Transcript for:
Exploring Creativity Tools and Techniques

welcome to the second part of module free  so module free is about creativity tools so   tools and techniques that will help you to become  more creative in the first part of this module we   looked at knowing how to see so looking really  trying to understand what your problem is all   about looking at problem for different lens and  today I will present to you some new tools which   are help you to make your fault visible so you  might have a lot of ideas and things in your head   and then to be able to convey this idea of this  message or this solution you will see that there   are some some techniques that will help you to  make your fault visible so a lot of this technique   more or less emerged during the Renaissance so  in Italy during the 14th to 16th century where   a lot of artists but also engineers and I mean  in lots of different discipline started to use   what we call parallel languages or languages that  were based on drawings diagram and graph and so   the Renaissance is consider a period of history  where there was really an explosion of creativity   and I mean you may have heard I mean people like  Leonardo da Vinci and so on who somehow lived in   during this period so the idea is how can you  convey this knowledge of these ideas that you   have into this parallel language for drawing  diagram and graph now here art for example some   some drawings that were taken directly from the  walk of of Galileo or from the work of Leonardo da   Vinci who somehow started to represent what they  believed the knowledge was or try to illustrate   what they thought I mean some of the concept  of some of the phenomenon associated with some   problems they were facing could be could be solved  so the use of diagram was really a way to capture   information we also to formulate problem and we're  also a way to solve this this problem so three   different purpose first capturing information  second to formulate a problem and third different   use was really to solve this problem so I mean  Leonardo da Vinci done a lot a lot of drawings   in a lot a lot of different field so this is what  he calls the illegal a screw which was probably   the ancestor of the helicopter and we can see  through the also drawing of a plane Leonardo   that I mean he already was when you're head of his  time and it was really very very creative for I   mean based on the knowledge that was available  at this time another one which is I guess very   well known and quite popular is Vitruvian Man  so again Leonardo just by observation and began   doing drawing was able to show that in fact the  proportion of the human figure could fit more or   less in see a corona in a square so again very  I mean some things that could not have probably   that people would not have been able to realize  until they see these drawings and until even   himself we try to somehow Express is idea that is  concept in for drawings now for lots of ideas and   concept language is not really the best way or  the best medium to communicate these ideas and   this problem so in fact what we have in our head  is more likely to be represented or convey through   the use of of drawings and there is a particular  tool that we called mind map which somehow helps   to map a little bit what we have in our brain and  helps to to put on paper a bit the relationship   that exists also between these ideas on on paper  so what is a mind map so my mud map could be a   consider as an organized brainstorming method  and again where you start from a central theme   and then you look at all the different folds that  you have around this theme and the association   that exists behind this behind this idea behind  this this fold so mind map doesn't really select   information based on categories but more as try  to explore I mean what comes to your mind when   you think about a particular thing and what does  it trigger and what does it trigger and so on so   you explore little bit all the different avenues  of things that comes to your mind when you think   about a particular thing or a particular problem  of particular challenge that use at your face so   the Association are potentially infinite so it  means that I mean you could go on and go on and   go on and go on I mean the goal is not to go to  to expand to to merge the mind map but at least   to to understand what are some of the key ideas  and concepts that somehow could be explore further   around a central theme now here is an example of  a mind map so the central theme was yellow so what   do you think when you think about yellow so you  can see here your presentation I mean I guess   that some things that come from the US people say  bus for in Sun because school buss are yellow in   the in the US then they say banana and then they  says it mention other colors like green orange   or that Foley which is somehow a flower which is  also yellow so that small as the first level and   then for each of the level for instance if you  take birth what do you think when you think of   births where are these people this person thought  about vehicle about truck about fire engine about   car and and so on so what do you think when you  think about banana I think about Apple I think   about pear I think about peach what do you think  when you think about I think about fruit and so   on so as you can see you explore a little bit what  are some of the common ideas or concept that comes   to your mind based on the central theme first and  how it evolved later on and then you also link   the concepts that are somehow connected with each  other's like for instance in the case of bananas   I was up world parent and peach and then all of  them were concept I mean connected to the concept   of fruit so a line and a drawing was maybe behind  I mean in between them so you start by a central   theme and then you expand probably I mean I don't  know he depends a bit how much time you have and   how much you want to explore but maybe three four  five six levels down and then later on it becomes   probably a little bit too big to to manage now  here is another example again which is centered   around iced tea what comes to your mind when  you think about iced tea and you can see the   mind maps that someone created about about this  again different aspect I think about ice I think   about tea I think about summer I think about  refreshing and so on and then the expansion of   this mind map so you have lots of tools even free  tools that are available online that you can that   you can download or that you can use online to  create these mind maps and against our good way   to to explore a little bit what's in your mind  and you will say one idea which we go another   and so on and sometime later on when you look  the linkage at the linkage between all of them   you will find some so maybe interesting insight  on how you can combine eventually to concept or   to ideas or to solution with each other's now  the next slide is a mind map about mind map   so it's more or less my map guidelines or you  should go about drawing your mind map again I   will let you pause on on this slide probably for  you to be able to see it but more or less you   put your everything all your ideas down all your  ideas lens then later on I mean you use keywords   to present these ideas you're not going to write  sentences just keywords that will present the idea   and then later on you organize you cluster and  and so on so this mind map about my map so it's   a meta mind map if you want helps to organize a  little bit or to explain the different steps to   develop a mind map so again the central theme  could be anything it could be a problem the   idea is looking at imagine a imagining a little  bit or be very imaginative in how you link this   different concept with with each other's and and  you could use something maybe more stimulating   at the center of your instead just using a world  you could use a picture or you could use I don't   know a video or whatever and then look at what  what does it lead to sometimes as the use of a   picture might be my lead you my introduces a bias  because I mean it represent physically something   already so it's not abstract per se so this my  limit your ability to be creative and to explore   further but in some cases this might be useful  now I'm gonna ask you to experiment a little bit   drawing a mind map so I'm gonna give you a keyword  and then I'm gonna give you one minutes more or   less you take a blank sheet of paper and then I  give you one minutes to draw a mind map related   to the concept that I'm gonna present to you so  what I would like you to do is to develop a mind   map around the world mouse okay so Mouse is at  the center of the mind map now I let you up to   you to to explore further so I will give you one  minutes to do that don't think too much really   write down everything that comes to your mind let  me just go through two levels at this stage don't   go too deep in each level so what are all the  ideas or concepts that comes to your mind when   you think about a mouse and then you expand it to  the next level so I give you one minutes ready go well I hope you you design a very nice mind map  so I don't know what you wrote unfortunately I   cannot see it from here but mouse I mean you I'm  sure you you first thing that comes to your mind   male star bindi the animals and maybe the computer  mouse and maybe Mickey Mouse so I don't know what   came out to your mind but hopefully you were able  to to experience a little bit the use of a mind   map and again that's a very very nice and very  powerful tool to start structuring a little bit   you are your ideas and you can refine it again  and again so that's the same approach when you   have a problem what are some of the first ideas  that can come to your mind in how to solve this   problem you can do it individually and then later  on you can share it also among your group and each   of the other member of the group can contribute  to this mind map to expand it to refine it to   look at new a new connection new new avenues and  this you end up being a good very good starting   point to try to look at what has the option  to solve you your problem now I will talk   now about a little bit about Picasso and Pablo  Picasso which is a Spanish artist painter that I   guess most of you my my known and and one of the  techniques that Picasso used to use was he used   to feel himself more or less with this subject so  before starting to paint for understand something   about about the green color it will you will  go and spend some time in the forest and emails   himself in a green environment he will look at  a lot of things that are green and somehow to   somehow feel himself with this with this idea  with this concept with whatever is trying to   to paint about and then he will engage into this  creative painting or sculpture or or whatever I   wanted to get involved with but there was this  initial phase phase of really being immersed   into the theme or the context in which he  wanted to be creative about now there is   a movie a French movie an old French movie which  was released in 1956 by a French filmmaker whose   name is a leisure cruise oh and original screws  oh somehow recorded or challenged a little bit   Picasso Picasso was already 74 years old and  he asked Picasso to somehow be able to paint   15 different artworks in a very very limited  amount of time so on the small part of this   movie that I will show you now it's a five  minute challenge so Picasso was given five   minutes to paint something and so the filmmaker  is recording Picasso painting so that's something   which is quite interesting because we rarely  see the artist painting with easy output which   is a final artwork but we rarely see the artist  painting and we will see the way that Picasso   paint in this movie is quite interesting and the  evolution of of the fold and creativity also are   quite interesting so the movie again is doesn't  last very long probably seven to eight minutes   it's in French but you really doesn't matter in  which language it is I mean there is this a bit   this interaction between picasso and unoriginal  crudos a guy with the pipes that you will see so   the tea is a little bit it shows there all along  the way and and the filmmaker also somehow I mean   kind of challenge and pusher bit Picasso makes  him things that he doesn't have any more time   and the Picasso somehow beg for more time  and so on so I mean that some of the small   thing you will miss but the core of the of this  movie here I was the essence of what I want you   to get out of it it doesn't really matter in what  language it's really seeing the artist painting   and evolution of his creativity move around the  movie okay so please sit down and enjoy the movie well I hope you enjoy this this movie it's quite  quite interesting to see how Picasso I mean start   by drawing flowers and turns into fish and turn  into chicken and then turn into a head and then   turn into Wow who knows what but anyway that's  that's quite interesting so for this movie you   really did painted 15 artworks all these artworks  where somehow destructed at the end of the movie   that was part of the deal so that's a shame  that they no longer exist I mean they were   worth millions two days but I mean I think it  was quite a creative movie also per se and and   and that's really amazing to see I mean the flow  of creativity of of Picasso really in practice and   how his ideas evolve evolve over over time so  again I you want to do a metaphor with that is   really I mean how I mean don't always get stuck  with one idea and one solution I mean get these   ideas evolve somehow over time and don't always  get stuck on something keep exploring and this   might lead you to something which end up being  much more creative to what you may have think   your original idea was so again going back to the  Picasso approach try to collect as much material   and about the topics about the problem that  you're trying to solve immerse yourself with   fill yourself with this with this with these  ideas with this concept with this understanding   it's a little bit like when the actor wants to  shoot a movie also I mean about about someone   else you have to put themselves in the body in  the arrow of this of this person that they are   representing in this in this movie and so they  spend also a lot of time also to study a little   bit is who's these different people where was this  different personage where so again so you need to   activate yourself and you cannot just activate  yourself suddenly out of the blue coding I mean   to walk in the morning and at 10 o clock you  have a meeting and suddenly you're gonna be   creative no it will never walk that way again  this emotion and this time which is required   for you to really be in males with the topic  will really help you find some solution and   another solution if you remember on module 1.2  we talked a little bit about this process with   the work or the initial steps of Graham Wallace  that says that well step number one you prepare   yourself so you collect background information  and and about about the topic and step number two   which is very very important is this incubation  process so now that you have all these knowledge   is information is these things in front of you  that you have been exposed to then your brain   start to somehow organize things or make sense out  of it and then later on you go to the next stage   which is the intimation which is really you can't  feel you can see that suddenly you're starting to   feel some some avenues of solution but if you  skip the first two steps the preparation and   the incubation it's very likely that you  will have problem with the intimation and   the illumination later on or the illumination  might be very poor or not very very creative so again this is part of what we call this is one  of the techniques that is somehow associated with   visual brainstorming again try to visualize your  ideas on paper it really helps you to make sense   of them it's also easier to communicate them with  with other people you can do that by drawings but   you can do that also for instance by using Legos  or using play-doh or anything you can physically   or represent it if you don't want to do it in 2d  you can do it in three dimension and and again you   will see that even yourself this with question  a lots of things that you didn't think about   early on and that somehow by articulating on on  a drawing on a 3d representation will really help   you to to I mean to understand and for instance  architects our are I mean always create mock-ups   or small prototype for things that they do as  well as as designer and and again if they do that   is because there is a value for them to really  fully understand and look at at put potential   solution for different angle and for different  lenses and again it's an incremental process   I mean you would always build on what you've  previously tried or thought about and the idea   we would improve along the way again I mean a lot  of this concept and content that I presented to   you come from this book from michaelmi Michalka  which is called cracking creativity so you can   learn much more about this technique or  so for his book thank you for watching