the challenge
Today we are using a ReShape Seed for our creative exploration. Playing with a ReShape Seed is always a nice refresher. It opens a whole new set of possibilities, associations, and with them surprises.
You might recall I already played with the same Seed a few weeks ago. When I use the Master Your Creativity channel, Seeds and Prisms are randomly picked from the seempli collection, so there’s always a chance to revisit the same Seed again. And that’s actually an opportunity — an invitation to challenge our imagination and see things from yet another perspective, or giving them a new interpretation.
my insight
The short walk from my home to the bus station this morning was a revelation — it was what creative exploration should be. In the short 7-minute walk I found no less than four Insights inspired by the shape on the Seed.
And this collection of Insights calls for some reflection…
reflection
You might notice none of these Insights is a replica of the shape on the Seed. Each of them differs from the Seed in at least one aspect: the gradient of the lines, the position of the circle relative to the lines, the proportion, etc. And that’s basically the point of this exercise.
What we pretty much understand naturally about associations in the context of words, is sometimes harder to grasp when we aim for visual abstractions. All the Insights above differ from the Seed in some respect, but they are all derived from it in other dimensions.
Consider, for example, the small barrel lying in the trunk of the pickup truck. When you consider the depth of the image — the fact the barrel is not on the same plane with the sides of the truck — it looks nothing like the shape on the Seed. But, if you let your brain flatten the image you will see at least two distinct straight lines and a circle somewhere between them. It’s not a replica of the shape of course. But it has similar elements with more-or-less similar placement. The shape on the Seed is a valid abstraction of this image. Bingo!
And the same applies to the miniature orange lying between the cracks on the sidewalk. The angles are different, the entire composition might be different, but at some abstract level, the shape on the Seed can capture the essence of this photo.
Associations don’t follow any rules. If an association leads you to a meaningful Insight, that’s great. If it doesn’t — try a different one. And abstractions are the same. Instead of judging an abstraction by its theoretical validity, just use it to capture creative Insights. If one of these Insights works* — use it. If it doesn’t — try looking for a new one, or try a different abstraction.
(*) So, what does “works” mean in creative explorations, abstractions, and Insights? That’s a great question, so let’s use tomorrow’s post to explain and demonstrate it.
mental notes
- With associations and abstractions there are no rules — use whatever works as triggers for creative Insights, and then consider the effectiveness of each Insight (more on that tomorrow).
now it is your turn… be creative!