E M B E R H O L I D AY S These were some of the case studies that I have researched into that is related to my topic. I used keywords such as #boredom, #creativity, #incubation and #routine to search for these projects. Up next, I have to come up with sketches for studio. Over the holidays, I had recorded down a few ideas that I have. Also during the December holiday, Stef, Dean and I headed down to catch the Glasgow School of Art Pop Up Show. It was rather interesting to see their works because they resembled our Creative Process Journal. Overall, it felt like the projects suited more of an Art school than it is, Design. It was nevertheless, nice to see what the other schools’ standards and curriculum were.
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WEEK 1: This week, students presented their previous studio work. I was the fourth to present, right after Clarence, Ru Yuan and Charlene. The presentation was rather intense as they kept track of the timing. They did this in order to give us an experience of the final VIVA presentation. I found this a great opportunity to allow my fellow classmates and lecturers to better understand my project as well as my creative journey. We were given 7 minutes each to present the past studio work as well as plans for the next semester. While studio was ongoing, we had to attend to our dissertation which was given the upmost priority due to the impending deadline. Hence, it was important to balance both studio and disseration at one go.
WEEK 2: The presentation went on for the following week as the lecturers wanted to give every student an opportunity to present. By listening to their presentation, I gained insights on how
JANUARY 2017 other people work. I admire those who followed a logical and structural workflow whereby it is clear to understand their work progress. The general feedback for our studio work was that we needed to have a broad context and focus on one small topic/opinion. This I feel, gives support to the chosen method of approach. The lecturers commented that our sketches were superficial, they had no insights. Some students had started afresh, which they felt was not the best. Instead, our studio work should not be a big depature from the previous semester. We still had to keep and rely on the same research we had conducted. However, that said, we should not produce the same outcome and we should be led askew and lost. Their suggestion was to go back to our dissertation and focus on the insights generated. In order to meet the Week 17 submission deadline, it was highly recommended that we start by Week 12 to give people time to respond. 1ST PRESENTER: OWEN Topic: Collaboration - Good design decisions - Good problem solving - Don’t always rely on Stanley’s opinion - Be more confident about your work 2ND PRESENTER: ANANYA - Curiously profound topic, huge undertaking - A lot of promise 3RD PRESENTER: AMIRAH Topic: Mat Rocker - Good premise - Can be iterated (example 1a, 1b, 1c) better – the design Next, they gave some suggestions on the approaches: Thesis: Statement, what I found ➡ an argument Provocation: Provide evidence. Test provocation. Cannot be entry point. Up your game. Be more upfront and next level. Exhibition: Example is linking cities. Brand: Investigation of brand. Detailed comparison. Unique. Speculate: Experimentation. Artefact & production. Prototype. Conceptual photography. Investigation: Discourse go against a set of ideals and
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L beliefs. Provide audience. Provice intellectual product. Narrate: Same celebration. Simple, cover the full aspect for Studio 2.
Critical insights ➡ what we have learnt ➡ what you have discovered for the whole journey. End it off with reflection. Now: - See where your work stand - Class discussion, paired into groups of 5 and explain our work. I grouped with Dean, Kezia, Owen and Vernice. KEIZA’S PROJECT: 1. Conscious consumer community. Her approach ➡ Brand + Narrate. Narrative installation ➡ experience design to better understand batik process ➡ infographic 2. Batik Village ➡ visual identity ➡ showroom in city 3. Brand Guide ➡ speculation ➡ visit the village when visiting cities Project intention: Build an awareness. Avoid campaign ➡ empathy
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C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L OWEN’S PROJECT: Project intention: Solve problem of cluster and equip students with skills 1. Experiment using evaluation ➡ merchandise of the experiment response 2. Workshop with students ➡ understand how to build better collaboration ➡ starter kit ➡ iteration of campaign 3. Exhibition ➡ display both manifesto and talks 4. Final proposal ➡ give teaching panels
JANUARY 2017 DEAN’S PROJECT: - Four deliverables, one idea Project intention: To nurture undaunted designers – the younger generation to use design criticism. Method: Celebration 1. Smaller groups through website platform ➡ engage in conversations or discussion ➡ pledge to the manifesto ➡ get to control, can invite strangers to have input 2. Manifesto posters/badges ➡ support campaign 3. i) Editorial publication ➡ build knowledge of interviews ➡ opinions ii) Inspiring quotes iii) An atlas of design projects ➡ data visualisation of their own projects ➡ create a representation of how they felt. Expressing through tactile design: strings will show the process of critiques and discussion (response) 4. Zine ➡ ‘Wreck this Journal’
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L VERNICE’S PROJECT: Speculation: Graphic x Fashion 1. Deliverables: apply techniques, graphic merchandising. 2. Store interior ➡ mock up 3. Branding merchandise ➡ show methods 4. Website ➡ provide info 5. Magazine Project intention: speculate through experimentations of the methodologies of one discipline to another. The following page contains the sketch that I presented.
JANUARY 2017 MY PROJECT: Concept 1. Brand an eating place that serves solo diners. The act of performing a routine activity through meal consumption can facilitate periods of mind-wandering. Table for One best caters to working professionals who seek a good meal spot to dine alone without the company of co-workers or clients. This reduces the chance of bringing work related conversations and thoughts during meal time. Periods of incubation can now be scheduled during break time. Production Notes: Branding for namecard, letterhead, apron, brand guidelines, interior design, menu and website Concept 2. Create a workshop/interactive installation that challenges creative practitioners to perform mundane and menial tasks. This may induce boredom, an essential component during the Incubation period. Production Notes: Design inactivities. This is an example of copying and transferring a long list of phone numbers. Concept 3 Sensory deprivation: Create a space that has no stimuli. Taking reference from floatation therapy, this space contains no sound and no light. Concept 4 The Creative Idler is a club that promotes aimless wandering. The publication promotes Concept 5 Day reconstruction task: to capture the ordinary everyday life. To record a detailed account of each day’s activity and experience to produce a quantitative report, guided with visuals. No network usage of the Internet is posed as a challenge to keep social media at bay. Production Notes: Photography: photo documentation
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Concept 1 Brand an eating place that serves solo diners. The act of performing a routine activity through meal consumption can facilitate periods of mind-wandering. Table for One best caters to working professionals who seek a good meal spot to dine alone without the company of co-workers or clients. This reduces the chance of bringing work related conversations and thoughts during meal time. Periods of incubation can now be scheduled during break time. Production Notes Branding for namecard, letterhead, apron, brand guidelines, interior design, menu and website NAME: DATE:
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Concept 2 Create a workshop/interactive installation that challenges creative practitioners to perform mundane and menial tasks. This may induce boredom, an essential component during the Incubation period. Production Notes Design inactivities. This is an example of copying and transferring a long list of phone numbers.
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Concept 3 Sensory deprivation: Create a space that has no stimuli. Taking reference from floatation therapy, this space contains no sound and no light.
Concept 4 The Creative Idler is a club that promotes aimless wandering. The publication promotes
Concept 5 Day reconstruction task: to capture the ordinary everyday life. To record a detailed account of each day’s activity and experience to produce a quantitative report, guided with visuals. No network usage of the Internet is posed as a challenge to keep social media at bay. Production Notes Photography
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WEEK 3: Today we took part in a student survey. Proceeded with the usual schedule: presentations. 1ST PRESENTER: RAYSON Topic: Personalisation - Self expression - Customisation - Persona of millennials Comments: 4 minutes only. Very short presentation. Could describe Sem 1 more in-depth. Personalisation is an illusion: Google searches based on history. Also, there will be no slides during VIVA so the process is dependent on our script. 2ND PRESENTER: RIVY Topic: Transhumanism - 3D printing - Ethical issues - Safety issue - Legal issues - Economical issues ➥ power shift - 4 aspects: too broad. The maker community in the local context: if she is going to champion open design, there is no purpose. 3RD PRESENTER: ELLIOT Topic: The Community Project Comments: What unique perspective are you bringing? You are technically doing the same thing that PID already did and achieve. Branding is rhetoric. Branding creates value when there is none. Looking for something unique: beyond logos. There has got to be more to that. Branding is persuasive. 4TH PRESENTER: CRESHELLE Topic: Third Culture Kid (TCK) - Is Singapore a TCK? - Defining Singapore identity - TCK as framework - Objective: launch conversations to talk about it Comments: Singaporeans or Singaporea identity. National identity has many agendas. 5TH PRESENTER: QIAN HUI Topic: Body Image - Free size - Cultivation theory: the more we see things in the media,
JANUARY 2017 the more we will feel a certain way. Comments: Visually arresting. But failed to cover what was before KPOP. Note taking: - Inquiry: ask questions - Propose actual interventions 1. Sketches communicate ➡ needs to be clear ➡ intention production, scale and cost 2. Forms of critique and analysis ➡ break down of my understanding ➡ e.g. close and reading of concepts - Sketches as a text - Create your own questions about the text ➡ intuitive - Engage sketches and ideas based on 3 questions: concept, medium and production
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JANUARY 2017 Overall comments: Currently, still not a lot of sketches and not a lot of exploration. Our ideas are still the same idea as Sem 1, and that is not correct. It must have inquiries. The prototypes need at least 3 weeks. We have a non-commital approach to ideas and sketches. We are waiting to talk about ideas, but we have to be quick because we have 2 and a half months more. The lecturers are letting go already and they are no longer in the equation. Hence, we need to be committed to the brief. Good sketches afford good questions. We need to reflect on our ideation. Every idea has to be deliberated and penned down. A -
good sketch will prompt others to ask: Target audience Aim Space for reflection after it is done What does it mean to reflect? Concept critique more than format critique
Therefore, we should try all possible methods. Take a leap of faith. For the “coolest� projects are ones that have new approach. Think forward. Method of critique: be succinct in your questions when critiquing others. In hindsight, we should also take ownership of our own work.
WEEK 4: The people of Codigo came down today to talk about their company and their scope of work.
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WEEK 5: 1ST PRESENTER: PRATHANA Topic: Truck Art in India - Declining collectivism in India which led to decline in truck Art - Using puppetry to interest the truck driver to discover the art - Problem solving approach Comments: Puppetry is kind of endangered, so it can be risky to use that as a methodology. Seems like mostly about conserving the art itself. Always start with the approach. Who are you speaking to? How are you going to provide value? Two ways to conserve: collectivistic practice or art form. 2ND PRESENTER: NERINE Topic: Her (Singapore) Visual Reality - Visual identity of Singapore - Examine visual patterns - Racial socialisation practice - Nation building ➡ sense of belonging - Home, school and work ➡ third place/space - Framework based on regionalism - Cultural manifestations, not visual and physical - Metabolism book(as a principle): way of working that reflects the way we live
3RD PRESENTER: FIZZY Topic: Terrorism using design as a tool to communicate - Sem 2 ➡ using Ai Wei Wei’s social experiment Comments: Pick one: commenting on Islamphobia versus terrorism using social media to recruit and radicalise people. They are both very different. Also, why 9/11 ➡ historical context. The context of terrorism does not occur after 9-11. And how did you jump from Islamphobia is a bit strange. There was no mention of insight, merely factual information. “T-shirt project”. It becomes very retailed and commodified when he brands it as “DBL STNDRD”. Project is weak and unclear. This round of presentation was a wake up call for me. It reminded me of how important the content of our work is and we are not just merely designers who possess technical skillsets. Instead, we are thinking designers and that is what makes a BA programme differ from a diploma. Hence, our work should reflect our ability in critical thinking and in research. I would constantly remind myself that if I myself have doubts about my project, what about others? Therefore it is important to always ask questions – stupid ones even. This is also vital during the VIVA presentation.
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SPOTTED: Articles: Here are some articles that I came across while reading. I took note of those that were related to my subject matter. It is interesting to note that the subject matter holds relevance and importance in today’s world.
This article talks about the usefulness of fMRI scans and shows results of the brain scans taken during different modes of engagement. As you can see, the resting mode is highly active. This article was published in Aug 2016 for Nature.
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This article talks about the usefulness of fMRI scans and shows results of the brain scans taken during different modes of engagement. As you can see, the resting mode is highly active. This article was published in Aug 2016 for Nature.
The complexity of the brain is the reason why scientific research is still an ongoing process. As the sector advances, the tools develop, more research is conducted which leads to more discoveries. Thus, science has allowed us to better understand how creativity operates as researchers analyse materials and come up with new conclusions.
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I found out that there is going to be play on the classic Aesop fable: The Ant and the Grasshopper in Singapore. The fable is popular because it teaches the perils of improvidence. Recently on 16th Feb, designer Larry Peh presented at the SingaPlural 2017 with a design talk on the topic of STORIES: Navigating the Future. Based on the fable: Once there lived a hard-working and ever-busy Ant who never
FEBRUARY 2017 seemed to have time for play or relaxation. And then there was Grasshopper, with time on his hands and nothing much to do all day. Somehow they were friends. All day long Ant would work hard, without stop or rest, collecting grains of wheat and storing them carefully in her larder. Grasshopper would always laugh, and say. ‘Why waste the sunshine in labour and toil?’ But Summer does not last long – and soon Winter and the frozen cold will come… What will happen to Grasshopper then? The play explores key themes of: friendship, rewards for hard work, how to use your time wisely, balancing the arts, leisure and work, generosity and judging others. This is one of those stories you really think you know – until you examine it a little closer. In the original Fable by Aesop, the ants work all day, never taking time to appreciate the world around them. Whilst the Grasshopper does not see the value in working… In Singapore we like to think that the Ants are the perfect example of what we should be like. But is the Grasshopper completely wrong in his point of view? And are the ants really following the best path in life? There could be something valuable to learn from the Grasshopper, and the other insects you will meet on the way. In our tiny Island nation I am sure we can learn something from this tiny insect world! This fable reminds me the other Aesop fable, “The Tortoise and the Hare”. While the Ant and Grasshopper fable teaches us that hard work pays off, the Tortoise and the Hare might value the notion that “slow and steady wins the race” but it also gives off the idea that “many people have good natural abilities which are ruined by idleness.”
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WEEK 6: This week, the lecturers demanded that we focused on ONE INSIGHT. They conducted an exercise whereby they made us select one approach. It should be focused – not a rehash of last year’s studio project. The approach is derived from one concentrated insight. Our job is to filter down to a specific target audience, time frame, geographical setting and a specific point of inquiry. [Definition of inquiry: An inquiry is any process that has the aim of augmenting knowledge, resolving doubt, or solving a problem. A theory of inquiry is an account of the various types of inquiry and a treatment of the ways that each type of inquiry achieves its aim.] Basically, inquiry
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is conducting formal investigations and asking questions. I suppose for my approach which is celebrate, the inquiry could be: What are some examples of break time that is best optimised for incubation? After stating the activities, the realisation is that these activities are not performed by the target audience which calls for celebration due to its poor utilisation. So the final inquiry could be: What happens when break is redefined? This is much in line with the response for the celebration approach, which is “Reflection”. Maybe the question to prompt people to carry out task should be “How creative do you feel today?” / “In search for creative ideas?”
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SUBMISSION REQUIREMENTS: Students are to produce responses to their respective chosen approach for both “Field of Study” and “Focal Point” of their Semester 2’s studio inquiry. Both segments require detailed and focused study but are not limited by the number of outcomes produced. This might include printed matters, audio or video works. Students are also to produce a digital version of their CPJ documenting the inquiry’s processes and reflexive writing.
PATH: Insight: Creativity stifled when alleviating boredom The world we live in is a hyperactive and overstimulated one, with access to a plethora of information at one’s convenience. As technology growth saturates, perpetual stimulation and the suppression of boredom become the norm. This constant need to fill up the attention void with stimulating activities is apparent in local creative practitioners. As such, they only contribute to the deactivation of the default-mode network, which is essential in making connections through unconscious thought processes. This poses a barrier to practising incubation, as the more an individual alleviates boredom through performing stimulating activities, the lower the chance for mind-wandering to occur. Therefore, in order to maximise creative potential, creative practitioners must not deprive themselves from boredom, and must resist the instinct to reach for stimulation because boredom is a catalyst to creative breakthroughs. Approach: Celebration Field of Study: The Productive Pause (The incubation phase in the creative process as proposed by Graham Wallas) Focal point: To celebrate the value of performing in low cognitive demand tasks such as routine activities as a means to induce boredom – a precursor to moments of mind wandering for creative practitioners in Singapore. Conditions: Unrelated to work. Solitude. Easy tasks. Mundane/ Unstimulating Why: Based on the theory that the unconscious process are the foundations of an incubation period, when an individual performs routine tasks, the greater the likelihood of mind wandering will occur. Mind wandering is a catalyst for creative breakthroughs, during which, insights will arrive in the mind.
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C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L Quite unsure of what to submit for Week 7, Phoebe shared with us her conversation with Stanley. This helped to clarify certain doubts. From this chat, I understood that research was key.
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TEXT FOR BOOKLET CONTENT: 8AM: Greatness and late rising are natural bedfellows. Late rising is for the independence of mind, the individual who refuses to become a slave to work, money, ambition. One leaves one’s bed when one is ready, and not when someone else wants you to. Sometimes the dedicated slugabed is rudely awakened by the yelling of builders, the bustle of housemates, the entreaties of toddlers or even dawn’s rosy fingers coming in at the window. These impediments to sleep must be blocked out if you are to enjoy your morning doze. 8PM: Smoking is idleness, and it is hard to be lofty when you’re toiling and busy. Like angling, smoking transforms the common man into something more heroic, more complete; it makes a master of a serf. ‘The pipe, ‘ wrote William Makepeace Thackeray, ‘ draws wisdom from the lips of the philosopher, and shuts up the mouths of the foolish; it generates a style of conversation contemplative, thoughtful, benevolent, and unaffected. 9AM: Nine a.m. is surely the most brutal and feared of all the hours in the idler’s day, for it is the time when someone, somewhere, decided that work should start. The idea of the ‘job ‘ as the answer to all woes, individual and social, is one of the most pernicious myths of modern society. At the bottom of it all is fear. Fear paralyses us. Be fearless, quit your job! You have nothing to lose but your anxieties, debts and misery! Or follow the lead of those brave proto-idlers who have elected to work a three-day week, a bona fide social trend. 9PM: Going out all the time can be oppressive. It’s hard work. Trying to keep up with the latest bar, dub, movie, gallery, show or band is a full-time occupation, and one always feels as if there is something better going on somewhere else. On a simple level, of course, staying in is the idler’s dream, because of the low physical effort involved. It avoids the tedious and costly business of getting ready, leaving the house, travelling somewhere else, attending the function and then enduring the still more tedious and costly business of getting home again at the end of it all. 10AM: At 10 a.m. the idler is probably awake, possibly staring at
D E C E M B E R H O L I D AY S the ceiling, and certainly in no hurry to get vertical. Quiet and stillness reign once more; the workers are now at their desks or in the warehouses and factories; he has managed to resist his own guilt at lying in and is now master of his own time. And what is he to do? Well, nothing. Nothing, save contemplate, think, read. Lying in bed doing nothing is noble and right, pleasurable and productive. 10PM: The pub, the tavern, the alehouse, the inn, the pothouse, the taproom - this is where we send away the trials of workaday life, send them packing with beer and chat. Or even just with beer. The pub makes a little master of every man. During the day, you might be downtrodden and abused by your employer, or co-workers, or family. But in the pub, your self-confidence is restored. You are omnipotent, omniscient, you have become a powerful figure. 11AM: Skiving is a direct act of revolt against the arid philosophies of living that we‘re indoctrinated with at school and at work, the notion of suffering now, pleasure later. Well, this way of thinking is anathema to your idler. He can’t wait till tomorrow. He believes that the deferral of pleasure in service of an imaginary future of stability is a bourgeois myth. Therefore he decides to seize the day and bunks off. Skiving is an expression of the individual will set against the oppressing machine. Skiving is living in the moment; it is freedom; it is at once a snook cocked at authority and a pleasure in itself. 11PM: Why, or how, music affects us so powerfully is, like all fundamental questions about art and mind, not easily explicable. Undoubtedly, music developed as an extension of the human voice – a faculty that proceeds from within us, and is most directly tied to emotional self-expression and our moods. Music is in part a gestural form, as the voice is; and it can give forth the movements of emotion, which always have a temporal dimension; and which, as neuroscientists increasingly observe, involve both thought and a physical inner motion. It is not an etymological coincidence that the word ‘emotion’ contains within itself the word ‘motion’. 12 NOON: ‘Terribly pedestrian’ is how we dismiss a piece of creative work if we want to convey the idea that it is humdrum, ordinary, unspectacular. It’s as if the humble ramble has
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L become tedious and boring in comparison with flashier, faster modes of transport like trains, planes and automobiles. But in the pedestrian, the wanderer, the rambler, the flaneur, can be found the soul of the idler. The pedestrian is the highest and most mighty of beings; he walks for pleasure, he observes but does not interfere, he is not in a hurry, he is happy in the company of his own mind, he wanders detached, he is free. 12 MIDNIGHT: The moon and the stars are soothing constants in an idler’s life. Too often cut off from a clear night sky by the barrier of urban fumes. Gazing at the stars opens our minds to another reality, a mysterious eternal world, beyond material struggle. The stars are a tantalizing mystery. And the great thing is that the stars are free, in that they cost nothing to watch, and can be seen from anywhere by anyone. 1PM: The midday meal was an occasion to be deliberated over, shared with friends and colleagues, savoured, taken over two or three hours. Sometimes lunch would go on all afternoon and into the evening, and leave behind it a delightful trail of cancelled appointments and drudgery postponed. But what does lunch mean now, to the modern worker in the twenty-first-century West? Sadly, lunch has been reduced to a merely practical affair. The tradition of the leisurely lunch has taken a beating from the new work ethic. Hence the rise of the sandwich as the most efficient means of satisfying hunger with the minimum of fuss. 1AM: If we are not to lose track of who we are or what we want, we need occasionally to look into that realm and examine what we find there; to catch up on what has happened to us in the last week or month, and how we feel about it; to sense the conflicts or tensions which may have accumulated while we have absorbed in daily activity, and try to understand where they come from, and what they mean to us. We need to give some time to strenuous self-investigation and introspection - to the cultivation of self-knowledge. 2PM: That being ill can be a delightful way to recapture lost idling time is a fact well known to all young children. What a different world from the everyday one of punishments, recriminations and duties. Being ill - nothing life-threatening, of course - should be welcomed as a pleasure in adult life, too, as a holiday from responsibility and burden. Indeed, it may be one of the few legitimate ways left to be idle. ‘Calling in sick,
D E C E M B E R H O L I D AY S ‘Bradshaw added, ‘is the only way adult professionals are allowed to experience inactivity: they are deprived of any other circumstances in which to cultivate the arts of enforced solitude and leisure.’ 2AM: Talking, sharing ideas and stories with friends old and new, this is the lifeblood of the loafer. He loves company, he loves to chat and be chatted at. He loves to sit around the table and to be so lost in the moment that he completely loses all sense of time. Suddenly someone will say, with surprise, ‘ It’s two !’ Time flies by. But how differently time moves when we are at our workplace. The worst offenders are those endless hours between two and six in the afternoon. They are the hours of death, the dragging hours. 3PM: A nap is a perfect pleasure and it’s useful, too. It splits the day into two halves, making each half more manageable and enjoyable. How much easier it is to work in the morning if we know we have a nap to look forward to after lunch; and how much more pleasant the late afternoon and evening become after a little sleep. If you know there is a nap to come later in the day, then you can banish for ever that terrible sense of doom one feels at 9 a.m. with eight hours of straight toil ahead. But, sadly, our manly struggle to conform to the slavelike work rhythms of present-day custom has led to the nap being replaced by that costly and damaging drink, coffee. 3AM: This is what being ‘out of it’ means: being out of the everyday, dull, lifeless world, and in another world, full of surprise, warmth, magic and possibility. A life lived around parties can also make sober life seem dull by comparison, and leads to the unhealthy phenomenon of living for the weekend, while feeling depressed and powerless all week. The true idler wants to live a good life all the time, not just on Saturday nights. Time should be savoured, not endured. 4PM: The calming ritual of tea is another of those idle pleasures that have been sacrificed to productivity and profit in recent years. Whoever first conceived the idea of taking it at four o’clock was a genius. This is because 4 p.m. marks the point in the day at which one’s energies are turning. The long, listless, flat hours between two and four, when it is impossible to do much and when the sensible idler has taken to his bed, have come to a close, and our brains are once again stirring.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L It’s time not to do, but to think about doing. 4AM: You can take advantage of those lost moments of time in everyday life - waiting at the bus stop, sitting in a cafe when your friend is late, stuck in a car in a traffic jam to meditate. It’s not easy to drift off into nirvana while standing on a subterranean, airless, underground station platform, to be sure, but it is possible. It is not beyond the realms of imagining. And the more one practises turning those frustrating empty moments into delicious reflective inactivity, the better one will get at it. 5PM: The experience of absorption in a book is both very private, and universal. A book whose reputation has lasted has been, and will be, understood by many readers across various periods and languages; it speaks to something about the human situation that apparently transcends, or overarches, historical and cultural differences. But when we open a book, we also enter a conversation between ourselves – a particular reader, with particular responses – and the text. 5AM: The very notion of cutting back on sleep is anathema to your idler, for whom sleep is one of the central pleasures of life. Sleep is a delicious procrastination, a putting-off, a givingup. It is when we abandon the rational mind and give ourselves up to a greater power. Edison promoted the idea of ‘more work, less sleep’. The idler’s creed is ‘less work, more sleep’. Sleep is a break from toil, a release of responsibility. Snuggled down under a duvet, we postpone our duties and give ourselves up to a greater force. Sleep can also have a magical effect on our worries. 6PM: Of all the cultural goods available to us today, it is the visual arts which stir our most consumerist instincts. Not to acquire works of art, but to take tours of ‘big’ exhibitions, and to look at paintings or other visual artefacts. A more than cursory appreciation of painting requires a focusing and a quieting-down of attention; a kind of mindful looking. The act of looking at art offers and induces a kind of total aesthetic experience. It is an act of contemplation focused on an object, rather than on the emptiness within. To achieve it, we need to look with both our physical and inner vision – to open fully the doors of perception.
D E C E M B E R H O L I D AY S 6AM: Observing what is around us and registering errant impressions is a state not so much of passive inaction as of alert receptivity. The philosophical school of phenomenology was based on the idea that knowledge is derived from sensory perception. It is through registering impressions of our surroundings that we add to the storehouse of our internal experience. In order to be open to such impressions, we need to slow down and turn our attention outwards – to look. 7AM: How the idle at heart suffer for their dreaming. How cruel the bureaucrats, teachers and usurers, who tell us our visions and fancies are a waste of time. They tell us that we have our heads in the clouds, they tell us to stop daydreaming, to stop staring out of the window. When we announce our extravagant schemes to our friends, they reply with a put-down such as ‘dream on’ or ‘in your dreams’. Dreams and idleness go together and are dismissed as ‘the children of an idle brain’. The real trick, indeed the duty of every serious idler, is to bring these two worlds together, to harmonize dreamworld and dayworld. Fishing is democratic. Anyone can do it, and anyone can be transformed by it into a poet or philosopher. Dusk is also a time of peculiar magic: The light fades, other anglers are going home, water and not-water become one. Outlines lose their distinctness, trees become a mass of shadow, the moon may start to appear. REFERENCES: Hodgkinson, Tom. How To Be Idle. 1st ed., New York, Harpercollins Publishers, 2005. Hoffman, Eva. How To Be Bored. 1st ed., Pan Macmillan, 2016.
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MOODBOARD:
“A sense of the uncanny pervades much of Metahaven’s work, which draws on the heavily mediated visual detritus that defines the corporate and government worlds. Microsoft’s pre-installed font package, drop-shadow effects, garish colours, pirated logos and other dated graphic elements are the marks that make the work feel vaguely familiar yet perfectly pitched.” Taking inspiration from Metahaven’s work which reflects the idea of going against the corporate and government bodies which in my case, celebrates hard work and neglects idleness. To reflect the subject matter on the mundane, the colours are kept at black and white, except for the images.
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WEEK 7, FORMATIVE FEEDBACK:
I designed two booklets to show my research. The booklet on the left showcases idling activities that can be performed throughout the day. On the right is a booklet that contains my design brief, case studies and my approach. They are presented on a artboard to better show the ‘Pauses ‘.
The idea is that your creativity acts like a tortoise – poking its head out nervously to see if the environment is safe before it THE fullyPRODUCTIVE emerges.
PAUSE
Q U OT E B Y: JOHN CLEESE
Thus, you need to create a tortoise enclosure – an oasis amongst the craziness of modern life – to be a safe haven where your creativity can emerge. LEE JING LIN 17750 GRADUATING DEISGN PROJECT: DESIGN BRIEF | PATHDAY (ANALYSIS) | CASE STUDIES BADC6A
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The idea is that your creativity acts like a tortoise – poking its head out nervously to see if the environment is safe before it fully emerges. Q U OT E B Y: JOHN CLEESE
Thus, you need to create a tortoise enclosure – an oasis amongst the craziness of modern life – to be a safe haven where your creativity can emerge. GRADUATING DEISGN PROJECT: DESIGN BRIEF | PATH (ANALYSIS) | CASE STUDIES
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The publication’s cover contains a quote by actor, John Cleese who commented on creativity. I felt that the quote was very apt in explaining the significance of an incubation phase. I decided to use that as the cover than to put the title: The Productive Pause because some may argue that the title does not say anything about creativity. I also thought, why not call it “The Creative Pause?” That is because, I believe that insights that arrive during the incubation phase may be applicable to people who do not necessarily belong to the creative sector. Hence, they might be put off at the idea that an in incubation phase is only useful for creative practitioners. Also, some people define creativity as problem solving and hence, the word “productive” is more accurate and encompasses the ideals on its ability to produce work – a general notion that contrasts with the term “idleness”. Neurologist Sigmund Freud regarded mind wandering as “infantile thinking” – a sign of procrastination. I beg to differ. I would call it delay. More so, a purposeful delay.
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The contents of the booklet are divided into 5 categories. The first three section falls under the “Analysis” portion of the “Path” that the lecturers have provided. Subsequently, the other chapters belong to the “Synthesis” column. The goal of this booklet is to provide a basis of my project, this includes the brief which will cover the significance and historical context of the subject matter. The Insight provides a premise for The Path, which is a focused area of the subject matter. Case studies are also conducted and analysed to better show the potential of the approach taken. Lastly, The Procedure tackles possible ideas of execution in terms of the methodology and its response.
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The content design for The Path is a provocative commentary towards the rise of digital screens. In a way it appears to take on the style of screens: wide images and small text: subtitles. The message and content however, conveys the opposite.
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Three methodologies were presented in this booklet. They each cover the type of outcome and possible reflections.
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Each chapter is divided with a quote concerning the subject matter. The quote above is from a 1995 Dartmouth College commencement address by Joseph Brodsky.
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I analysed the case studies according to the 5W1H: Who, what, why, when, where and how. This allows me to see the strategies employed in the examples. A total of four case studies were analysed in this booklet. They were selected based on the common approach: celebration.
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The other booklets documented the activities that could be carried out in 24 hours. It was designed in two swatches, one containing day activities and the other, night.
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The back of the swatches is designed to show the gradient flow and the timing of the day. The shades get darker as it progresses through the day. Also, the gradient is supposed to be in contrast with the strictness and rigidity of a “analytical structured thinking�.
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GENERAL FEEDBACK FOR WEEK 7: 1. Be mindful of your viewer. Many of you seem to be designing either for yourself or someone who is supposed to know your project inside out. Action Plan: Provide context for your viewer either through an introduction, description of the project or purpose of the outcome. 2. This point is connected to the one above, it is hard to see where to begin with some of your works and setup. Be mindful of how to guide your viewer through. Action Plan: Declutter your space. Organise a form of visual hierarchy for your works to lead your viewer from one part of your outcome to another. 3. Outcomes are mostly predictable and lack an element of surprise or engagement with the book (think odd sizes, multiple folds, inserts, layout of information, scale, etc.). Action Plan: Do not take your mediums and outcomes for granted: if you want to design a book, how else can you challenge the format and engage? There is a general sense of accepting the norm and an unwillingness to counter it. You can design a poster but how can you push the boundaries of what a poster can look and function? Be adventurous. 4. Some outcomes are hard to sustain the interest of the viewer because the design is monotonous or tedious. Action Plan: Don’t put all your eggs into one medium. Consider having different mediums to increse the modes of engagement. 5. Choice of art direction, although sometimes interesting, does not represent your subject matter well. Comes across as arbitrary. Action Plan: Appropriate choice of art direction is critical. Draw references and inspiration from the research of your subject matter. 6. Some of you have not produced much work and it is worrying. Aciton Plan: Remember that things only get clearer when we push ourselves to produce whatever we know at that point, assess and reflect on what has been done and then improve on it. The more iterations of this you go through, the better your works become. It is obvious for some of you that this is your first few iterations. Start DOing, THINKing, CONCLUDing and ADAPTing
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ADAPT (INDEPENDENT)
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now. Trust me, if you commit to it, your works will get better and clearer. 7. Like the art direction, choice of mediums are often arbitary. Why design a book, poster, web? Action Plan: Be critical of your choice of medium. Draw inspiration from your subject matter. Some mediums have a stronger connection to your subject matter and you want to demonstrate a sensitivity and awareness of that.
REFLECT: On Point 1: I should have included a short write up on the presentation board to give readers a brief understanding of the subject matter instead of indicating the item name. On Point 2: Perhaps this is where the indicators were useful in guiding readers to properly assess the outcomes. On Point 3: Certainly I could have experimented on the booklet design by introducing modes of engagement. However, this may be going against my stand which is on embracing boredom. Thus, the booklet should strike a balance between it being interesting to read but not visually stimulating. On Point 4: The case studies could perhaps be produced in a separate outcome. That being said, the booklet will now contain lesser pages. This means I would probably have to add more content?
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L On Point 5: Based on my subject matter: boredom, I felt that the art direction I had opted for was suitable. I kept the colour palette were mostly black and white as it is dull and mundane. However, I still chose to print the images in colour because I felt that it would be too tedious for the reader to process the information and the outcome would come across as dry. Also, I made the images fill most of the page and kept the text at the bottom of the margin. By doing so, I was trying to mimic the look of digital screens and its subtitles. Hence the typeface design, layout and size. It was in a way, to provoke the idea of stimulation from technological devices, yet keeping the subject matter into consideration, the fluidity of the typeface enabled me to convey both ideas through proper usage. Due to the heavy amount of text, the images had to be visually arresting and so I was very careful in selecting the images. On Point 6: Indeed, I felt that I could have done more work by having more content as well as editing what I have already done and reproduce the outcomes. On Point 7: The reason I chose a printed outcome is because I felt that it was more appropriate as I was going against the idea of stimlation through electronic devices. Hi all,
MESSAGE FROM STANLEY: Sorry for the late night message. Just ended my day in the campus and I thought I should drop you all a message. If you’ve not checked yet, I have just sent your feedback forms to your LASALLE mail. Please check and acknowledge with a reply that you’ve received it. I have tried to be as detailed and clear as possible with my comment but please let me know if there are comments that you are not sure of and I will clarify. For some, if not all of you, I have questions to guide your thoughts and also to direct some ideas. The grades are not locked in but they provide an indication of where your works stand at the moment. We have 8 more weeks before the semester is over. If you are
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FEBRUARY 2017 feeling challenged, trust me from past experience that this is to be expected at this point in time. So if you’re struggling, sound out to me, contact me and email me your ideas. If there is a secret formula, it’s this: that you keep producing and designing how ever little you know, whatever you know at this moment. Remember what we talked about: design is an iterative process and the better works are the ones that have gone through more iterations. As you design however little and unconvincing your ideas are, you can then better assess them on its potential and values to move on. Remember the model of production on our wall: DO - THINK - CONCLUDE - ADAPT. The more you DO, the more it’ll help you THINK and CONCLUDE before you ADAPT (improve). Don’t forget that many of you have benefitted from this process last semester Good by constantly Outstanding Excellent Very Good Pass doing works Fail and improving on them. Please look through the interview and start work towards improving them by Tuesday.
n Plans
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We all still have some ways to improve but I have every faith that you can do it if you put your mind to it. These last few weeks will be the time where you are challenged the most, learn STUDIO the most, grow the most and perhaps, even miss the most. Don’t let these last few weeks pass you by without making sure that CPJ to it. you’re giving your best Miss you all. And I look forward to seeing you on Tuesday.
WORK CHECK FEEDBACK: Overall Comments The body of work presented would have benefitted from improvements in the following areas: Experimentation (with materials and techniques). Experimentation (in order to produce a range of potential solutions). Critical thinking (greater degree of analysis and reflection with regards to appropriateness in design decisions).
I completely agree that I CPJ Comments: was “uncreative” with my designed outcomes and CPJ could be further expanded that the mediums documentation of process from could be more developments, reflection and a exciting. I think the reason ----- it was as why such is because I Feed focused mainly Forward Comments: on the research and neglected Dear Jing Lin, of the modes engagement and t It e is c hgood n i qtousee e sthat . you have p Also, project. the art direction should
With the approach of celebrate this point, demonstrate what th is and looking at the two mini b suggest that you want to focus
CPJ Comments:
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C R E AT I V E CPJ P R Ocould C E S Sbe J Ofurther U R N A Lexpanded to include all would have nts in the documentation of process from research through design have been appropriately justified for its usage. Moving on, I andperhaps analysis. I would focus on three plan todevelopments, rethink the reflection medium and
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Feed Forward Comments:
Dear Jing Lin, CPJ Comments: It is good to see that you have progressed with your CPJ could be further expanded to include all project. documentation of process from research through design developments, reflection and analysis. of celebrate, your works should, at With the approach this point, demonstrate what the focus of the celebration and techniques). ----is and looking at the two mini booklets, it seems to suggest that you want to focus on elevating activities that duce a range of Feed Forward designers can do.Comments: I think that can be interesting. Most designers celebrate their design process and the hard Dear Lin, on behind the scenes of producing a work Jing that goes of analysis and project. You have those videos created where they send riateness in It good shows to see that you have your forisprint, the process ofprogressed design, etc.with It can be quite project. tongue in cheek to show these moments of idleness instead. So think about how else you can heighten our With the approach of idle celebrate, your works should, at appreciation of these moments. this point, demonstrate what the focus of the celebration andis looking at the two mini your booklets, it seems In the is comments, Stanley mentioned to try and to heighten the What also important about project is that you are suggest that you want to focus on elevating activities that while appreciation of these idle moments in a creative manner not just showcasing these moments on their own without using Science tocan back [how they make moreMost creative]. I designers do. Iup think that can be interesting. context. You want to make the point thatus these activities agree that for celebrate the current outcomes, they were too dull and designers their design process and the hard us its moreinformation. creative. So don’t forget the brief tediouscan to potentially read and make absorb Perhaps producing a work the scenes aboutthat that.goes oninbehind could still maintain a booklet formofbut the other outcomes You have thoseIt videos created where they send have toproject. be more engaging. is true that most designers show the “Behind the shows Scenes” of their design journey it usually for print, process of show design, etc. It canand be that quite I’m thinking howthe else can you these activities involves doing this project aims to celebrate tongue in work. cheek toInstead, show moments of idleness can be more creative andthese engaging, so that it is not just in the unusual practices and habits that creative practitioners instead. So think about how else you can heighten our the form of a book only. There is a huge potential to think adopt during their creative process. appreciation of these moments. of other mediums andidle ways to celebrate these activities. I want to encourage you to be creative with your choice of is also your project is that you are What mediums andimportant modes of about engagement. not just showcasing these moments on their own without You wanton to the make the point that theseItactivities context. I have a question chosen art direction. has a can potentially make us inspired more creative. forget it.don’t Is there a metahaven/anti-design look toSo about that. reason why and how do you see that it fits what you are trying to communicate? I don’t think it is wrong, but I I’m thinking can you show these activities that want to knowhow yourelse rationale behind it because all design can be more creative andthought engaging, so that it is not just in decisions should be well through. the form of a book only. There is a huge potential to think
of analysis and riateness in would have nts in the
context. You want to make the point that these activities can potentially make us more creative. So don’t forget FEBRUARY 2017 about that. I’m thinking how else can you show these activities that can be more creative and engaging, so that it is not just in the form of a book only. There is a huge potential to think of other mediums and ways to celebrate these activities. I want to encourage you to be creative with your choice of mediums and modes of engagement. I have a question on the chosen art direction. It has a metahaven/anti-design inspired look to it. Is there a reason why and how do you see that it fits what you are trying to communicate? I don’t think it is wrong, but I want to know your rationale behind it because all design decisions should be well thought through. I can foresee your project to be really fun and engagement. I appreciate how you analyse your references in your CPJ. I want to encourage you to keep that up. I appreciate the following statement that you made: “The lecturers are letting go already and they are no longer in the equation. Hence, we need to be committed to the brief. Good sketches afford good questions. We need to reflect on our ideation. Every idea has to be deliberated and penned down.” The next few weeks of the course will be your last in LASALLE and it will pass us by really quickly. Take the next week to draft up plans and by the next time we meet, I would like to see mockups and design work completed. We need to build towards the end bit by bit, and that means you will need to constantly bring improvements and work in every single week. I want to encourage you to be adventurous in your ideas, ambitious in your plans and industrious in your making. This is your last leg and let’s not leave anything for regrets. Let’s work towards the end together. You can do this, Jing Lin.
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GENERAL FEEDBACK FOR WEEK 7 FROM LECTURERS: Based on the progress of our work, we should not have a short break but instead use the time to catch up on work. We should be carrying out case studies to test the product. Perhaps we could conduct a focus group. Guo Wen mapped out a sample timeline and we realised that there is not much time left to produce these things. In his example, he mentioned that if all writing was completed by Week 10 and images by Week 11 then by Week 14 needs to be finished designing. Of course, we must buffer in time for iterations. We should always plan backwards. Week 12 is open studio and it will be 80%. On Week 10, they will provide us with a chart to plan our schedule. Time is running out and I want to make the best use of it. The fear of facing regrets after submission drives me to want to do my best.
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CAREER FEST 2017: I attended the CareerFest and it was very inspiring and useful as it taught me a lot on the path I would embark on after I am done with school. The first talk “How to Start a Small Business & the ABCs of Freelancing� was really interesting because it opened my eyes to the world of freelancing. This alternative route is beginning to redefine the traditional concept of work as millennials seek the flexibilities that an adhoc job presents. And I too, am rather keen in pursuing this route, perhaps in after a stint at an agency. The talk provided us with the right tools and resources to set up a creative business in Singapore and succeed as a freelancer. For example, they expounded on what a typical business kit would look consist and explained details such as how to craft a simple invoice to the profit and loss statement. These are some of the resposibilities and task that I would have to handle should I opt to work independently.
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Here, I came up with a few ideas on the medium. I thought of tactile posters that uses typography as the main device to convey the message. Other ideas include branding the tools that are used for these activities. For example, if it is about solo eating, then the tools could be the cutlery or tablecloth etc. I also thought of putting every tool inside a kit which shows the tools needed during the creative process. I also thought of CPJ: creative process journal. Like this book you are reading, it showcases the journey that the designer goes through. Also, to make things more exciting, I thought of using storytelling to narrate different designers and their creative processes. This idea is actually based on my research on screenwriter, Aaron Sorkin who produced remarkable television series. (See right hand page.)
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In an interview with Bloomberg, Aaron Sorkin admits that: “I’ve got plenty of quirks. I go to an office, early in the morning. Early in the morning is really good writing time. I take anywhere between six to eight showers a day. I’m not exaggerating. I’m not a germaphobe, it’s all about a fresh start. I was writing, writing, and it’s not going well, so start again, take a shower, put on different clothes, and you’ll feel refreshed and start again.”
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The science behind the power of showers? It is activation of the DMN – a region that supports creativity in the brain to make the remote associations. I came across MasterClass whereby world-class practitioners share their unique mastery with the world via online videos. In a promotional video, Aaron Sorkin mentions that he is “in a constant state of writer’s block.” It is his “default position,” – to start on a blank canvas.
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I plan to narrow down the focus regarding the activities. Instead of 24 activities, I plan to do 3. The first two are confirmed: solo dining and showering. I listed down the tools needed during these tasks. The idea of having a club is also a way to get people involved and participate in these activities.
FEBRUARY 2017 CASE STUDY RESEARCH [CONT’D]: 14. IDENTIFYING A RELIABLE BOREDOM INDUCTION
goo.gl/IEALVq
The purpose of this site is to share the boredom tasks tested in the paper, “Across the Bored”. The tasks explored in the paper are listed below. Choose one task. In a sense, this is sort of like taking the ‘Investigate’ approach in which the experiments were developed to study what types of task require attention and how it relates to engagement. One of the 7 tasks is called ‘Peg Turning’.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L 15. BORED AND BRILLIANT
goo.gl/8ki11P
Note to Self’s Bored and Brilliant project is a week of challenges that will guide people to minimise phone time and embrace boredom. “That’s where daydreaming and boredom intersect,” Smallwood says. “What smartphones allow us to do is get rid of boredom in a very direct way because we can play games, phone people, we can check the Internet. It takes away the boredom, but it also denies us the chance to see and learn about where we truly are in terms of our goals.” One third of the people who walked on the streets were using their phone. What were they missing out on? Nothingness. Yet, that is important for creativity. When they asked for stories, many replied saying that smartphones make people feel like they have the power to be connected all the time, organized beyond measure, and never, ever without entertainment while they are waiting for coffee. But they have also mention they make them feel dependent, exhausted, and addicted — some of them said they are actually relieved when they lose or break their phones for a day. There’s a paradox here. But one thing is clear: Paying attention to our smartphones through so many of our waking moments means our minds don’t spend as much time idling. Currently, there are 6 challenges. Each of them comes with a podcast attached which explains the challenge in detail. This is one of the challenges. Challenge 6: Dream House • • • • • •
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Your instructions today are multi-part: Put away your phone. Put a generous pot of water on the stove and watch it come to a boil. If you don’t have a stove or a pot, find a small piece of paper and write “1,0,1,0” as small as you can until it’s full. Either way, you should get bored. Keep it up as long as it takes to daydream. Next, take out your wallet and empty it of all its contents. Use them to construct your dream house. It could be the place you wish you lived in all the time or a getaway. Take as long as you need to build. Give your house a descriptive name. When you’re finished — and only when you’re finished — go get your phone. Take a picture of the house. (Careful with your credit card numbers.)
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C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L 16. TYPES OF BOREDOM
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Possible project intention: To embrace and cope with boredom through our in-built mechanism of mind wandering, instead of feeding on stimulation. Creative people and those with a higher need for mental stimulation seem to be protected from boredom to some extent, perhaps because they do better at finding some interest or meaning in whatever they have to do. Researchers generally define mind-wandering as a state “decoupled attention,” where attention is focused inward self-generated thought instead of on the outside world. course, one does not need to be aware of mind-wandering to mind-wandering.
of on Of be
1. INDIFFERENT People with indifferent boredom appear relaxed, calm, and withdrawn. Think of it as a stoner boredom of sorts (it’s so indifferent that even its definition is barebones). 2. APATHETIC The most recent paper, which appears in Motivation and Emotion, outlines this type of boredom, discovered this year. Goetz and his colleagues found that university and high school students experienced a boredom that seems a lot like helplessness (and could contribute to depression): At least 36 percent of the high school students in the survey reported it. People who have this kind of ennui show little arousal and a lot of aversion. 3. CALIBRATING People with calibrating boredom find that their thoughts wander and they want do something that differs from what they’re currently doing. But they’re not exactly sure what or how they might go about it. This state occurs when people perform repetitive tasks and want to reduce this boredom, but generally seem unsure of what to do. Statements reflecting calibrating boredom indicated wandering thoughts, not knowing what to do, and a general openness to behaviors aimed at changing the situation or cognitions unrelated to the situation. Thus, calibrating boredom represented a slightly unpleasant emotional state associated with receptiveness to boredom-reducing options but not actively searching for alternate behaviors or cognitions. 4. REACTANT This boredom is the worst—people experiencing this tedium are highly aroused and have a lot of negative emotions. They’re also restless and aggressive. People experiencing reactant boredom really want to leave their dull situations
FEBRUARY 2017 and flee from the people they blame for it, including their teachers, bosses, or parents. They waste their time thinking of situations they’d rather be in that seem more valuable than their current circumstances. 5. SEARCHING Those experiencing searching boredom experience negative feelings and a creeping, disagreeable restlessness. They look for ways out by focusing on more interesting activities. Hence, the boredom that best suits my project is calibrating boredom which is experienced after performing routine activities. Other types of boredom may offer a different effect and experience for the participant and may not prime the occurence of mind wandering.
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WEEK 9 This week, we discussed on the preparation for the peer to peer assesment which takes place on Week 12. The aim of the PTP is to enable discussions and facilitate dialogues between the juniors and seniors. This way, when we evaluate their work, they receive valuable feedback as we have experienced their predicaments and processes to impart some form of wisdom unto them. In exchange, they get to comment on our work which provides us with a different perspective, which could possibly aid us in ways we never expected. Hence, the peer to peer is mutually beneficial. Also, I find it EXTREMELY useful because it gives me drive to do work as impending deadlines promote fear which I handle it by the act of simply, doing. Although the work that I may produce at Week 12 may not be at its best, I find that it is then even more important to understand what went wrong and how it can be improved. It is only by going through a body of work, that our works can be improved. Afterall, we are “doers”, we love making and more so, this is STUDIO work. It involves getting our hands dirty. Also, I am embracing the act of making – even if the idea is not that good.
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WEEK 10 This week is the second last week for the class presentation. After the presentation, we had a peer to peer assessment in which we discussed our evaluation with the entire class. It clearly showed that those who came with work benefitted the most out of the sessions because it allowed others to critique what has been done, and tells me the areas I should improve on. At this point in time, I am still thinking of what my focus should be. I kept referring to the feedback from the formative submission and I even try to take productive pauses so I may have creative insights. I kept thinking of different mediums I could experiment on and the modes of engagement so I can heighten the appreciation of these idle moments. Eventually, I had decided to place emphasis on the objects that facilitate these activities as what I did previously was to showcase the activities. I am thinking of conducting research on the current situation which is to uncover what the common downtime activities are. This can serve as “The Problem� in which my project is addressing. The method of inquiry would then be to celebrate these productive pauses and how they can make Lasalle students more creative.
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C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L Prior to the commencement of class, we ordered pizza to celebrate the last few days of lessons. The gathering was fun but it was also sad to know that I will be leaving LASALLE soon. I will miss this place a lot, and the people even more.
We were given the activity to comment and grade someone else’s work. I was given Justina’s and Sarah had mine. When the comments were written, we were told to present it to the entire class by explaining what we wrote. Stanley and the class will then provide extra feedback and suggestions. This lesson took the whole day to complete because there were simply too many works and dialogues held. Overall, it was a beneficial exercise aa it made me realise that the deliverables for my focus is wrong.
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Midway through class, we had to attend a setup/ exhibition that was organised by Chemistry. This man shared about his charitable work and spoke to us on why he did this and why we should help him. The interactive setup showcased the final products (shoes) made by those who need help. It was an intimate session as he sat down and spoke to all of us in a very personal way. That is because the topic is serious and his tone of voice was appropriate. For some students, this talk inspired them for their social work.
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ties
For this design, I was inspired by the idea that creative practitioners enrol themselves in competitions and strive to take home an award. These awards, they honour the effort that has been paid and they celebrate the people and their effort. However, these statuettes of creativity credit the objects that facilitated the routine activities. They are ordinary objects that are usually taken for granted. This design aims to highlight the role it plays and its importance in stimulating the creative process.
THE HONOURABLE
S T AT U E T T E S o f C R E AT I V I T Y
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I wanted to test out the idea so I went and bought gold spray paint and the objects. The items sprayed were sponges, toothbrush, nail clipper, pail and comb. Since the surface was smooth, I had to use sand paper to sand.
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FEEDBACK: Since I was partnered with Justina, I evaluated her outcomes and Sarah assesed mine. Here are the comments she gave me.
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WEEK 11 This is the final week of presentations and the first presenter was Rox. She shared her experience that she had for the Global Design Initiative. I felt that the brief was really interesting and it involved a lot of work such as collecting research to coming up with s prototype. It must have been a great exposure for her as she made new friends from around the globe. As a class, we also discussed what makes an open studio and how to wing it. The open studio is useful in helping us get noticed which is very important because people remember projects and the more they recognise your work, the easier it is to make connections. Therefore, visibility is key with regards to employment matters. It is also an opportunity to meet the juniors and review their work. More than that, it allows me to know my work even more as I am forced to clarify what the project entails so I can better design and curate the content.
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ROUND TABLE SESSION 4 (WEEK 10): Yasser: I will just start the session with a short prayer. Everyone: *laughs* (bo bian) Yasser: A lot is going to be shared today and I hope that every week, we always have different people in the panel and the point of the round table is to get perspective. Get different perspective from different people. I think it is important. At the end of the day, if you are here to seek for answers, that would be a problem. Because you will not get any answers. In fact, you would leave with a lot more questions and I think that is good. You will have more questions for your work. LEE JING LIN
17750
BADC6A
THE PRODUCTIVE
Round Table Session 4 9th MAR 2017
PAUSE Before I begin, I would like to refresh everyome’s memory on the theory of the creative process as proposed by Graham Wallas: there are 4 stages to it. Preparation, incubation, illumination and verification. My project focuses on the second phase: incubation where creative practitioners will allow their mind to wander away from the task at hand.
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THE PRODUCTIVE
Design Statement The Productive Pause is a celebration of routine activities for creative practitioners to perform during downtime, promoting mind wandering – a catalyst for the generation of insights, during the incubation phase of the creative process.
PAUSE This is my updated design statement. As you can tell, I would be focusing on the routine activities that creative practitioners can engage and perform during downtime.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
THE PRODUCTIVE
Key Insight:
Creativity stifled when boredom is alleviated. Downtime is not optimised for incubation.
PAUSE The world we live in is a hyperactive and overstimulated one, with access to a plethora of information at one’s convenience. As technology growth saturates, perpetual stimulation and the suppression of boredom become the norm. This constant need to fill up the attention void with stimulating activities is apparent in local creative practitioners. As such, they only contribute to the deactivation of the default-mode network, which is essential in making connections through unconscious thought processes. This poses a barrier to practising incubation, as the more an individual alleviates boredom through performing stimulating activities, the lower the chance for mind-wandering to occur. Therefore, in order to maximise creative potential, creative practitioners must not deprive themselves from boredom, and must resist the instinct to reach for stimulation because boredom is a catalyst to creative breakthroughs. This is my key insight.
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THE PRODUCTIVE Method of Inquiry: CELEBRATE
+
The Productive Pause
FOCUS To celebrate the value of performing low cognitive demand tasks such as routine activities as a means to induce calibrating boredom – a precursor to moments of mind wandering for creative practitioners.
+ METHODOLOGY
+ REFLECTION
Encourage participatory in routine activities during downtime through a series of simulations.
Collection of reflection from participants through different mediums
PAUSE I chose the celebration approach and the focus would be on the activities and their values. The methodology would be to encourage participants to redefine their downtime through a series of simulations of the routine activities. Throughout the simulations, I will be recording the responses for the reflection outcome portion.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
THE PRODUCTIVE Week 7:
PAUSE
THE PRODUCTIVE
The idea is that your creativity acts like a tortoise – poking its head out nervously to see if the environment is safe before it fully emerges. Q U OT E B Y: JOHN CLEESE
Thus, you need to create a tortoise enclosure – an oasis amongst the craziness of modern life – to be a safe haven where your creativity can emerge. LEE JING LIN 17750 BADC6A
DAY
GRADUATING DEISGN PROJECT: DESIGN BRIEF | PATH (ANALYSIS) | CASE STUDIES
NIGHT
PAUSE During Week 7, I submitted these two booklets on a presentation board. Let me explain.
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THE PRODUCTIVE The Brief:
PAUSE The booklet on the right documents my brief, the case studies and possible outcomes.
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Focus: Routine Activities
THE PRODUCTIVE
PAUSE The first half of the booklet documents the day activities and the other – the night activties. The format of the booklet is inspired by the “pauses” (two solid portrait rectangles).
appreciation of these idle moments.
It is good to see that you have progressed with your project. have progressed with your What is also important about your project is MARCH 2017 project. What is also important about your proj notis just showcasing on their What also importantthese aboutmoments your project is tha With the approach of celebr notYou justwant showcasing these moments on context. to make the point that the not just showcasing these moments on their ow Withyour the works approach of celebrate, your works should,wha at this point, demonstrate ebrate, should, atwant context. You to make the point th can potentially make creative. So mi do context. You want towhat make the point that these demonstrate themore focus of at the celebratio is us and looking the two whatthis thepoint, focus of the celebration can potentially make us more creative. about that. iscan and looking at the twoTHE mini booklets, it seems potentially make us more creative. So to don’t suggest that you want to foc mini booklets, it seems to PRODUCTIVE about that. Focus: suggest that want to focus on elevating th designers can do.activities I think tha focus on elevating that about that.youactivities Routine Activities designers can do. I how think that can be Most designers celebrate their des that canI’m be interesting. Most thinking else can youinteresting. show these act I’m thinking how else can you show the designers celebrate their process and the hard work that goes on behind th design and thecreative hard can be more and engaging, so that it I’mprocess thinking how elsedesign can you show these activi scenes of producing avide work thatofgoes on behind the can be more creative and engaging, so t project. You have those scenes producing a the a book and only.engaging, There is asohuge canthe beform moreofcreative that pote it is project. You have those created where they send for print, shows theis process ideos created where they the form ofsend avideos book only.to There a huge of other mediums and ways celebrate thes the form of a book only. There is a huge potenti print, shows process of design, etc. to It be the qu tongue inways cheek tocan show ess for of design, etc. It the canmediums be quite of other and celebrate want to you to beSo creative with yoa ofmoments other mediums and ways to celebrate these tongue in cheek to show these moments of idleness instead. think about how hese ofencourage idleness want to encourage you to be creative wi mediums and modes ofbe engagement. want encourage you to creative withidle your So think about how else you canofheighten our appreciation these owinstead. else youto can heighten our mediums and modes of engagement. m appreciation of these idle of moments. mediums and modes engagement. moments. I have a question onWhat the chosen art direction is also important abou I have a question on the chosen art dire What isproject also important about your project is that you notchosen just showcasing these m PAUSE bout is that you are metahaven/anti-design inspired look to it. Is Iyour have a question on the art direction. Ita metahaven/anti-design inspired look to not just showcasing these moments on their own witho The feedback I received was useful because itYou brought up areas context. want to make e moments on their own without reason why and how do you see that itit. fits metahaven/anti-design inspired look to Is wh tht in which I needed improvement. I needed to be more creative and context. You want make the point that activitie reason why and how dothat you see that it f to consider the modes to of engagement. This it these had to be can potentially make us mor e the point that these activities trying Imeant don’t think it wro reason why and how do you see that it fits what engaging in to wayscommunicate? such as its scale, medium and copy writing. I is should explore mediums thancreative. these booklets. I needed can potentially make usother more don’t forget about that. more creative. So other don’t forget trying to communicate? I So don’t think it to also to heighten an appreciation of these idle moments. want to know your rationale behind it becaus trying communicate? I don’t think it is wrong about that.want to know your rationale behind it b decisions be I’m wellthinking thought through. want to knowshould your rationale behind it else because a how can yo decisions should be well thought throug decisions well through. I’m thinking how elsebe can you show these activities canthought be more creative andtha en n you show theseshould activities that I can project toso beathat really fun and can be more creative and engaging, it is not The jus the of book only. engaging, so foresee that it is your not just in form foresee your project to beand really fu the form ofI acan book only. There is abe huge potential to th engagement. of other mediums ways I is can foresee your project to really fun and There a huge potential to think engagement. other mediums and wayswant to theseyou activities to encourage to be ys of toengagement. celebrate these activities. I celebrate encourage you to be creativeand with your choice mediums modes of engo bewant creative with yourhow choice of I to appreciate you analyse your references mediums and modes of engagement. I appreciate how you analyse your refer ngagement.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
THE PRODUCTIVE
Focus: Objects > Routine Activities
PAUSE Hence, I have decided to alter the focus. Instead of focusing on the activities, I decided to focus on the objects that facilitate these activities. They are mundane and ordinary objects that are unconventional in terms of using it as a tool to stimulate and enhance creativity.
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Method for Focus: Branding and packaging
THE PRODUCTIVE
THE PRODUCTIVE NEW
RM
IMPRO
ULA
!
KILLS
V
O
OF CREATIVE BLOCK
ED
F
A signature blend of mind wandering properties POWER OF
Shower Gel A SHOWER 20ML | 0.67 fl. oz
PAUSE
PAUSE Here are some of the examples on the packaging that I had come up with for one of the activities which is about taking a shower.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
Method for Focus: Branding and packaging
THE PRODUCTIVE
THE PRODUCTIVE TO PROTECT HAIR FROM GETTING WET, PUT ON YOUR
CAP. THIS IS THE INCUBATION MINDSET. Activates the unconscious mind to boost creative breakthroughs. POWER OF
Shower Cap A SHOWER
PAUSE
PAUSE The shower cap. I tried to be fun and quirky in the copywriting. For example, here I mentioned that “To protect the hair from getting wet, put on your non-thinking cap.” This is a play on the common term of the “thinking cap.”
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Method for Focus: Branding and packaging
THE PRODUCTIVE
PAUSE Shower towel with silkscreened text.
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Method for Focus: Branding and packaging
THE PRODUCTIVE
PAUSE Some attire for them to wear after their shower. The placement of the text is another visual language on the word “pause”.
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Methodology: A series of simulations
THE PRODUCTIVE
Activity One: Power of a Shower
PAUSE For the methodology, as I mentioned, one of them is the shower. I am looking at installing this portable toilet.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
Methodology: A series of simulations
THE PRODUCTIVE
Activity Two: Solo Eating
PAUSE Solo eating: to get people to dine alone because communal eating has become the norm and even when we eat alone, we are engaged and glued to our devices. Hence, this simulation aims to provide a different experience.
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Methodology: A series of simulations
THE PRODUCTIVE
Activity Three: Staring into Space
PAUSE Another activity is going to be about staring into space. Something along the lines of cloud spotting and star gazing.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
Methodology: A series of simulations
THE PRODUCTIVE
Activity Four: Teeth Brushing
PAUSE Also, I thought of introducing the brushing of teeth as a form of a break.
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THE PRODUCTIVE
Conditions: 1. Unstimulating 2. Menial task (light mental activity) 3. Solitude 4. Unrelated to work
PAUSE For the incubation to be effective, these are the conditions that have to be met.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
THE PRODUCTIVE
Site Specific: Lasalle compound Target Audience: Lasalle students
PAUSE Lastly, these simulations will be held in the Lasalle compound as it targets the students.
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DISCUSSION: Stanley: I think you would want to explain what are the conditions that you have set for the incubation phase to be of any use. Because some people might be like: “Everyday I shower, but I do not have any ideas.” Me: Yes, just now I had mentioned that are four stages of the creative process. So before incubation is preparation. So you have to have gone through a body of work and you have to understand the brief and it would be best if you have encountered a creative block and then you proceed to perform incubation. And when you perform incubation you have to adhere to the set of conditions as well. Vikas: Anybody involved in any creative pursuits? Me: As long as you need more creative ideas or insights then it is useful for you. Vikas: Why solitude? Me: Because when you interact with others, you are activating your conscious mind because you are processing what others are saying and you are thinking of replies. It is too stimulating for the brain. Matthias: So, it makes you “uncreative”? Me: No. The whole point of the productive pause is to allow creative practitioners to be exposed to moments of mind wandering. This happens when the person embraces the boredom and allow their minds to drift off from the task at hand. Stanley: When you are not thinking about the brief, it makes it better for you to crack the brief. Me: But that is not to say that not thinking works – you have to daydream and let your mind wander. Stanley: Okay. Matthias: The thing is, when you think about the brief you engaged the conscious mind. I mean, the difficulty that you have, is that you universify the approach. I think your principles are sound, I sat in on your dissertation presentation which I felt was an interesting topic. I remember by you giving
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L that talk in the college and you have spoken of how he tries to be creative and you realised that if he is sitting on a desk, he falls into a particular pattern. So then he started having to do all the work while standing but then he got so accustomed to that he stole a swing and then he was swinging and then he became so accustomed to swinging and then he... So it is about engaging that activity that is minimalist if you like... Boredom is counterproductive. It is sort of triggers passiveness. Me: There is actually 5 different types of boredom. The one I am focusing on is calibrating boredom which is done while you are performing routine tasks. So it makes you mind wander. The other kinds of boredom which are not very, like what you mentioned – not very helpful. Matthias: So if you have your shower thing, people are going ten times a day and trying to have ideas then they would probably not have ideas anymore. Stanley: Waste a lot of water. Yasser: Thirty percent. Alright. Stanley: Besides the shower thing, what else are you considering? I mean because we discuss this in class right? Shower is just one of it. Me: Solo eating. Stanley: Oh as in you are going to make it? You’re going to create an environment? Yasser: So you are going to document all these activities? Me: Yes. Stanley: Who’s taking part? Me: Lasalle students. Yasser: Like who? Your friends in class? Me: It will be placed outdoors, so it could be anyone who is on their break. They could possibly Stanley: Oh, so it can be like fashion students.. Right.
MARCH 2017 Yasser: Wait, are they going to volunteer to do this? Or are they just going to be eating alone and you are just going to snap pictures of them doing? Or are you going to tell them and provide a place for them? No, no, I am just saying. It could be a space. It could be one of those prescribed space. Is it going to be like that? Me: Yes, a prescribed space. Yasser: Okay. Me: It will be a designed space. Before they perform these activities, I would assess whether they are currently working on any creative task. Stanley: Because it must satisfy the first stage right? Me: Yes. But it is also important to know that incubation is an all-or-nothing process. It is either you get an insight or you don’t at all. So I cannot really guarantee that you... Yasser: It really depends on how you measure it. Stanley: It could be like no idea at first but then you come out then have. Me: Yes, it is quite risky, like I said, it is all or nothing. Stanley: But perhaps it would be nice to document what happens after. Matthias: You might want to design two different hypothesis. I think different people will respond to it differently. You have different creative challenges. From my experiences as a design educator is that if you over challenge, you miss. If you under challenge, you generate something that is counterproductive so you have the different types of experiences from your candidates and so what constitutes a challenge and what does not varies. So, it will be interesting to sort of use that as an experiment and platform. Whether it is the shower cubicle or other activities, I think it would be good to add more activities. Perhaps up to 5? And then engage the students. Document it and try to be objective and try to be open. If it doesn’t work, it is fine. It does not matter. Everything that generates an insight, would be interesting! Stanley: I think it would be fun to include more activities.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L Vikas: You can use the 24 things you can do in a day. Me: Okay. I am thinking, if I focus on the tools that facilitate these activities and if I present it on the day itself... There is a lot to produce. Stanley: The day as in? Me: As in the activity going live. Stanley: Right. Me: There is a lot of things... Stanley: To do? Me: As in money wise... Imagine if everyone needs a towel to shower or if everyone needs the soap... Stanley: You have to find a way around it. Or maybe you can think now – what is the most feasible way of doing these different ideas without building up a debt. Me: The measure of success. Stanley: It would be good to have a rubric to assess and see what the whole experience was. Matthias: It is a little bit tricky to go about and ask questions. It would be good to prepare a set of questionnaires to begin with because you would want to ask everybody the same questions. You can do it verbally too, does not have to be formal. It needs to have a framework that is robust. Or you will end up manipulating your participants’ response. At the same time, it could be really quirky and interesting. Yasser: When are you going to do this? Like now right? Right after this right? Me: I will be focusing on... Stanley: He is asking this because he wants to take a shower hahaha Yasser: You are really going to bring the shower facilities here? Me: I have been looking into it.
MARCH 2017 Yasser: It is going to be really interesting. Me: Would it be wise to focus on the objects and its packaging that facilitate these activities? Yasser: The packaging? Me: Yes for example, if it is the shower, then you have the shower gel, the towel etc. I say this because it is important for the people to know that when they are participating, that whatever they are doing is to stimulate creativity and that is why I thought the packaging could be the medium to convey that message. Yasser: I honestly think that it is not a priority if you ask me. If you ask me. You are doing a project that is sort of like a social experiment. The focus is on the objective and all that. The packaging is I guess where you show your creativity. To me it is... I just worry about students who like to brand everything. That is always my problem because sometimes it is not a necessity. Just do what is necessary in keeping the spirit of the project and the experiment and whatever it is. We are looking forward to that.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L Moving on, I did a draft for the branding of The Productive Pause. In terms of the art direction, I wanted to strike a balance between the subject matter of boredom as well as the spike in activity in the Default Mode Network while showing the mundane routine activities visually. Below is the moodboard I referred to for colours. As the feedback given previously was to make it less depressing, I chose to introduce more colour, but they need not be vibrant and saturated. Hence, this selected moodboard. Below are the drafts:
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C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L Next up, I wantted to create a website as a platform to explain to others why they should take a productive pause and what the key insight/problem was. These are the drafts:
I wanted to collect data, hence the index page asks the user to share what their current break activity in LASALLE involves.
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Here, I tried to come up with some logos for the club. The text reads: The Creative Idler
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MARCH 2017 This is the final website that I did for Open Studio. It contains a total of 5 pages: index, home, about us, our concept and the productive pause.
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In sum, these are the patterns and colours that represent each activity. The designs on the right are the activity sheet that jots down the measure of sucess in which all participants have to complete.
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THE PRODUCTIVE
TO BE COMPLETED AFTER THE ACTIVITY Did any form of insight arrive during the activity? Is it related to the creative brief as mentioned earlier? Please elaborate.
Reflect on the quality of the idea. Does it fulfil the brief?
TRIM OF THOUGHT
Reflect on the overall experience. Has it benefitted you?
PAUSE
Please attach the paper with thoughts on this booklet using the stapler provided and place it on the tray.
NAME:
How long have you been working on this brief?
COURSE NAME & LEVEL OF STUDY:
TO BE COMPLETED BEFORE THE ACTIVITY Describe your typical break activity. What do you do in your free time in Lasalle? (e.g. lunch time activity, break time)
Rate the degree of difficulty of the creative brief. EASY
TOUGH 1
2
3
4
What do you hope to gain out of this session (e.g. an idea for art direction)
Describe the details of the creative brief you are working on currently.
Are you encountering a creative block? (i.e. unable to come up with creative ideas for a project)
5
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L Each participant is given a kit which contains the everyday objects. One thing most people will look for in a kit is instructions on how to do certain activity. However, I chose not to becasue the whole point of routine activities is that the user has performed it countless of times until it becomes a mindless activity. Hence, these menial tasks require no instruction but to rely on one’s own knowledge and habit. THE PRODUCTIVE
A C TIVITY :
MENTAL MASTICATION IN TH IS KIT:
PLATE KNIFE NAPKIN A T TH E S TA TION:
BREAD KAYA (HALAL)
PAUSE THETHE PRODUCTIVE PRODUCTIVE
THE PRODUCTIVE
ACTIVITY:
TRIM OF THOUGHT IN T HI S K I T :
NAIL CLIPPER BUFFER NAPKIN AT T HE ST A T I ON :
BIN
PAUSE THETHE PRODUCTIVE PRODUCTIVE
ACTIVITY: AC T I V I T Y :
A C TIVITY : A C TIVITY :
EAREKA! EAREKA! IN TH IS KIT: IN TH IS KIT:
COTTON BUDS COTTON BUDS NAPKIN NAPKIN A T TH E S TA TIO N: A T TH E S TA TIO N:
LEAD LEAD TOTO WANDER WANDER I N T HI S K I T : IN T HI S K I T :
PENCILS PENCILS A T T HE ST A T I ON : AT T HE ST A T I ON :
BIN BIN
SHARPENER SHARPENER
PAUSE PAUSE
PAUSE PAUSE
PLACE ALL COMMUNICATION DEVICES MARCH 2017 HERE WITH SCREEN FACING DOWN
THE PRODUCTIVE
THE PRODUCTIVE
A C TIVITY :
BRUSH OFF PLACE ALL COMMUNICATION DEVICES STEEP THE BLOCK & BREW HERE WITH SCREEN FACING DOWN ACTIVITY:
IN TH IS KIT:
TOOTHBRUSH CUP (TO CONTAIN WATER) DENTAL FLOSS NAPKIN A T TH E S TA TIO N:
I N T HI S K I T :
CUP MILO/COFFEE (3 in 1) STIRRER SUGAR CUBE
BOWL (TO CONTAIN SPIT) TOOTHPASTE WATER MIRROR
ELECTRIC KETTLE
PAUSE
PAUSE
A T T HE ST A T I ON :
PLACE ALL COMMUNICATION DEVICES As one of theWITH requirements of this FACING activity is DOWN to place all HERE SCREEN mobile devices away, I had created a spot on the table whereby
participants can place their phone with screen facing downwards to minimise distraction.
PLACE ALL COMMUNICATION DEVICES HERE WITH SCREEN FACING DOWN
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L Participants would be given a sheet of paper where they can pen down thoughts or insights that arrive in their mind while it wanders. This may serve useful for those who experience a Eureka! moment.
JOT DOWN THE THOUGHTS THAT CAME TO YOU WHILE YOUR MIND WANDERED HERE.
MARCH 2017
THE PRODUCTIVE
Before participating: * Incubation favours the prepared mind. Are you currently working on a creative task? * All or nothing process. Do not expect to arrive at insights.
What to expect: U N S T I M U L AT I N G , M E N IA L & R O U T I N E TA S K S U N R E L AT E D T O C R E AT I V E TA S K PERIODS OF SOLITUDE A WA N D E R I N G M I N D
How it works: SELECT AN ACTIVITY 1 MINUTE
2 to 3 MINUTES
5 MINUTES ONWARDS
➡ COLLECT THE CORRESPONDING KIT
➡ PROCEED TO STATION
➡ FILL UP “BEFORE” SECTION IN BOOKLET
➡ CARRY OUT ACTIVITY. FILL UP “THOUGHTS” SHEET (ON CLIPBOARD)
➡ FILL UP “AFTER” SECTION IN BOOKLET
➡ ATTACH “THOUGHTS” SHEET WITH BOOKLET AND PLACE ON TRAY
PAUSE
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L Here is the plan for the wood that I wanted to create for the exhibit. I wanted to give each participant a personal space to minimise distraction from their surroundings. I will be using the class table (the super long one which Stanley uses) to house the 6 activities. The booth resembles a voting corner whereby the panels prevent others from seeing the vote you have casted.
MARCH 2017
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
MARCH 2017 And so, I headed down to Ban Heng Long to get my wood supply. I made a wrong decision by buying the wood glue in which I did not make use of. Instead, I relied on the L shape and nuts and bolts which are definitely stronger and sturdier.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L After purchasing the wood (the real story is: I left my wallet in school and so I had to head back and retrieve my wallet and go down to BHL again), I needed to look for a stand to hold my activity kits. I decided to go to Wah Yew Shelving which was nearby at 592 Serangoon Rd. Also, I looked for packaging material to house my objects. I managed to buy badges and hooks from this shop too!
MARCH 2017 Here, I found the badges. If you look above it you will notice the sticker that reminded me of my logo and how it is a star polygon too. In the end, I did not purchase the plastic bags (image on left) because I felt that it did not suit my art direction. I was looking for hooks (bottom most image) like these to hang the kits, which looks like a retail store.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L As the stand I purchased was huge, I had to book a 6-seater from Grab. Or I could pay for delivery fee but it costed way more than the cab ride. So... this is how the car looks like:
MARCH 2017 After the wood was delivered, I had to paint them black and then install the nuts, bolts and L shape.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L I went down to Sin Bun to purchase the nuts, spanner, screws, bolts and L shape bracket after painting the panels.
MARCH 2017 This is how the pattern should appear as I drill the screw into the wood. I decided not to paint the L shape as the silver matches my art direction.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L Measurement is so important when constructing a booth. The sizes have to precise in order to achieve accuracy, else it would either be shaky when placed on the table or in the worst case scenario, not piece together at all.
MARCH 2017 Once it has been assembled, the last part is to apply finishing touches of paint onto the sides of the panel.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L When it was setup, I planned the space, trying to see how things should be placed. Where do I put the worksheet? How am I going to hang it up? In the night, I headed to Mustafa to purchase the tools needed for the activity. I bought everything in 5 quantities for Open Studio.
MARCH 2017 I did my research and found a place that sells these foil bags in which I will be packing the activity kit. The inconvenience is that I needed a heat sealer to seal the bag and the shop sells it at $80, which is very expensive... So, I had to ask my classmates if they have the equipment.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L Initially I wanted to borrow Jay Anne’s plants as part of an activity which is to water it but then it would just become super wet and it might actually just flood and kill the plant. Hence, I ditched the gardening idea altogether. It was not practical enough unless it was a plot of land.
As much as I would like to, I wanted to minimise the usage of branding and so I had to re-pack the milo, coffee powder, sugar cubes, bread and dental floss.
MARCH 2017
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L After asking around, Amanda agreed to lend me her set of heat sealer since she would not be needing it. I had to head down to her house to test it and collect it. The bag managed to fit into the heat sealer, which is great but it was not capable of vacuumming the air out, which was not an issue for me.
MARCH 2017 Managed to pack and seal the objects into the foil packaging.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
MARCH 2017 Now it is time to print and place everything into place. In terms of visual hierarchy, I mounted the activity name and made it big so that it will be the first thing the participant sees and can easily locate themselves after collecting the activity kit.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
WEEK 12: OPEN STUDIO 2017 While we had our open studio, we also had a cross-level peer to peer exchange. I am excited for this because it will remind me of how I used to be when I was in year 2. I remember being confused and uncertain with what to do for my FYP. I did not know what topic to work on and I did not know how focused I should go. Now that I am at this phase, I have so many tips to share and advice to give which I hope will benefit someone. I was paired with Ming Wei who is from BADC4A. We went to their studio first to check out their work then proceeded to our studio to provide feedback. I really love this experience because I would think it is really important to consult or at least, try to answer any queries from someone who has been through the same process. It would also be nice to gain feedback from another person’s point of view and hopefully it will be a mutusl benefit for both of us.
MARCH 2017 When I spoke to Ming Wei, I realised that he was struggling with not just the design, but the content of his compendium. He mentioned that one of his biggest concern was his publication design skills. My advice to him is: to look at more “aesthetically pleasing” works out there. The more you see, the more you know and the more you know, the more you would know how to do it. You can even try (in your free time) to do something in the same style as what you have obeserved. It takes time to know what looks good and what does not. It would also help to have your work criticised. That way you really know what went wrong and learn how to improve from there. If that is not enough, ask yourself what you like: who are your favourite designers and ask yourself “why do I like this?”, “why is this successful?”. Always question what you see. It will also help to work with others, have a collaboration on a publication perhaps – which they did: and I love it!!
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L The content in his compendium was brief and did not feel like a thorough in-depth research. Hence, I suggested that he could either follow the P.E.S.T. Analysis or the Six Sigma method (5W1H). Also, I recommended that he go to news site to read up and type in keywords that are related to his topic. Find out what is the current state of affairs and its importance in today’s context. Lastly, I gave him a tip which is to look up for thesis or essays written by others on the topic he is working on. This will give him a better understanding on what has been done or what could be done. It is also packed with a bunch of readers in which he can tap on.
MARCH 2017 This is the feedback form I wrote for him:
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
Now it is his turn to assess my work!
MARCH 2017
Apart from Ming Wei who took part in my experiment, there were 7 others who performed the activities too.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L This was the feedback Ming Wei gave me. Super useful as he talked about “attention span�, which reminded me of the subtopic I had looked into while I was writing my dissertation.
MARCH 2017 From the open studio, in which I treated it as a user testing, I realised that there were many things that I had to redo. One of the biggest issue was the environmental setting. It was simply too crowded and noisy at D301. While participants were performing their activity, I had to constantly shunt people from approaching them. In which I felt bad... So it has to be made clear that they are having an incubation in session and should not be interrupted. On the bright side, there were a lot of people who stood by to watch and many more who were fascinated and interested in taking part but had no time. The most frequently asked question was: WHERE DID YOU GET THE FOIL PACKAGING? Here’s what I think about it: It is funny how the design of the activity kit can excite someone and actually make them participate. Which is why the design has to be strong and appeal to the intended target audience – Lasalle students. At last, the day ended with a pizza and wine party as we officially open the ‘Open Studio’.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L After the preparation for Open Studio ended, we went up to look at other works. This series showed me the possiblities of how I can package and hang my activity kit. Also, the puns were really good. They also used ordinary objects and turned them into something unexpected and intersting.
MARCH 2017 One important thing that was left out in these setup is an explanation on what their brief was and its objectives. This was only conveyed when the lecturers spoke to us about it. Thus, it is important to label and explain my work for the final submission! DON’T FORGET THAT JING.
Here is something I read that reminded me of my work. In Pann Lim’s publication, he replied to a question on what he does after a long day at work. He mentioned “brainstorming for new ideas” which is great, but I wish I could share with him more about The Productive Pause. There is nothing wrong with thinking and thinking consciously, but sometimes we should rely on our brain’s autopilot: the unsconscious processes and its merits on churning out novel insights. Ideas come when we least expect it.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L As I look back at the Open Studio work, I felt that the design was not outstanding and I wanted to do more research and the best place to go to is... the library. Here are some of the books and design that I found useful in helping to rebrand.
MARCH 2017
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L I am looking at patterns and how they can be used across different mediums. I wanted to explore how simple shapes can be altered into something interesting. The shapes are supposed to represent each activity.
MARCH 2017
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
I also borrowed Marcus’ book on exhibition design. The book contains a lot of examples on successful exhibitions.
MARCH 2017
We went down to ‘Another Way of Telling’, a event organised by BooksActually where Jia Hui from Fable shared the VIRUS publication which we collaborated. One of things he mentioned in the talk is I found was a powerful reminder is that “design is a medium and not an endpoint.” That is, there is more to it than just visuals.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L Next on my agenda: locate a space where there is high traffic with minimal distraction. A place where I can hold my exhibit at. Also, it should be sheltered from the rain.
MARCH 2017
In the end, I chose this spot which is near where Basheer books would usually set up their booth. I picked this spot because the pavement was not slanted and the direction where people are walking seems to best lead to my set up.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L After finalising the space, I submitted a proposal stating the dimensions of my setup, the days I needed and the materials used. I plan to have my exhibition for at least a weekm including the set up and demount time.
Lee Jing Lin | 17750 | BADC6A Design Statement The Productive Pause is a celebration of routine activities for creative practitioners to perform during downtime, promoting mind wandering – a catalyst for the generation of insights, during the incubation phase of the creative process. Description To celebrate the value of performing low cognitive demand tasks such as routine activities as a means to induce calibrating boredom – a precursor to moments of mind wandering for creative practitioners. My project consists of a series of experiments that seeks to alter the way Lasalle students’ down time by performing mundane activities such as trimming their nails to brewing a cup of coffee. Exhibit 1
Duration 6th to 13th April 2017 (Inclusive of set up and demount)
MARCH 2017
Materials Used 1 table (made up of partition and three wooden stands) with self-made wood partitions 6 chairs 1 display stand (on wheels) Exhibit 2
Duration 14​th ​ April 2017 (Inclusive of set up and demount) Dimensions 1.09m (front) x 1.19m (side) x 2.34m (height) Facility Requirements: 1. Water point (To pump water) 2. Manhole or sewer (discharge purpose) If the facilities are not available, I will be getting a water tank (contains both water point and sewer) from the company itself. Materials used 1 portable shower cubicle 1 display stand (on wheels) 1 pedestal
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
Space Request for Exhibits Option 1:
Option 2:
Option 3:
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Option 4: Outside D301 (least favourable)
Thank you!
APRIL 2017 APRIL 2017 APRIL 2017 APRIL 2017 APRIL 2017 APRIL 2017 APRIL 2017 APRIL 2017 APRIL 2017 APRIL 2017 APRIL 2017 APRIL 2017 APRIL 2017 APRIL 2017 APRIL 2017 APRIL 2017 APRIL 2017 APRIL 2017 APRIL 2017 APRIL 2017 APRIL 2017 APRIL 2017 APRIL 2017 APRIL 2017
PRIL 2017 APRIL 2017 PRIL 2017 APRIL 2017 PRIL 2017 APRIL 2017 PRIL 2017 APRIL 2017 PRIL 2017 APRIL 2017 PRIL 2017 APRIL 2017 PRIL 2017 APRIL 2017 PRIL 2017 APRIL 2017 PRIL 2017 APRIL 2017 PRIL 2017 APRIL 2017 PRIL 2017 APRIL 2017 PRIL 2017 APRIL 2017
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L I explored more ways to redesign my work by introducing illustrations and trying out different typefaces that better represent my subject matter and the message I want to convey. I have decided to stick to “The Productive Pause” instead of having 2 names, which means I would ditch “The Creative Idler.” Also, I have included a new outcome for my “FOCUS”, which is to establish that there is a problem with LASALLE student’s downtime through a series of images that depict the activities that are not optimised for an incubation phase. KEY INSIGHT: Creativity Stifled when Alleviating Boredom The world we live in is a hyperactive and overstimulated one, with effortless access to a plethora of information around the clock. As technology growth saturates, perpetual engagement and the suppression of boredom become the norm. But boredom is not the enemy. In fact, it is highly necessary for creativity. According to the creative process as theorised by Graham Wallas, mind-wandering or incubation, is an important catalyst for creative breakthroughs. This constant need we have to fill up our attention void through engaging in activity is problematic, especially among local creative practitioners. The more we alleviate boredom through performing stimulating activities, the lower the chance for mind-wandering to occur. Bored to Death is a visual compendium showcasing the variety of activities Lasalle students perform in their downtime. Though the sources of engagement vary, the conditions of each activity are consistent: it demands focus and high cognitive input. In other words, Lasalle students utilise their downtime to disengage from their academic tasks, only to seek stimulation in different forms. This practice hampers the production of novel insights, impeding the creativity so highly important to each member of the Lasalle creative community. Through different series of photo narratives, Bored to Death documents the culture of overstimulation in Lasalle, and the gradual demise of mind-wandering. Each series is an interpretive portrayal of how creative practitioners forsake the fruits of mind-wandering, for stimulating activities. From a process of mental mastication to something negativelyfiltered, boredom has been undervalued and misused. The title Bored to Death is also a commentary on this subversion of boredom as it becomes a “dying art”, with little wonder why so many lament their frustrating “mental blocks” and lack of creative breakthrough. But beyond its eulogy to boredom, Bored to Death challenges the reader to flip this phenomenon around. Instead of being bored to inaction, this compendium inspires the reader to embrace boredom, in order to best facilitate their own creative process.
MARCH 2017 Here are some of the cover drafts I had worked on. The vibrancy and saturation conveys the stimulation in the activities performed. The repetition of the title represents the bombardment of information that is presented. The repetition also resembles a “laggy� screen which shows the distortion effect applied to the idea that screens provide the stimulation.
} beating_boredom {
} beating_boredom {
} beating_boredom {
} {
beating_boredom
Bored to Bored to Bored to Bored to Bored to Bored to Bored Boredtoto
how to kill boredom how to overcome boredom
Death .pdf .pdf Death .pdf Death .pdf Death .pdf Death .pdf Death Death .pdf Death.pdf fun games to play
things to do when i am bored
fun activities to do wih friends
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
fun activities to do wih friends
beating boredom
how to overcome boredom
B O R E D TO D E AT H
things to do when i am bored fun games to play
how to kill boredom
MARCH 2017
fun activities to do wih friends
beating boredom
how to overcome boredom
{
bored_to_death
}
{
bored_to_death
}
{
bored_to_death
}
{
bored_to_death
}
things to do when i am bored
fun games to play
how to kill boredom
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
fun activities to do wih friends
beating boredom
how to overcome boredom
{
bored_to_death
}
{
bored_to_death
}
{
bored_to_death
}
{
bored_to_death
}
things to do when i am bored
fun games to play
how to kill boredom
MARCH 2017
fun activities to do wih friends
beating boredom
how to overcome boredom
{
bored_to_death
}
{
bored_to_death
}
{
bored_to_death
}
{
bored_to_death
}
things to do when i am bored
fun games to play
how to kill boredom
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
BEATING BOREDOM {
bored_to_death
}
{
bored_to_death
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{
bored_to_death
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{
bored_to_death
}
MARCH 2017
fun activities to do wih friends
how to overcome boredom
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bored_to_death
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bored_to_death
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fun games to play
things to do when i am bored
Boredom how to kill boredom
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
} beating_boredom {
} beating_boredom {
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Bored to Bored to Bored to Bored to Bored to Bored to Bored Boredtoto
how to kill boredom how to overcome boredom
Death .pdf .pdf Death .pdf Death .pdf Death .pdf Death .pdf Death Death .pdf Death.pdf fun games to play
things to do when i am bored
fun activities to do wih friends
MARCH 2017
} beating_boredom {
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Bored to Bored to Bored to Bored to Bored to Bored to Bored Boredtoto
how to kill boredom how to overcome boredom
Death .pdf .pdf Death .pdf Death .pdf Death .pdf Death .pdf Death Death .pdf Death.pdf fun games to play
things to do when i am bored
fun activities to do wih friends
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
} beating_boredom {
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Death .pdf .pdf Death .pdf Death .pdf Death .pdf Death .pdf Death Death .pdf Death.pdf fun games to play
things to do when i am bored
fun activities to do wih friends
MARCH 2017
}
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}
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fun games to play
how to overcome boredom
fun activities to do wih friends
things to do when i am bored
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
}
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}
}
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{
{
{
{
fun games to play
how to overcome boredom
fun activities to do wih friends
things to do when i am bored
MARCH 2017
}
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MARCH 2017
} beating_boredom {
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beating_boredom
Bored to Bored to Bored to Bored to Bored to Bored to Bored Boredtoto
how to kill boredom how to overcome boredom
Death .pdf .pdf Death .pdf Death .pdf Death .pdf Death .pdf Death Death .pdf Death.pdf fun games to play
things to do when i am bored
fun activities to do wih friends
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L These are some of the images I used as reference.
MARCH 2017
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
MARCH 2017 This is the final book cover design.
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Death .pdf .pdf Death .pdf Death .pdf Death .pdf Death .pdf Death Death .pdf Death.pdf
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L The pattern created is an outcome of distortion applied to the images that I shot. Here’s how I did it.
MARCH 2017
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
MARCH 2017
BEFORE:
AFTER:
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L Initially I created a takeaway booklet that contains the theoretical framework but decided to transform this into a publication instead.
ON
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
These are the new logos that I came up with. As compared to the previous one, they are more visually descriptive and fun.
TRIM OF
AL
MENT EAREKA!
THOUGHT
AD TO LE
BR U
SH
STEEP
& BREW
N
CATIO
MASTI
OFF THE BLOCK
WA
NDER
MARCH 2017
Thus, I have to repack and discard the old designs.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
MARCH 2017
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
MARCH 2017
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
After the kits were all packed, it was time to launch the exhibition. It took place on the 7th, 10th and 11th of April 2017 and reached out to 60 participants, 10 for each activity. The response gathered was rather interesting. 38% of the participants walked away with an insight and the best activity it... BRUSH OFF THE BLOCK. This was very unexpected because it is one of the least popular activity. The activity that the most popular was Trim of Thought. Eareka! was the last activity to be carried out.
MARCH 2017
“EVERYTHING THAT WILL GO WRONG WILL GO WRONG.”
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
THE PRINTERS MADE A MISTAKE AND NOW I HAVE TO PAY FOR 2 BOOKS MARCH 2017
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L YUP. IT WENT WRONG. The people at Allegro Print messed up the order of my pages and book does not work anymore. Hence, I had to pay for a copy of a book and half more just to get them to print another copy. $ RIP $
MARCH 2017 Prior to collecting the book, I went down to their office to specify the cover material, paper for the inside pages and the pagination of the files. I wanted the cover material to be hardcase so I specified Frankonia, and it will be mounted on 2mm board. The text and and endpaper to printed on 120GSM Maple Snow from RJ Paper. 4C X 0C for cover and 4C X 4C for text. 190mm X 260mm (closed size). The inside pages to be thread sewn.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L I plan to place the book on this pedestal to show the problem of the topic and I wanted it to not be so plain because the message is supposed to be about the bombardment of stimulation and so I tested different layouts to design the pedestal.
MARCH 2017
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
MARCH 2017
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L While I was at RJ Paper getting paper stock, I came across this publication in which I thought the binding method was interesting and so I adapted it with my zine. It has a few booklets backed up with a hardcase board.
MARCH 2017 And so I bought my own boards and painted them black. The sizing of these boards have to be smaller than the publication size.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
I wanted to paint the toothbrush holder so I bought porcelain paint but it did not work out so I ditched the idea of painting it green to suit the Brush off the Block logo. I test painted it on the bottom of the holder.
MARCH 2017
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
Here is the plan for The Club – a personal takeaway for members to begin their journey by taking Productive Pauses.
MARCH 2017
I went through rounds and rounds of sorting data. It was rather difficult to assess whether one has walked away with an insight or not. Some people said they have but their insights were not insights, so I had to count it as they did not.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
I have decided on the layout for the booth. To include a poster and the two holders (ignore the old design here). The thumbtacks add a subtle touch to it that goes well with the metallic.
MARCH 2017
I could not have done of this without the help of my friends who offered to carry and shift my items from various locations. I am so grateful. You know who you are - THANK YOU SO MUCH.
C R E AT I V E P R O C E S S J O U R N A L
This was the space I was allocated. Initially there was not much space and people could not walk around my booth which will be essential during the presentation. I informed Rox and she asked Stanley whether it is possible to shift the tables behind my work. He said yes and YAY I have space. I cannot believe these are the last few days in LASALLE. I will miss this a lot. Especially the people. What a crazy ride it has been. Although it was 2 years, I have learned so many valuable lessons. I have grown so much and I am excited for what’s ahead. THANK YOU to everyone, Stanley especially, for being the coolest lecturer. Always supportive and inspiring :’)
MARCH 2017
LA DOLCE FAR NIENT