See Change 2014 conference at the University of Minnesota (in its fifth year) brings together another diverse set of creative perspectives on design and the undercurrent of change driven by design. This year was no different. In the five years I have attended See Change, it has consistently given me inspiration and a view into a world of design which I am now entering late in my software development career. As an MFA student in interactive design, I consider attending See Change part of my curriculum. As an artist, I feel a connection with the creative drive of those who have made visual expression their line of gainful employment, sustaining, in a sense, both sides of their lives in one endeavor. All this appeals to my personal sense of holistic integration.
Conference presentations ranged from how we work and interact as individuals to creativity theory. Along this spectrum Aby Wolf lead us through singing exercises, Paul Trani looked at the 3D printing revolution, and two inspiring photographers showing their great work and telling wonderful stories. If any theme stands out among this diversity, it is this: how to find inspiration in your creative work. On that topic, photographer Douglas Kirkland responds, “keep many irons in the fire,” and his vast body of work expresses this passion and sustained inspiration. Annie Griffiths, after recounting her story of engaging in a photographic subject one hurried morning, when she forgot to wear pants, advocates, “find a passion that makes you forget to put your pants on.”
For the finale, genial professor Barry Kudrowitz compared close links between creativity a type of humor based on incongruity, making non-obvious connections (as opposed to slapstick or cathartic types of humor). Making non-obvious associations, Kudrowitz posits, means getting past the obvious ones, which itself seems obvious. But what studies have shown might not be so obvious: it is the simple correlation between the number of ideas and having good ones. This happens because the good ideas are usually found at the tail of the chart—he’s also an engineer, so there were charts! Getting past the usual and obvious means getting past the first ten or so ideas.
If it is possible to summarize See Change 2014 with an agglomeration of quotes (lacking attribution—sorry), here is what that could be: scale is the enemy of doing good work, print is still important, collaboration is a key ingredient, suspend judgment, the quiet power of space, stay open, know your inspiration, just the right amount of wrong, find the creative hook and make bold statements, be comfortable being uncomfortable, silly ideas can be stepping stones, Tigers and Bears (hey, you had to be there!)