The Universal Traveler _1

8/17/2019 The Universal Traveler _1

1/40

The

pdated

lassic

Editi

by on Jim Bagnall

: .


2/40

Libra ry

of

Congress Cataloging -

in

- Publ ica t ion Dat a

Koberg ,

Don,

1930 -

The

universa l

t r ave le r : a so f t - systems guide

to

c rea t i v i t y , problem - so lv ing , and t he process of reach

ing

goals by Don Koberg and Jim Bagnal l . - - 4th ed.

p . em.

Includes bib l iograph ica l re fe rences and index .

ISBN 1-

56052-679-3

pbk .

1.

Problem

so lv ing . 2 .

Crea t ive ab i l i ty .

3 . Go a l

Psychology)

I . Bagnal l ,

Jim.

I I .

Ti t l e .

BF44l.K55

2003

158.1--dc21

2003007910

0

Copyright

© 1972

2 0 0 3

x

zo P 19 7 3 19 74 19 7 6

publ i ca t ;onress

All

r igh t s ; e s e

19801

1981 1990

_ may be rved

o

wri t t en

perm·

. reproduced n

·

par t o f t h i s

o f

the

any form without

publ i sher .

Previous ed

i

t

pr in t ings

through 2003

1

3.

14

15 16 number a t

l e

as t

16

i n the 10 9 8 7

Uni t e d Sta

t e s

o f

meric


3/40

o Vc

The UNIVERSAL TR VELER i s more

t han

a guide to c rea t ive problem so lv ing and

c l e a r th ink ing ;

t i s your

passpor t to

success . The process descr ibed

i s

univer sa l ly r e l evan t ; based on the premise tha t any problem dream o r as-

pi ra t ion , no matte r

i t s s ize

or degree of

complexi ty

can

benef i t from the

same log ica l

and

order ly ' sys t emat i c '

process

employed

to

solve

world- l eve

l

problems Only the wording and methods

vary

and

t hen

in

appearance a lone .

Systemat ic

process , der ived

from the

s tudy

o f

human

cont rol systems known

as Cybernet ics , forms the bas i s

fo r

modeling most

soc ia l ,

i n d u s t r i a l , and

economic problem s i tua t ions To provide an

everyday

appl i ca t ion of method

lead ing to a more order ly

l i f e

process , we have t r a n s l a t e d the techn ica l

terminology of sys temat ic problem-solving

in to

conversa t iona l language and

s impl i f i ed t echniques . The re su l t ing ' u s e r - f r i e n d l y ' approach

to problem-

so l ving

i s ca l l ed

SOFT SYSTEMS Once lea rned and

in te rna l i zed

with prac-

t i ce ,

the Universal Tra ve le r

sof t

sys temat ic

approach

wil l al low anyone

to dea l more l og ica l ly and o r d e r l y with a l l manner of problem s i tua t ions or

goa ls .


4/40

IN

rll{ODUCTION

t

8

R

TIVITY

Life i s a cont inua l

sequence of

encounters .

Some

are

unavoidable;

to

be enjoyed

suf -

fe red by choice . Others can be cont ro l l ed

consc ious ly . Crea t ive

problem-solving i s a

process of

dea l ing i n t e l l i g en t ly

with those

s i t u a t i o n s

tha t

can be cont ro l l ed .

A

cre -

a t ive ptcb lem-so lver i s

a

de s igne L ;

a

per

-

son in tending

to

improve what e x i s t s o r

to

f ind c lea r

paths through

dilemmas

o r c ha l -

l enging

s i tua t ions

and

a t s a t i s fy i n g

so lu t ions

.

In geneta l ,

in o rder

to improve

something

and

do it

c rea t ive ly

it

i s

necessary ,

f i r s t ,

to i d e n t i fy

what it

i s tha t ac tua l ly

needs

improving ;

second,

to unders tand the

i n t e r a c t i v e

f ac to r s

involved;

and

Lhi ld,

to

develop the

s k i l l s

and t oo l s

(meth-

ods) to

manage the ta sk

.

Crea t ive Behavior d i f f e r s from normal behav-

i o r which i s e i t h e r pr imar i ly ob jec t ive o r

p1imar1ly

sub jec t ive .

Crea t iv i ty

r equ i r es

a

wil l ingness to

jo in

s u b j e c t i v i t y wi th objec

-

t i v i t y . I t

involves

lea rn ing

to

th ink

and

behave

"wholly" ins tead

of

one

way o r an

other ; to

a l t e rna te

between what you sense

or

fee l ,

what you a l ready know o r th ink you

know, and

what

you

might discover

by

t ry ing

something new. The pr imar i ly OBJECTIVE

pe r

-

son, fo r example,

knows every th ing

by name.

Once

named, no fu r the r examinat ion of con-

cent

i s

requ ired thereby e l imina t ing the

p o t e n t i a l

fo r deeper

unders tanding and

i ono-

vat ion .

The

pr imar i ly SUBJECTIVE

person ,

being

a

here-and-now sense- response mecha-

nism,

cont inua l ly de l igh t s

in

sensory expe -

r ience and

cares littl fo r

names

o r other

f ixed conc lus ions .

TO COMBINE

THE

TWO thus crea t ing

a

more

na tura l balance between the

extremes o f

sensing

and

mewing, IS

TO GAIN MORE

THJI.J J

BOTH.

The combinat ion

al lows you to dea l

cmpl e t e ly

wi th

any encounte r .


5/40

Creacive wholeness

l eads beyond the here and

now of

sensory

response and remembered

e:·:pe-

r ience

and knowledge. I t

opens the

ga te

co a

deeper understanding of the na tura l

balance

between

divergent and convergent

chinking

and

the

freedom to c on t ro l your behavior .

Allowing

yours e l f to a l t e rna te

between

th ink ing and f ee l ing may be d i f f i c u l t a t

f i r s t .

Adu

lts

l i v e

i n soc i a l

v i r t u a l

worlds

of words and symbols. t

i s only

human

to

become more

objec t ive

and

l e s s

s ub je c t ive

with age . Knowing the names of th ings saves

you l o t s of t ime and

s topping

to

smel l the

roses o r enjoy r e a l i t y

i s

considered a waste

of t ime . I t may re qu i re f requent p r a c t i c e

to

overcome

the

habi t s re la ted

to

' normal '

be-

havior .

t i s fa r more 'norma l ' to

think

a l l day long

and

save fee l ing for a fc e r

work o r

the weekend.

Because

of

being

unique ,

balanced behavior

i s

of te n viewed as

ca re le s s

o r

maladjus ted

and even a t t imes

subversive to the

i n s t i t u t i o n s tha t

normalcy

c r e a t e s to pe rpe tua te

normalcy.

Since

con-

formi ty

i s the s h o r t e s t rou te to accepcance

in a mass soc ie ty , behaving

uniquely

i s a

sure

way

to

be come an ou tc a s t . But accept -

ab l e

unique

beha

vior i s pos s ib le fo r anyone,

who by i n t en t ion i s adventurous ,

pr ide - le s s ,

s e l f d i s c i p l i n e d and s e l f be l iev ing , who has

i n t e r e s t in reso lv ing problematic condi

t i ons , and who c on t inua l ly develops an a b i l -

i t y

to be

"whole. Wh

en

l ea rned , the new

behavior

wil l

seem every

b i t

as

na tura l

as

the o ld .

In b r i e f , CREATIVITY doesn ' t come f ree . I t

i s not a

g i f t

o r qui rk of b i r t h . Some people

d o n ' t jus t have i t while

other s

do

not .

Nor

does

it come from luck o r magic.

Cre-

a t i v i t y

i s lea rnab le

behavior

requ ir ing

s teady and determined

ef fo

r t . I f you accept

the f ac t t ha t the goal o f c r e a t i v i t y i s in

novat ion, you should

r e a l i z e

t ha t

c rea t ing

something

new

i s

NOT NORM L but DIFFEPENT

from

normal,

perhaps even ' abnormal . '

CAUTION I f you

be l ieve

you

are behaving

c r e a t

ive ly and your

behavior i s

r ead i ly

ac-

ce

p ted

in nor

mal

soc ie ty , one of two condi-

t i ons

i s probable :

e i the r you have condi-

t ioned

soc i e ty

to accep t your

abnormal

ac

t i ons or

your input i s

r e a l l y not

as unique

as

it

seems .

9


6/40

omekeys toCreative

ehavior

rac t iced

c rea t ive behavior breeds

automat ic

c rea t ive

behavior .

Said

another

way

cre -

a t i v i t y and

consc iousness

of

procedures

process ) and methods

go

hand in hand .

I f

you become more aware of your

pos i t ion

re l a -

t i v e to what has gone before and what

i s

ye t

to

come your

a b i l i t y to

decide from

both

the broad view and the

spec i f i c

view

i s

inc reased

al lowing you

to become more accu-

r a t e

in

your pred ic t ions

and choices

throughout

eve ty j ourney

.

Proven sugges t ions fo r developing conscious-

ness o f

c rea t ive

procedure and

methodology

are :

1. FREEDOM

FROM PRIDE SELF-DISCIPLINE)

2. BELIEF IN SE LF AND THE ABILITY TO SUCCEED

3.

CONSTRUCTIVE

DISCONTENT

4.

l·iHOLEIHSS

5. ABILITY

TO

COIHROL

HABIT

FREEDM

ROM

PRIDE SELF-DISCIPL INE

Pr ide

othe t than as respec t fo r q u a l i t y o r

achievement

i s

des t ruc t ive counte r - c rea t ive

behavior and

de t rac t s

from the a t ta inment o f

goa ls . I t i s d i f f i c u l t to see c l e a r l y with

your nose in the a i r . PRIDE s tands in the

way

of

c re a c i v i t y

by

i n h i b i t i n g you

from

ask ing key ques t ions t hus

s t i f l i n g

the

key

requ i s i t e fo r cur ios i ty . I t r e s t r i c t s a

change

of mind 0 1

di rec t ion which

thereby

f ixes

a preconce ived

and

pre jud ic i a l course .

P.nd

t

runs

counte r

to

the

t r u e s e l f l e s s n e s s

10


7/40

requ ired fo r the ngiving of onese l f

to the

task Pr ide

jo ins che

other deadly s ins" to

d e t r a c t from improvement . SELF-DISCIPLINE,

i . e . , nbeing t rue co your se l f , on the

other hand, i s a t r u t h - r e v e a l i ng behavior .

t r equi res courage

of

conv i c t i o n and f ea r -

l e s s acceptance

of

the

respon

s i b ility

fo r

being wha t you

are

, and t a k i n g s teps

to

in -

s ur e improvemen t . Modi f y i ng beha v io r t o mee t

s

pe

c i

f i c s i tua

t ions

need

not

l

imi t

freedom

o r

work

aga ins t the needs

of o the rs

in -

volved .

ELIEF

IN S

ELF

AND THE A L ITY TO

SUCC

EED

Be

s e l f -mo t iva te d Be l i e f

in

your

a b i l i t y to

succeed i s

necessary fo r

both motivat ion and

the maintenance of

c rea t ive

i n e r t i a .

I f you

wait

fo r

someone

e l se

to move you , you

might

f ind

yourse l f

headed in a wrong

di rec t ion

.

Ego-s t rength

and

l e a de rs h ip

are c lose ly

re -

l a t e d . Leaders wi th low s e l f -b e l i e f

are

ra re . The norm i s

to

subdue

ego

and become a

fo l lower ;

to

play the soc i a l game of s e l f -

denia l and

make

l e s s

of your ab i l i c i e s and

p o t e n t i a l s . Hiding your ego from re -

s u l t s in denying it to

yourse l f

.

The

deeper

you

bury it , the l e s s it se rves you as

par t

of your

behavior . Begin to

be

l

i eve in your

own c rea t ive

pote

n t i

a l and you wi l l begin

to

behave more c re a t i v e l y . "

O

N

TRUCT IV

E

DI

SCONT

EN

T

Discontent i s as pre requ is i t e to meaningful

problem so lv ing

as

i s di s sen t to

being

a

good c i t i zen . Adolescence i s usua l ly a l l

tha t i s requ ired fo r

achiev ing

hal f

of

t h i s

important a t t r i b u t e

of c r e a t i v i t y .

A

neon-

tented" teen

i s r a re

indeed; disconten t

goes

wi th

tha t t ime of l i f e .

To

the

young,

every-

th i

ng

needs improvement . Yet, it

i s

us ua l ly

the lack of

a cons t ruc t ive a t t i t ude t ha t

wi ns

out in the end,

tu rn ing p o t e n t i a l l y

he a l thy

ndiscontent

in to

nothing

more

than

moans

and

groans .

Cons t ruc t ive disconten t

i s a necess i ty fo r

t h e c rea t ive problem-solver .

With

matur i ty ,

your

di scon ten t

wanes

.

Socie ty

teaches t ha t

nfau l t - f inde rs " di s tu rb the s ta tus quo . t

soon

seems

ngood

not

to nmake

waves or

nrock the boat and nle t s leep ing dogs l i e "

and

nbe seen

but not heard

. Only a con-

s t r u c t i v e a t t i t u d e

can maintain

the

once

dynamic condi t ion .

11


8/40

WHOLENESS

Everyone

both senses nr.d

kn

r a l

to

bo t h

fe e l and to thinl :

It ._p

. l a tu-

1 _i je.;.

With

age

t he

more

you

thP s

you

t end

to fee l . It s f a s t e r

th

l

w f ·

A n

>lmal

a du l t

wi l l smother se n s i t i v i .. · n favrn· of

automat ic

judgment and

moving on

new

knowledge

. But

remain ing 2e'1sit1.ve d o e s n t

mean re - l e a rn ing the same Lhin51s v 1 and

over

aga in

.

I t s imply

al lows

f . ) l

:t

.ore

balanced whole. By

a l t e r n a t i n l

... f ee l -

i ng

and knowing, between i nq .J 1 dec id-

i ng

in a conscious way, you lla

in t

d n

cC'nt

1·o1

of your

WHOLE

p o t e n t i a l .

ABILITY T CONTROL

HABIT

Behavior in genera l i s

a.

·n•

h a b i t s . Habi t s

s impl1fy l:f

from d is c ove r ie s

cu1neJ t

l

I

t i ons which, when

1·epPat I

u11t

1 .-

i

become

automat ic

.

Since

t:.E· n

· l

ba s ic d i s c ove r ie s

occu1· Vv 1 y

always works

a ga in s t you

i

1 -

P1

1 c

·•h

>V

ing c r e a t i v e l y .

In orde r

to see th::.ngs

d i

1ft. r t

l}

t

1

t t

come mo1·e innova t ive , it i s r.rt ·1 h w

he lp fu l

o r

h inde r ing

you1 l nb i s t... l.l>

te rms

of persona l

prob::..em-solvi.r.

t

i

11

12

4


9/40

........ locks to

cre tiv

I t i s normal

to

hold

bac

k because of being

wary of making mistakes o r ask ing dum

b

ques t ions . Yet few

e r ro r s car ry

s t i f f pena l -

t i e s and the ask ing of any ques t ion , no mat-

t e r how innocent , suggests

wi

ll

ing

ness to

l ea rn . The most common b a r r i e r s t o crea t ive

behavior

a re

se l f -genera t ed

pr ide , fea r ,

jea lousy and

compet i t iveness .

The c rea t ive ly

ac t ive

person

i s

not put

o f f

by such

demons.

FEAR of making mi s c a

kes

FEAR o f

be ing seen as

a foo l

FE R

o f

be ing

e

xposed

as ignoran t

FEAR

of be ing c r i t i c i z e d fo r

FE R o f

of fend ing

o the1s

FEAR

o f being

a

lone

FEAR

o f

making waves

FEAR o f

b

e ing

a ssoc i a t e d

with

taboos

FEAR

o f l o s ing the

s e c u t i t y of

hab i t

FEAR o f

l o s ing

the

love of

th

group

FEAR

o f

t ak i n g

a

star ,d

and having t c defend

t

FEAP o f

being unable to

t ake

Lhe heat

13


10/40

Fear from lack of

and

the

accompanying anxie ty when dea l ing wi th the

unknown.

Since

c rea t ive

problem-solv ing sugges t s

div-

ing

head

f i r s t

in to the unknown, f ea r might

be

your most

formidable enemy Being a f ra id

i s

both

na tura l

and

normal. Trying to

be

fea r le s s i s r i sky

bus iness s ince f ea r

evokes

cau t ion

which a t t imes

can be

a

l i f e - s a v e r .

But

when

cau t ion de te r s progress

and

cre -

a t i v i t y

through

misdirec t ing

your

energy,

it

i s working agains t you.

It s unreasonable

to imagine

escap ing

f ea r

a l toge the r But

by

changing

your focus

from

I 'm a f ra id to

be wrong

to I 'm t ry ing to

be

r i g h t ,

the po in t o f view

can

help

in ovet·coming

t h i s

major block

to

a

more

c rea t ive l i f e

Humans are

soc ia l and no hea l thy

person would enjoy being an o u t c a s t But

behaving ' o f f the

wal l '

0 1 ' ou t of the box'

can you j us t t ha t Fear o f being alone,

apar t

from the norm, s tops most people from

even

cons ider ing

doing o r saying something

thaL might be judged as

unusua l .

Then

again,

what i f you do

t r y

something

unusual which tu rns out to be a l l

wrong?

Will you be judged as a fool? The

mere

thought of wearing a dunce cap

i s

enough to

s top normal people in

theiY t r acks .

I t

i s

t rue

thaL

the plane could crash and the

boat

could

s ink but the

odds

aga ins t e i t h e r d i-

sa s t e l

happening keep a i r

and

sea

lanes

busy. Only s e l f -b e l i e f , the hope of being

r igh t

ins tead

of wrong, can outweigh such

fea t s .

14


11/40

)

_

- -

In essence log ic helps us

to

unders t and how

a l l

th ings are

o r can be

organized and

in

t e r r e l a t e d .

I t i s

a

bas i s

or foundat ion

on

which

to

bui ld . I t

i s

an

order ing

system

with in which

we

can

deal

wi th

pieces

and not

lose s i g h t

o f the

t o t a l i t y t ha t

conta ins

them.

Logic

i s a

way, an order ly way,

to

inc lude

sensory

response in a consc i ous p ro

cess .

IN

SHORT

LOGI

m kes

S NS

Organized

knowing

develops meaningful

f ee l

ing

.

LOGIC i s both

bas i s and

contex t fo r order .

LOGIC i s a guide for mental ac t iv i ty .

LOGIC

i s

devoid of everyday l ingu i s t i c

conten t . . .

t

has no

semant i cs .

LOGIC

i s

syntax r a t h e r t han

def in i t ion .

LOGIC

i s

a s t r u c t ure

fo r

reas

on

.

LOGIC

i s

a s e r i e s of opera t ions o r

methodi-

c a l

t rans format ions .

LOGIC i s n e i t h e r

metaphysical

nor ph i

lo

-

sophica l

.

LOGIC i s the

bas i s

of sc i e n t i f i c

methodology.

LOGIC provi des an orga n iz a t iona l framework.

LOGIC i s

in f lux .

LOGIC simpl ifie s process .

15


12/40

TheDESION

PRO ESS

s

a Problem Solving

JOURNEY

Gym teachers and geolog i s t s , wri te rs and

t ruck farmers,

movie

makers and motorcy-

c l i s t s , audiophi les and

e leva to r

opera tors ,

xylophonis ts and s c i - f i fans are

a l l prob-

le m

-so

lve rs . Everyone i s a

problem-solver .

Some

j u s t do t b e t t e r t han

other s ,

by

de-

s ign . By gene1at ing

unique

and/or

par t i cu-

l a l l y s a t i s fy i n g so lu t ions , a des igner i s

sa id to behave c rea t ive ly . Since problem

so lv ing i s in te r twined with l iv ing , you are

ever embarking on a problem-solving journey

of

one

so r t

o r

another .

The more you under-

s tand

.:::>ESIGN

as

being

c lose ly

r e l a t e d

to

the

l i f e process

the be t te1

y o u l l

be as a c r e -

a t i v e problem - so lve r o r d e s i g n e r .

The c1ea t ive problem-solv ing

design)

pro

-

cess

i s

most

e a s i l y understood as a sequence

of

s tages

o r s topovers on a journey to a

given des t ina t ion . A fu l l round- t r ip i t i n e r -

a ry o f f e r s exper ience a t each of those

places . Once in te rna l i zed through e xpe r i -

ence, design process or i en ted

t r ave l

in -

volves the conscious a p p l i c a t i o n

of

incen-

t i ves , i n t en t ions , dec is ions , ac t ions and

eva lua t ions .

Note : The

des ign

process presen ted here i s a

design in i t s e l f ;

developed

by

ex t rac t ing

the

essen t i a l charac

t e r i s t i c s

of many spe-

c i f i c

problem-solv ing processes , inc lud ing

the works of Wallas,

Dewey,

Rossman,

Guil ford ,

Osborn, Stan is lawski , Barnes,

Gordon,

Kepner-T1egoe

,

Arnold, Churchman,

Zwicky,

General

Elec t r i c , the Mil i t a ry ,

and

?EPT

Pr.oqld n Evalua t ion

Review Technique) .

16


13/40

accept

analyz

. '

sele

impleme

; -

l . t_

•• . i -

-

GE

TT

II G STARTED

S t a t i n g inilial i n t e n t ion s ; accept the prob-

lem

a s

a

a l lowing the

proble rr

to

b-::come

the ge:r:.::.rator o f

va t ion .

GATHERING

FAC

TS

AND FEELINGS

Becoming

with

the in s

i de s

and

ou t s ide s o f

t he

problem;

what

t he """'Ol lcl o f rh,:;: EHOblPm" con t a i n s

.

DETERMINING

THE

DEST IN ATION

(ESSENTIALS

FOR

SUCCESS)

f 2t .... n n i n i n q rh -

ic ;

'tlt::=" o f t

fl

D l >blc->rn ;

conr

, u t 11 11 i;,:;

1

nu 111..:

1 1 i 1 d .· l lillP

• l 1

i

f ' / l l . J 1 111,;

1

r·nrl.s

1

l •

.·r}dt

GE I RAT

HI

G AL

E RNA T

IVES

I den l l t : : i ng 1 l l p': lssible way.' c1f 1·ec1l t .: i

ng

t he goc=tls .

CH0 0 S

Hl

G FROI l THE 0 PTI 0 ·l S

'()1[;1 i l t. h· 1

-...

t i I

, q '

il

/1 .

l L - l . .

t

..

wa y

s u t irt-1 Lllt. lE:;

dete1n11

n iltLJ tltt·

lH.=s:

malc'h (

e s J

HKIIJG ACTIOII

i v ing

fonn

to

s e l e c t e d :c1ys;

r e a l i z i n g

in te n t ions .

MEASURING SUCCESS

Reviewing

t he joun1""Y to deu>nninf:': t.

he

de

gree o f

s uc c e s s a n i i t s

O'..Tcl·al:

va : ·w; what

was l e

a r ned ? Ho t: c

=m the e::pet i ence

be

used

to

ma ke

fu tu r e

l l · ave l mo1·e

nv;.-tningful a nd /o r

e n joy a

b l

e?

17


14/40

About AN ALYSIS

and

SYNT S S

When

comparing

var ied

approaches

to

problem-

so lv ing

it

soon

becomes

c lea r t h a t ce r t a in

common

denominators e x i s t

which uni te

them

a l l

In pa1t i cu l a r two

basic s tages

e:nerge

The

f i 1 s t i s

ANALYSIS

o r

b1eaking

the

whole

i n to

par t s

fo r

c lose r

examinat ion

The second

i s SYNTHESIS

or reso lv ing the

p a r t s

to fo1m a

new

whole

The need

to

apply what

i s

lea rned from

Analys i s

to

form

a Synthes is a

t h i rd

con

ne c t ive l i nk o r

br idge i s

of t en sugges ted .

When

included, the bas i c

process

becomes

Fu1ther sub div i s ion

becomes

personal and

spec i f i c

or dependent on the type of

problem

considered

In genera l terms, Synthes is fo r

example,

breaks

down

i n t o

ide a - f ind ing

i dea - se l ec t ing and ac t ion- t ak ing

I f

Accep-

t ance i s added a t

che

beginning

and

Evalua

ion ':a.cl:ed onto the end,

a

sequence of

seven a c t i v i c i e s evolves

That seven s tage

process

presen ted

in the fol lowing pages

[si\ i:ton H analy

ze

I f

order ly

th ink ing

seems

as

i

it

might

hamper

your

c rea t ive

freedom, t r y

to

r e a l i z e

t h a t

most

procedures can be

viewed

or ap-

pl i ed in

a v a r i e t y

of ways. ow

you see

something

i s l a rge ly

up

to you.

Procedura l

s tages need

not

fol low one anot h e r

l i n e a r l y

l i k e coaches of

a

t r a in

where

moving forward

depends on

pass ing through

success ive

c a rs

one ac a t ime There are other vers ions

20


15/40

fe dback

You

might

view t he s t ages o f

back and fo r th

a c t ion where

yo·. 11ev

e.r r ;

forward

wi thout a lways looping bacl:

to

checJ:

on yours e l f ; where progress onlv trs b:·

l ooking

backward before moving f

You

might go on and on , never

stcpp

11cL

so lv ing one p roblem a f t e r an

othe l

0 1 112rlling

with the same proble m

again

and a--rain,

a lways g e t t i n g a b i t c lo se r to pelfr·• icE.

tl

d

te] rev lu te]

= / e

· •

==

[

[ideate

[

circular

You might regard th e des ign P' u ·e .


16/40

a wor about

Problem Solving

Methods

Because Lravel usua l ly

e n t a i l s

t ry ing

the

unt r ied, it can

a t t imes be

complex

and

f rus t ra t ing .

Learning

how to t rave l

becomes a necess i ty . Much l i k e

se lec t ing

the

rou te , s ide roads , and

overn igh t

s tops fo r

t r ave l ,

choosing

and t a i

methods

to f i t

both problem and problem-

so lve r i s a separa te ta sk

with in

each

problem

so lv ing

journey

.

Along with t h e i r other

suppl i es ,

exper i

encecl t r a v e l e r s

(crea t ive

problem-solv

ers ) usua l ly keep

notes

to them of

the bes t

ways

t o ge t

from

place to

place .

Such in format ion regard ing technique o r

approach i s ca l l e

d

method.

DESIGN

METHODS are prac t i ca l ways fo r

g e t t i n g from one des ign s tage

to

another .

Crea t ing

your

own

design

methods

i s

easy

once you r e a l i z e t hey need not be

complex

01

formal .

You a l ready

have

favor i t e s ,

pe1haps not consc ious ly

named

o r con

t ro l l ed , but ways tha t are p a r t i c u l a r l y

yours fr·om prev ious use. Giving

names

to

methods

i s

an i dea l method in i t s e l f . It

i s a way to improve remembering a par

t i c u l a r

technique. There

are

as many d i f -

fe re n t methods as t he re a re people wi th

needs fo r

methods. A

u n i v e r s a l l y

common

method of making notes , fo r

example, i s

c a l l e d

by

dozens of d i f f e r e n t names

.

Observa t ion sugges t s t h a t complex prob-

lems may

r equ i r e

complex techniques while

simple problems

might

be handled more

bas ica l ly .

Then

aga in ,

in

sp i t e

of

logic ,

the reverse might a l so be va l id

.

In any

event ,

you should unders tand t h a t j u s t as

you wouldn t

choose

a

moving

van to go

ge t the grocer i es , you wouldn t choose

computerized t echniques in order to make

a

dec i s ion

from a lunch menu bu t you

could i f

it

became appropr ia te

to a

spe-

c i f i c

s i t u a t i o n l i k e s e l e c t i n g fo r chou-

sands

of

de lega tes a t a p o l i t i c a l conven-

t ion .


17/40

3

ra

s

C

fl GET Hl

YOUR

Y /AY

anl 1ntu i t ion . I t

embod-

P S you knowledge and

i s

you1

bas ic data-bank .

Being

in

s igh t f

u l

i s to

al low

you1 pas t

to

serve as a guide

to

your

future

. . .

but

don t

allow

ins igh t to

control every

decis io

n.

Fresh anal ys is can

clnnge e"J


18/40

Afte r the i n e r t i a

i s

broken t he re

i s

usua l ly

much

more

t r ave l ing to

do

. Simi l a r ly , i f a

f i r s t u idea

i s

not proper ly eva lua ted in

te

r ms

of

overa l l objec t ives

and

ends

up be-

ing

your

only u idea ,

it

can cause even more

t r o

u

b le

.

Remaining consc ious of

the

en

t

i r e

PROCESS a t every s tage al lows you to con-

s

id e r

new

a l t e rna t ives and

to

make your

l i m i t a t i o n s and

your

objec t ives as you go .

DON T BE FRIGHTENED

BY

BIGNE SS

. There are

t

ools fo r dea l ing

wi th

a l l

contex ts

l a rge

o r

s m

a l l

.

Seek the

too l s tha t

it the ta sk .

A consc ious ly-appl ied PROCESS-METHOD combi-

na t

ion

can smooth

out even the most

un-

f

r i end ly or un fa mi l i a r appear ing s i tua t ion .

EXP E

RIENC

E I S TH E

BES

T

TE ACHER. Relax and

l ea rn

.

You

wil l only

be ac homeu wi th what

you

to

be t rue

yourse l f .

DON 'T

BE HALF-I·iiTTED

.

Knowledge

wi th

age

crea t es

a

tendency

to

cease

explo

r a t i o n and to become a KNOW-IT-ALL or SENSE-

IT- NOT .

Remember t ha t wholeness

requi res

both s en s i t i v i t y and knowledge .

I t helps

to

enhance

cur ios i ty

,

uniqueness, doing the

unexpected

and adventure . The older , more

educa ted

and exper ienced you

become

,

the

more you know and the l e s s sense you imagine

to need .

TH INK BEFORE

YOU L

E

P.

Quick

so lu t ions to

uns tud ied

and

undef ined problems can be even

more problemat ic a f t e r the fac t .

When

prob-

lem s i t u a t i o n s a r i se t ake

some

s ide t r i p s to

Analys i s and Def in i t i on before jumping

to

answers and

conc lus ions

.

In s te a d of

asking

What can

I

do

about

some apparent

problemu

s top to ques t ion whether o r

not

a t rue prob-

lem e x i s t s .

32

10


19/40

asic Methods

In the world of ways- to-do- th ings the re

see

ms to be an unl imi ted number of var i a -

t i ons

on two fundamental methods :

Perhaps y o u l l re cognize the

fol lowing

ba s ic

te c hn i ques ' in your persona l

behavior

.

Trial and rror

The

most

bas i c

of

s c i en t i f i c

methods

i s

known by

a l l

as

trial

and e r r o r

. ' I f

a t

f i r s t you

d o n t

succeed, t r y and

t ry

again .

T

r i a l and

Error i s

the

seed

tha t breeds hun-

dreds

of

s imple

and

complex

of f spr ing .

Checklists

L i s t -making

has

many

v a r i a t i o n s

in cluding

c h e c k l i s t s ,

l i s t s

of

components

or par t s ,

l i s t s of purposes and re asons, l i s t s of op-

t i o n s

and

p o s s i b i l i t

ie s

, lis

t s of

caut ions

and f ea r s

, l i s t s

of th ings

to

do, e tc

. ,

e tc

.

Brainstorming, pos s ib ly the most popular

among

consc ious ly

appl ied

d

es ign

methods,

i s

a

l i s t -making

t echnique .

L

earn

ing to

make l i s t s

i s

fundamental

t o

becoming more

methodical

and process-aware .

Shopping l i s t s and

other

d a i l y to -do l i s t s

a re

good

p la c e s to begin .

Become

a b e t t e r

list

-

maker and

y o u l l

be on

you r

way

to

more

success fu l

(c rea t ive )

problem

- so lv ing .

33


20/40

Specific ethods

Like

Nature wich

i t s dynamic

changing sea-

sons,

nothing i s

s t a c i c about

c rea t ive prob-

l em-solv ing

. The dynamic a l t e rn a t i o n between

convergenc and

divergent

th ink ing involved

in

the fol lowing

sequence

of

gener ic methods

i s a

' na tu ra l '

progress ion . Conscious ' fo -

cus ' on

any de ta i l of

a ' b ig p ic tu re ' re

q

ui res

tha

t

you

f i r s t broaden your

sco

p e

to

see the

whole , then nartow down to see

the

p a r t s .

C

C

EPT N

CE

The

s t a r t

of

any

e ve n tua l ly

s a t i s fy i n g

jou r -

ney i s a

wil l ingness

co

go. I '

LL BU

Y TH

T

i s

the bas ic mechol

.

Ic

requi res

ass ign ing

a

percen tage o f

you1 asse t s to a

p a r t i c u l a r

a c t i v i t y ;

na1rowing

(converging) choices

from every th ing poten t i a l ly

poss ib l e t o

the

few

tha t are r e a l i s r i c a l l y

doable

. How

you

get

s t a r t e d i s

a

petsona l matte r .

Knowing

what

dr ives

you

to

accept

cha l lenge

and

become involved becomes a l l - impor t an t

to

success . Reward moves

some ; some

depend on

t hrea t . Which

wi l l

it

be

- a c a r ro t

or

a

whip?

AN LYS IS

The

ba s ic method

i s

AT' S INVOLV ED?

Before

you can

develop an unders tanding

of

any s i tua t ion ,

you

need to gee the f ac t s

.

Often cloaked with in

the

fuzzy i s sues of

i n i t i a l problem y o u ' l l need

to

apply

some var ia t ion

of t h i s method to un -

cover· them.

Finding f a c t s and

t hey

i n t e r re l ace

re -

qui res

sea1ching fo r re la c e d

information . . . ques t ion ing a l l s ides of the

s i t u a t i o n examining the

d e t a i l s . . . involvement in

f a i r

and impar t ia l ,

open-minded

t eseatch.

(Divergence)

DEFIN I TION

The

bas i c

method

i s ESS E

NCE F

I NDI NG.

This

convergence

method involves

the

d i g e s t -

ing of in format ion

to

revea l

essen t ia l

guide l ines . When

bo i le d

down to

the

impor

t a n t aspec ts o r

i n t e r re l a t ionsh ips

, those

essences a l low

you to formulate a con-

cept

o r bas i s

f o r fu rcher op t ions ,

dec i -

s ions

and ac t ions . Once i den t i f i ed , the

es-

se n t i a l i ngred ien t ( s ) ptov ides d i1ec t ion o

a

s uc c e s s fu l conc lus ion .

This key s tage o f-

ten requi res forming

an

a t t i t u d e o r

t ak ing

a

s tand .

4


21/40

Ut I U J

The

next bas ic s tep , a phase, i s

IDEA -FIND

I

NG

;

the

sea rch fo r

a l l poss ib le

means

to

t r a n s l a t e

d e f i n i t i o n s co rea l -

i t y

.

The

t a s k

i s

to develop a

of

choices

or

" opt ions . " Finding ideas

depends

on yo

u r a b il i ty to wi

den your

th ink ing

from

the narrowed d e f i n i t i v e s tage tha t came

be f

ore it

. Defer r ing judgment

u n t i l

a suf -

f ic i e n t numb e r of op t i ons i s generated i s

a l l - impor

t a n t

a t

t h i s

phase

.

I D

EA

-

SE LEC

TIO N

Th

e b a s

ic

m

ethod,

THE B

ES

T

WAY e n t a i l s

co

mp a r i ng

wh

a t you want with what you can

have

.

From

a n

a lys

i s

you uncovered the

f

ac t s

. From f ac t s you

determined

essence .

Wi th i d

eat ion,

a v a r i e t y of

ways

(opt ions)

to

r e a l

i ze t h a t essence was revealed .

Where

before , ideas were without c l e a r purpose,

t hey are now more or l e s s meaningful in

terms of the d e f i n i t i o n s

s ta ted

.

What

remains i s

t o

decide

(converge)

which

of

t hose

ways "

wil l

be s t do

the

job.

IMP LE

M

N

T

ATION

M

AKE

I T RE AL .

the

next

bas ic method,

i s

another

d ivergent

exper ience. I t

evokes

a c t ion by formulat ing

plans

and

t r a n s l a t i n g

abs t rac t

'

v i r t u a l thoughts

and words

i n to

con

c re t e

r e a l i t y . It s a l

most l i k e re turn

-

ing t o "Go " e xcep t you now know where

you '

re

hea d

ed and

the

pa th you plan

to

take

. Ma k i ng i t happen can e n t a i l many more

dec

i s i

ons

. I t i s

here

where

sub

-

problems

are

most l i k e l y to

occur

and

where

begin-

ning problem-solvers of t en lose s igh t of

the

s ta ge s

in the

process

chat led

them

t h i s

fa r

. . .

almost

to

the end

.

EVA UATI

ON

For the f i n a l convergent s tage of the pro-

cess , the ba s ic method i s

H

Ovi D

I

DO?

Since eva lua t ion involves comparing aims

and i n t e n t i ons wi th

a t ta inment

and achieve-

ment, it

i s he re

where plans fo r improve-

ment

are formulated

.

But why wai t unt i l the

end

to

check on

progress

when ongoing

eva lua t ion can serve as

both guide and

t r a ve l companion

throughout

the journey?

ACCEPTANCE

i s

the l og i ca l i n i t i a l Design o r

hich specific

sit

u tion

bothers

you

35


22/40

Some

lessons

e t

ned

from Problem

Solving

y

experience

1 . Don ' t be l i e ve every th ing you

hear

or

read.

2 . I f you haven L b een the re before , you

may

have to

f ee l you1 way slowly.

3 . Having

been the re

before

can

s top you

from

f ind ing

new ways

to

ge t

the re .

4 .

Th

e

so lu t ion of one p rob lem might t r ans -

fe r

to

other

kinds of problems.

5 . Programmed

process

need

not

ru l e out

chance

.

6 .

en

Analys is

l eads

to

De f in i t i on, once

im p

oss

i b l e s i t u a t i o n s

t u rn

i n to

so lvab le

prob

lems .

7 .

I f

you want

ins ig

h t , you h ave to break

through the surfaces of

th ings .

8.

Obvious

answers

a re o f t e n

the hardes t

to

f ind .

9. Dif fe re n t po i n t s of

view

a re seen

through

d i f f e r e n t s e t s of

eyes .

10

.

I t

i s

easy

to

look. To see t akes e f f o r t

.

Crea t ive

thoughts come from see ing wi th

' f resh ' eyes

.

11 . There a re

more

ways than one to ge t to

the same place .

12 . F

ac t s

a nd

unders t anding

a re c lo s e ly con-

nec ted .

13.

One th ing

l eads

to

another

.

Follow

the

c lue s .

14.

Unti l t r a n s l a t e d i n to

l essons ,

unpleas-

a n t memories can block discovery.

15 . I n t u i t i o n i s the

subconsc ious

accumula-

t i o n of pas t exper iences . Great exper i -

e nc es lead

to

deeper f ee l ings .

16. All expe

r i enc

e i s permanent ly locked

in

the b r a i n wai t ing

to

be c a l l e d

in to

se r -

v ic e .


23/40

ylogic

1.

A

subconscious

random sample

of

thoughts

c

an s t imula te

a need fo r orde r .

2.

I t makes sense

to

se t

l imi t s to every

i n t e n t i o n

.

3.

Thinking

in

i t s e l f does not

evoke

cre-

a t i v i t y

which a l s o

depends on f ee l ing

4 .

Trying

to

so

l

ve

one th i ng i s of t en ac-

complished

by so lv ing something e l se .

5. When

you examine

only

par t of

a problem,

it s

a good

idea

to

keep

the whole prob-

lem in

mind .

6 . Proper

assessme

n t

of a l l

ideas i s essen-

t i a l .

7. Losing your

guide (secu r i t y and habi t )

i s one way to discover

new

pa ths .

8.

A

success fu l

problem

so lu t ion

i s

depen-

dent on the r e l a t i o n s h i p

of

many sub

so lu t ions .

9 . There i s always some form o f

re l a t ion

sh ip between

a l l

th ings .

10. The so lu t ion

to

one problem

of t en opens

the p o s s ib i l i t y

fo r new

problems to

occur .

11 . I t i s e a s i e r to

reach

a goal when the

pa th

of

objec t ives i s

c l e a r

.

12. A weak

can

lead to an

ine f fec t ive conc

lus ion

.

13.

Clear judgment

r equ i r es

c l e a r s tandards .

14.

The playfu l you

i s

always

t he re to

help

when the l og i ca l you ge t s s tuck .

15.

Solv ing the components can so lve en t i r e

systems.

16.

To dete rmine the so lu t ion

to a

mystery,

you

must

f ind

the

e s s e n t i a l c lues .

17 .

Some problems

r equ i r e s id e - t r i p s in to

s t range

new

t e r r i t o r y

before they can

be

reso lved .

18.

Finding s imple

ways to

dea l wi th

complex

s i t u a t i o n s i s always poss ib l e .

19. Some problems

are

so

connected t o o the r

problems

tha t they

cannot be cons idered

by

themselves a lone .

20.

A well -kep t journa l of a

p r

oces s pro-

vides

an

aucomatic

produc t .

2


24/40

ypl8l ing

1 Pr inc ip l es and ru l es take

many

di f fe ren t

forms

2 Experiments can

be cos t ly

but worth

every

cent

3. Unrela ted

pr inc ip les

can block re levan t

p r i n c i

p le s

4. Unpleasant

journeys

leave few good

memories.

5 Perfect balance i s t h e o re t i c a l Real i ty

i s

dynamic

6 Complex problems

can be

s imply

def ined

7 A unique poin t of view

i s

of t en found

with in

ex i s t ing

poin ts o f

view

8.

Some

th ings

j u s t

c a n t

be

dea l t

with

proper ly

when

taken out of contex t

9 Experience can sometimes lead to prema

t u re

and

i ncor rec t conclusions

10

Play ing a round

wil l

a t l ea s t

ge t you

moving

11 To l ea rn

by

doi ng you must f i r s t

get

s t a r t e d

12 Cl

ear

t h ink ing

r e l i e s

on ba la nc ing l og i c

w it

h exper ience

13

Unproven pr inc ip les

can

get

you i n to

t roub le

14. Expect the unexpected Change

i s

the

only cons tan t .

15 Know what you d o n t know Deal ing con

sc ious ly with

your

ignorance develops

awareness

16 Percep t ion and r e a l i t y are never equal

17

Good

record-keeping pro longs the appre

c i a t i o n of

exper

i ence

3


25/40

The

rt of Critical Making

Rhode Island School of esign

on

Creative

Practice

dited by Rosanne Somerson

and

Mara

L Hermano

Foreword

by John Maeda

WIL Y


26/40

Cover images: Elish Warlop (MF A 2013

furniture

Design),

studies

lor

Rings o Fire and

oop

Skirts lighting, 2013, steel and brass, each 4 x 4 in.

Publication design:

Julie

fry

This book is printed on acid-free paper. '-'

Copyright J 20 3 by Rhode Island School ol Design.

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10 9 8 7 5 4 3 2 I


27/40

The

Art of CriticalMak

ng An

Introduction

Rosanne

Somerso

n

Walk along the riverfront in Providence, Rhode

Island,

at the foot of College

Hill, and you

may

be

surprised by

what you

see.

ou might easily walk

beside someone carrying a hollow six-foot

shoe fabricated from

woven wire,

or alongside a group of students balancing their newly finished chairs on

their backs

and heads, or

pass

someone

lugging

a

drawing

portfolio

so

large

and

unwieldy

that you might be tempted to stop and ask to assist. On certain

days

there

could be

fashion collections

wheeled on hanger racks, or recycled

industrial

off-cuts of felt and cork

spilling

out of bags

slung

over shoulders,

or

even sculpted

metal

chopsticks three times the height of the woman hauling

them.

Someone

might

have

laced delicate woven

yarn

around

trees

lining the

river walk, preparing their branches with sweater-like covers for winter. Out

of sight, inside

the

studios and labs, a diverse range of projects could likely

be developing-investigations into sustainable systems for food transport, or

objects designed for

extreme

climates, or a video that correlates and weaves

together

two

events happening

simultaneously

in

different locations.

Art schools are lively places, but few outside their walls have the oppor-

tunity to experience

the kind

of

environment

where

the new is manifest

every

day,

where paradigms are continually stretched and

challenged,

and

where shock and beauty flourish side by side. What

is the

magic in the

art and

design

school learning model that advances an

individual from

an

interested student

into a creative innovator? And how might

the

creativity

and

expertise

that result

from

this

form of

education

be accessible to others?

While no

single

philosophy or

pedagogy

effectively turns developing artists

and

designers

into creative

professionals, some shared methods

have proven

to transform hard-working students into exceptional creative practitioners.

In this book, RISD faculty and staff examine these methods to explore RISD's

rationale and approach

in developing

and

enhancing creative

learning.

Additionally,

we

explore the

efficacy

and the essential need, in

contempo-

rary times, for learning that includes

hands-on

practice,

the

processing of

enhanced seeing

and

perception, and contextualized

understanding-all ele-

ments of critical making.

9


28/40

2 ROS NNE SOMERSON

At RISD we develop curricular models through

which

innovation and

originality

are

coaxed,

rendered, and

challenged,

leading to heightened

expression and

new ways of thinking. We

cultivate

intense

personal

devel-

opment,

deep

disciplinary expertise, rigorous skill-building,

advanced

con-

ceptual reasoning, and attention to both process and execution. We are

committed

to fostering

creative

and critical thinkers who innovate with ease,

who are not rattled by uncertainty, who move agilely from one form of output

to

another, and who

can

communicate

in

multiple

ways

with

acuity

and

clar-

ity. e believe that these traits are effective remedies for crumbling systems

and

structures that

no

longer work. As educational

systems

propel us fur-

ther

and further away

from physical.

tangible experience, how better

might

learning support

nimble,

innovative, and imaginative thinking than

through

models that

emphasize the

iterative

formation

of ideas

through making?

Contemporary times call for

contemporary

thinkers and

makers.

Through

these

pages, we invite you to enter with us into a world of

creative

energy

and

rigorous

investigation. Who

might benent from a peek

through the

keyhole

into the multifaceted characteristics of

RISD's

educa-

tional

practice? This

book

will certainly be useful to those who

are directly

pursuing an

art

and design education. Prospective students will gather deep

insights

into their potential futures. Parents who may be skeptical about

the

benents

of supporting such a

path at

a time

when

it

seems

that key

oppor-

tunities point toward other areas of

study-business,

technology,

scientinc

research,

entertainment,

medicine,

and

marketing-may be

surprised

to

learn

that

RISD

alumni have succeeded

at high

level

s in remarkable

ways in

all of

these

fi.elds. A RISD

alumna

who later became

an

attorney

still cites her

RISD

education

as

the formative

basis

for

complex problem solving required

in

her law practice; a product

designer

demonstrates that his education in

design process

helped

him to

create one

of

the most successful

online busi-

nesses

in

existence; some of

the region's best

restaurants famous for their

remarkably

innovative

cuisine boast RISD alumni

as

chefs and owners.

Our

alumni are successful recording artists, medical

device

inventors, and social


29/40

THE ART OF CR ITICAL MAK I NG 21

visionaries who have

changed

and improved lives around the world. And

of

course the list

of distinguished alumni artists and

designers

represent-

ing

every

form of creative practice is the source of

great

pride. RISD gradu-

ates

have

made Oscar-winning

fi.lms

(and even hosted the Oscars), popular

book and television series, and signifi.cant public programming. Th e

num-

ber of

alumni who

have been awarded MacArthur genius Fellowships and

Fulbrights

is

unmatched by any other art

school.

Look at the Gallery Guide

in any city, attend any global art fair, or visit any of the

top

design, architec-

ture, fashion, or textile li.rms,

and you

will l ikely li.nd numerous RISD alumni

at work. In short,

extraordinary

results

have

emerged

from

the RISD

educa-

tional experience as it

has

evolved over

some

13S years.

In

addition

to aspiring

young artists and

designers

and their

parents,

many others will find this book enlightening and supportive. Many corpo-

rations

recognize

how

much

more

inventive

they can be when

they

apply

principles like

those

framed in

our

curricula,

paying close

attention to how

they activate innovation

and advance

opportunity. Businesses of all sorts

looking for

ways

to rethink

long-held

assumptions and to

build

greater cre-

at ivity into their process and outcomes will

fi nd

illuminating and expansive

approaches to familiar questions,

which may

well generate

innovation

and

new achievement. Practitioners early in their careers looking for ways to

build

their

own

strong

creative practices will benefit from

the

insights of the

experienced educators who have contributed to this book,

gaining

deeper

understanding

of high-level creative learning. Even other systems of educa-

tion

can benefit

from echoing

the curricular approaches

and

processes of

an art and design institution such as RISD. Indeed, so much about

art

and

design

education can

benefit

a

broad audience.

The writers who have contributed to this book-like all of our faculty, staff,

and librarians-lead

in

their disciplines through engaged and ongoing pro-

fessional practice. These writers do not

attempt here

to define

art

or design.


30/40

ROS NNE SOMERSON

They

do not offer a prescription for creative

innovation.

Instead, they

offer

observations and examples from

direct

experience that

make

up

the sub-

stance

and distinction

of a RISD

education,

untangling

the

territory of art edu-

cation, which remains largely unknown outside o arts institutions. Through

our contributors' careful telling, RISD s remarkably effective

methodologies

and tools for transformative education can be accessed by any curious

reader.

In

the

Preface,

neurologist,

author, and researcher Frank

Wilson-the

only writer in

this book who is

not

a

faculty or staff

member at RISD (though

he

is

a frequent RISD visitor and lecturer)-describes the biologic science of

the

co-evolution of

the

hand and

the brain,

and

proposes the

resulting

neu-

rological precedents to thinking and making as collaborators

in

both human

and educational development. He sets the stage for

the

other contributors,

who echo how the artistic mind relies on making as a critical

activity,

one

that informs a

particular

kind of deep intelligence that

cannot

be learned

without

real

material

manipulation and sensory,

embodied

experience.

Leslie Hirst, Foundation Studies faculty member, presents

the

ground-

work of preparing students to become immersive learners in our

common

undergraduate first year, literally laying

the

foundation

for the commitment

it

takes

to succeed as a creative professional. The

nrst

-year experience for

freshmen,

and, in

different ways, for

graduate students, is

about learning

how to reset expectations, to nnd new ways to begin, and to

develop

the

conceptual

and

making

tools necessary

to create

works that are signincant

in

composition, presentation, function,

or solution.

The

nrst

year is about

devising individual systems for making and breaking one's own rules. As

Hirst

notes, it is

also about learning

to live

comfortably

in

uncertainty

so

as to take new risks and forge new directions, and to push harder through

personal

limitations

than ever imagined. These

fundamental

and

formative

experiences contribute to

building

the experience and bodies of

knowledge

that

shape

an

artist

or

designer.

The creative process cannot live independently from the contexts

that

inform the maker. In his

essay,

Dean of Liberal

Arts Daniel

Cavicchi


31/40

THE ART O

CRITICAL MAKING 3

describes how the rigorous

Liberal

Arts courses

required of every RISD

student deepen scholarship, research practices, and forms of expression.

Inquiry takes many

forms

in

an

art and design

environment,

and

at RISD we

believe that multiple research methodologies are paramount to developing

innovative

thinking

and

making and

to

educating informed future

citizens-a

goal at the heart of RISD's mission. RISD students draw connections to his-

tories,

philosophies,

literary forms, and identities-all

essential

to building

ethical,

reflective, self-aware,

and

articulate practices.

Cavicchi

describes

how RISD students thus develop a familiarity with meta-thinking which, in

turn, heightens

their

ability to

see

new connections and meanings. Liberal

Arts courses create context that informs studio work, just as

art

and design

students bring

into

their Liberal Arts

classrooms unique and

imaginative

forms of inquiry.

Three

topics in

this

book-drawing, materials, and critique- are so

essential

to a RISD

education, and yet so diversely implemented, that

we

chose to present them as

guided

Conversations, incorporating

numerous

voices t

express

multiple approaches. The nrst Conversation, led

by

Dean

of Graduate Studies

Patricia

Phillips, explores drawing. Drawing is funda-

mental to RISD learning.

Drawing

helps to develop the intelligence of the

hand

and its cooperation with

the

eye

and the brain.

Drawings

are

a required

component

of

our

undergraduate admissions application,

and

help to deter-

mine who gets accepted into RISD. We use

these

application drawings, how-

ever, not just to evaluate who draws well

but

to

help

us

assess

how an

applicant

sees.

To non-artists, drawing is often understood as replicating or represent-

ing what is

seen-capturing

shape and contour,

composition,

outlines, and

shadows

in space. At

RISD, though

mastering

various

representation

tech-

niques

may

be

part of skill-building, drawing is regarded

more

as what

Phillips calls a flexible instrument, a developmental tool, a way of mapping

thinking that can

be

circuitous, improvisational,

or highly structured. Draw-

ing also

helps

us to record events and ideas and share them with someone


32/40

4

ROS NNE SOMERSON

else. It

can

be a

container

for

curiosity

banking

undeveloped ideas

to perco-

late into

something

later. I still

refer

to

sketchbooks

that I

made as

a

sopho-

more,

many

years ago. The raw ideas in

those

pages

engender

completely

new resonance to

me today,

and in some instances have

manifested

as

proj-

ects decades

later.

When

we

turn drawings into

things how

do

those

things

emulate

or

express the thinking that helped

to

bring them

to life? In Thingking,

Professor

John Dunnigan

merges

thinking and making into

one

action word,

highlighting

their symbiotic relationship. Dunnigan proposes tha t

embodied

knowledge

is

a

direct

result

of

engaging with

real

materials

and

real

scale.

He

articulates

a

clear

philosophy about how both research and

conceptual

development

emerge

in physical form, exemplifying

curricular outcomes

in

the

work

of alumni.

One

special

place

where

RISD

students and

the

public encounter extraor-

dinary

examples of real-scale objects is in the

RISD Museum. RISD

is

fortu-

nate

to have as

part

of

the

college a world-class art

museum which contains

more than

80 000

objects originating from classical times

to

the present

and

representing

most regions

of

the

world.

These great works serve as

fer-

tile sources of knowledge.

They help us

to

understand fabrication methods

across

millennia,

as

well

as broad aspects

of

culture ranging from aesthetics

to social structures to spirituality.

Sarah

Ganz Blythe, Director of Education

at

the RISD

Museum describes the

long

history

of

learning from objects as

primary sources by looking, analyzing, and contextualizing. Such

learning

helps

us form a

language

for

communicating responses

to

art and design

and in turn fosters the creation

of

art

and design objects

that

speak their own

language.

Suggesting that works of art

rarely

have fmite

or singular

mean-

ings, Ganz Blythe demonstrates

that interpretation

is a form of

expression

open

to

not

only artists

and designers

but to all museum

visitors

.

The Museum is

a

wonderful laboratory in which

to look

at not just works

of art

but the materials they

are

made

of. and how

those

have

both

changed

and remained consistent over

time. e

are

fortunate

that

our Fleet Library


33/40

THE RT O CRITICAL MAKING 5

now includes the

Graham

Visual+

Material Resource Center, an

amazing,

growing collection

of

tens

of

thousands

of

materials

for

exploration

and

research-some

commercial

materials,

some natural materials, and some

materials that

students have created

themselves.

Materials

have

played

an

essential

role

in the

development of works of art

and design

throughout time.

Indeed,

early

historic periods were

named and designated

by

materials-the

Stone Age, the

Iron

Age, and so on. Today,

material

studies are complex and

multiply

scaled-from molecular

investigations to

research on the environ-

mental impacts

of

procurement and distribution.

The

materials

collection

provides a platform through

which

to address

these

issues,

with

a particular

focus

on

principles

of

sustainability.

Materials are

deep

at the heart of making at RISD, playing key

and

diverse

roles.

Their exploration comprises the

second of

our

Conversations, this

one led by

Associate

Professor

Kelly Dobson, Head of

our

Digital+ Media

graduate

program. Dobson interviewed

three

RISD faculty

members

and the

Visual +Material

Resource

Librarian.

Each participant has

varied

and

inti-

mate experience

with

materials

in

his

or

her work

and

teaching.

Dobson

and

her colleagues

perspectives challenge us to regard materials both

pragmati-

cally and conceptually, showing how

material

explorations and applications

operate

in

both

orthodox and innovative ways. The

conversations

address

not just the application

of

materials, but

how

sensitized

responses

to

materi-

als

can allow the material, rather than

the maker,

to lead. Materials can be

virtual as

well,

which

means

that

now, like never before, artists

and design-

ers

have a

wider palette with which

to

express their ideas.

Lucinda Hitchcock,

Professor

in Graphic Design,

addresses another

pro-

found

change

in

our

times-the

influx of

information

and

the form

that makes

that information evident. Hitchcock describes how visual narrative, or story-

telling, can

provide paths

to navigate, interpret,

and frame the many ways in

which

we encounter and process unfiltered

information.

She has been part

of a faculty

team

for many years at RISD that has evolved a

signature course

called Making Meaning.

Meaning is at the

heart

of

communication,

and


34/40

6 S NNE SOMERSON

through this course

students develop

visual

forms of

expression

that facili-

tate understanding. Providing evocative descriptions o cultural phenomena

and

examples

from

the

classroom and student work. Hitchcock helps us to

understand how today's graphic designers are

cultural

curators, producing

the information that defines and enhances our experiences every day.

The natural

world provides

its own

kind

of

meaning.

Another

of RISD's

particular

treasures

is

the Edna Lawrence Nature Lab, an

inspiring

collec-

tion o natural specimens ranging from plants,

insects, and skeletons

to

rocks, shells,

and

amoebas

to

various forms

of

taxidermy animals and even

a few live

species.

A

fundamental part

of a RISD education for

75

years, the

Nature

Lab

is

a

center

for examination

and comparison and

for

learning

from

nature's systems. Students study how

efficient systems

can

produce

elegant

results,

and then

apply that learning

to other contexts.

They

explore consis-

tencies

and

inconsistencies at various scales, from galaxies

to

microscopic

worlds.

The

Nature Lab's Director, Neal Overstrom, a

design-scientist

with

a

background in both

design

and

biology,

is

uniquely

adept

at

guiding

artists

and designers to draw both information and inspiration from this magical

collection.

In

his

essay,

The Nature Imperative,

Overstrom

describes how

the Lab helps

students to develop sensitivity, observation,

and perception,

and why

this kind of

learning

matters.

Throughout the

developmental

stages

of creation, art

and design educa

-

tion depends on

critiques-or

crits

as they are

commonly

referred to at

RISD-as a

unique

learning

mode.

At a crit, students

present their

work to

reviewers, articulate their intentions, and receive

feedback.

The reviewers

might

be faculty, students and faculty,

or

a group

that includes

external pro-

fessional

reviewers.

Often

these external critics are

from

other

disciplines,

bringing

a

fresh

perspective

to

the

work.

Critiques are core to

the

development and assessment of

creative

work.

Highly

diverse

in

their methods and outcomes, they adhere to no

single for-

mula.

In

this

book

's

third

Conversation,

Professor

Eva Sutton

asked several

faculty,

students,

and

alumni

to each

make

a

sketch representative

of

his

or


35/40

THE RT OF CRITICAL WAKING

27

her

experience of critique, then used the sketches as

a

basis

for exploring the

various modes

of critique.

Critiques

can be behavioral learning

experiences

that help participants learn about social interaction, expressions

of

support,

and

disagreement.

Successful critiques

are about perceptive, constructive

feedback, not a

judgment

of good or bad,

but

an offering of I

experience

this-was

that

your intention?

or

Wh a

t if

... ?

Critiques

provide a

path-

way

through which students develop

a lifelong ability to self-evaluate

and to

reflect

on improving, articulating, and

evolving

their ideas. The benefits of

this

kind

of

conscious awareness

of how a work

succeeds

in communicat-

ing

an intended outcome and the cultivation

of

honest response surely

have

applications not

just

in art and design

but

in multiple

circumstances.

In Acti

ng into the

Unknown, Dean of Architecture a

nd Design

Pradeep

Sharma describes how we take art and design learning

out

into

the

world-

how various forms of creativity

and

innovation

can

influence creative prac-

tices

of all

sorts as

well

as business

models,

and ultimately mark culture

itself.

Sharma

describes the various

structures of

our partnered

engagements, from

short

executive-education salons

to

long-term partnered research

projects

that we

have run with a range of corporations, industries,

and

government

agencies such as NASA. Partners collaborate

with

RISD to explore

issues

using

our

creative methodologies-to

frame

new questions

and

advance

opportunities. Our iterative

process

leads to new directions for exploration,

and

our ability

to

manifest

ideas in real

form

through making materializes

ideas

.

As Sharma suggests, this is

often

where true

innovation

occurs.

The

gifted

contributors

to

this book each articulate

an important

aspect

of

a potent,

adventurous

form of

teaching and

learning. While

this book

cel-

ebrates

the

excellence of a RISD education,

it

is

also about showcasing the

value

of an art

and design

education

in

principle,

using

RISD

as

a model.

Recently there has been

a

surge of interest in the particular character

of

art

and

design education

and how

its ingredients build

both

the

intuitive


36/40

8 ROS NNE SOMERSON

and

rational

abilities that generate

change.

Studies and the media are

full

of examples of creative approaches applied in new contexts, as business

schools incorporate design thinking

into

curricula, businesses apply

cre-

ative

processes

to

planning and

decision-making, and companies hire

CIOs

(Chief Innovation Officers). A

plethora

of

books

about

creativity,

problem

solving,

and innovation

has

been published

in

the past

few

years.

RISD's

President,

John

Maeda, has worked with government representatives such

as

Rhode Island

Representative Jim Langevin

and numerous

bi-partisan

Congressional representatives

to

add art and design

to

the national Science,

Technology, Engineering, and Math (STEM) education agenda, incorporating

an

A

for

a

rt and design

to

turn

STEM

into

STEAM.

This platform,

sup-

ported

now

in over 30 countries around the

globe,

recognizes art

and

design

as the secret sauce

in

multiple

fields,

engaging with creative exploration

to

reach greater potential-the potential

that

will help to define advancements

in the twenty-first

century.

Being

Provost

of RISD

at such

a

significant time in history is intensely

rewarding.

As

the world grows

increasingly

complex and fast-paced, with

global

issues impacting

us all,

making,

materials,

and meaning are

critical.

The

kind

of

essential knowing

that

we develop

at RISD-informed through

our

hands, through

our

bodies,

and in

the

creation of

works,

experiences, and

events-is more cogent than at any other time. Artists and designers hone

the capacity to generate something

from deep inside

ourselves

to live outside

of

ourselves.

By

residing

in

the experiential and the

physical,

and by

devel-

oping the hands-on as a portal of intelligent learning, we confirm

the mind

as maker

and

making as a state of mindfulness.

We demonstrate

how

artists

and designers are hosts

for

enduring

creative

discovery that is

self-initiated

and

actively

engaged.

In

short,

artists

and designers

manifest

what

has

not

existed

previously-in

many cases,

what has

never even been imagined.

A

group

of 34 forward-thinking women-members of the Rhode

Island

Centennial Committee-envisioned

the importance

of art

and design

as

the

key to progress and to humanizing

and enhancing culture when they

founded


37/40

THE RT

O CRITICAL

M KING 9

RISD in 1877. Their early mission was three-fold. First, to teach artisans

in drawing, painting, modeling, and designing, that they may successfully

apply the principles of Art to the

requirements

of trade and manufacture.

Second,

they wanted to

train

students in the

practice

of Art,

in

order that

they

may understand its principles, give instruction to others, or become art-

ists. Third,

they

intended

to

advance

public

Art

Education,

by the

exhibi-

tion

of works of A

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