A REHASH ON CREATIVITY

What is Creativity?

Right now I think of it as the ability to find relationships - to see existing and create new. I am thinking it is simple as that. E=mc^2 - that's a relationship (of the equal variety).

Relationships are brought about through similarity (and sometimes difference). Relationships are strengthened through proximity (similarity in regards to systems of spacial location - ie they are near each other.)

Through the very simple act of placing things next to each other in a way that we can look back and forth - switch between text/image/video quickly makes it easier to find hidden relationships. But that is more of an argument for how I am hoping these Blogs will be used.

But since I consider this IDEA of RELATIONSHIPS to be at the core of our understanding of CREATIVITY - I am trying to get the students involved in free association as a process of generating relationships of IDEAS.

In my mind this Project should not be about architecture, it should be about the ideas - I refer back to the Thom Mayne video - he's talking about ideas, not his buildings - but he is using his buildings to illustrate/represent his ideas. THIS IS THE GOAL!!!


PROCESSES OF CREATIVITY

First you must buy into the idea that creativity is the establishment of relationships. If establishing relationships is how we get to creativity why don't we talk about establishing relationships.

Relationships can be established accidentally - the reeces peanut buttercup genesis story. It is my aspiration that this type of creativity will occur on this project - but this requires a certain amount of "thowing stuff on the wall" approach.

there is trial and error method - similar to the scientist. A highly structured, organized methodic way of working - similar also in a way to how police might sweep an area for evidence - forming a line and moving as a single animal with a single unifying purpose.

there is also the just sheer genius of understanding the nature of two disparate things/ideas and having the ability to understand how the similarities and difference work together. an example of this might be the artists (and us) who are attempting to use "existing technologies" in new and inventive ways.

VALUE OF IDEAS/CREATIVITY

I am engaging this question - "what is the value of our ideas?"

I guess one way of talking about it is with this idea that 1+1=3, or 1+1=8. By creating the relationship, a value is derived that is more than the sum of the individual parts. back to peanut butter and chocolate. This is creative because putting peanut butter and chocolate together, you get more than just a combination of the two - you get something entirely different/new. The chocolate and peanut butter have been transformed.

You might also think of all the parts of a car laid out before you - each individual piece has very little value, but put them all together, and you have...a car - something that is useful and therefor has value.