Ideation workshop

Tools and confidence

2012-01-12T08:13:00.000-08:00

Sometimes we build up wonderful ideas in our head, but get so afraid of ruining them by trying to realise them. It is then skills in using ideation tools, be it hand sketching or physical 3D sketch modelling, give us the confidence to start making the idea happen.

Terence Conran on ideas and making ....

2011-12-24T12:42:00.000-08:00

'I think it is vital for any designer to roll their sleeves up and get heavily involved in the making process because it helps you get a deeper level of understanding about design and how it relates to the consumer ... To me design has, and always will be, about problem solving and making people’s lives easier and more comfortable ... While we must embrace computers, we must not become slaves to them—the best ideas always start with an HB pencil and a sheet of plain paper'. Terence Conran (Interview http://www.economist.com/blogs/prospero/2011/12/qa-terence-conran)

Small is beautiful

2011-12-20T02:24:00.003-08:00

'There are so many more tools for the small designer, nowadays. CAD and 3D modelling is scaling down, so that a single person can produce sophisticated prototypes at home. This means that there are opportunities for designers working on their own and in small teams to use affordable technology - and more opportunity for crossing creative disciplines'. Moritz Waldemeyer, Designer.

Tailor-made with Android

2011-12-11T01:56:00.003-08:00

London tailor Spencer Hart is using Note, an Android-based smartphone to annotate drawings for bespoke suits marking down exact measurements during the fitting process. In addition, the tailor can mark on a visual representation of the suit or jacket whether there should be any extra details around the cuffs, or other alterations. The end result will be sent immediately to the Savile Row base where the item will be made, eliminating any mistakes that could happen previously.

Boring words

2011-11-21T09:17:00.000-08:00

Most [graphic] designers are not very good copywriters. So, if you find yourself having to design something with boring words, don't try to make them interesting. Let the images do the heavy lifting'. Bob Gill, Pentagram

Innovative people with great ideas

2011-11-14T05:43:00.001-08:00

"We [Brits] rally against the status quo. Look at our creative industries like advertising that win loads of awards, our TV too, and our comedians. That's down to an anarchic point of view that's always measured with a degree of pragmatism. We're not playing fairies with felt-tip pens; we're an innovative people with great ideas." Dick Powell

iLagerfeld

2011-11-05T02:27:00.000-07:00

Karl Lagerfeld, a "paper freak" who does not use email, and has a personal library of some 300,000 books, owns four iPhones and several iPads which he uses as diaries and sketchbooks.

"I use it [iPad] mostly for sketching. I'm very good at it. I discovered a technique. It's like engraving. Really not bad. There is no Photoshop. You have to know how to sketch. It's not something done with the help of computers. I hate computer sketches because they're all the same. They have no personality. If you want to see how it works... Voila! [Click.] This is the brush. [Click.] This is how thick you want the line. [Click.] And then here are the colours. [Click.] You want red, maybe? [Click.] He sketches a line with his fingernail ... Unbelievable, no? It's better with the special pen and I'm not going to keep it because it's nothing. And so then you do this. [Click.] And this. [Click.] And it disappears. I have iPads in every room ..." (Karl Lagerfeld talks to Susannah Frankel; Article published in the Independent, November 5, 2011)

Applied ideation

2011-10-26T00:55:00.000-07:00

The idea kicks off the creative process. But to excel in ideation, designers need to transform their creative and reasoning power into effective presentations. To achieve this, designers need the skillful application of ideation tools.

Presenting ideas

2011-10-03T00:33:00.000-07:00

Don't take for granted that everyone will understand abstract ideas and concepts. Be patient and practical in your communication.

The designer as craftsman

2011-09-04T01:21:00.003-07:00

In his book The Craftsman (2008), the sociologist Richard Sennett makes a case for homo faber (or "man as maker"). Harking back to the workshops of the medieval guilds and to the studio of violin-maker Antonio Stradivari, Sennett set out to prove Immanuel Kant's dictum that "the hand is the window on to the mind". It is only through making things, he says – by trying and failing and repeating – that we gain true understanding. He is not, like some latter-day John Ruskin, arguing that handmade things are better than machine-made ones. He is simply saying that skilled manual labour – or indeed any craft – is one path to a fulfilling life. (Justin McGuirk, The Guardian).

Place & space for idea realisation

2011-08-10T10:07:00.000-07:00

'I think the studio is the place where the images we see in our imagination can be realised by controlling everything, just as a painter does on a canvas with his brush.' Federico Fellini (1920-1993)

The idea of draughtsmanship

2011-08-07T08:18:00.000-07:00

For hundreds of years, it was central to the practice of art, that to be an artist, it is essential to learn to draw the human figure. Now, in art schools, life drawing is regarded as unnecessary. And to be a designer?

Ideas communication

2011-07-22T02:15:00.000-07:00

Communicating design ideas is much more than presentation skills (packaging). It's about ability to communicate ideas clearly and persuasively (content, structure, and argument), and adapting communication and media to suit the audience.

Tool for starters

2011-07-09T01:40:00.001-07:00

Is the entry point to ideation arbitrary or context dependent? In reality, at that point, what ideation tool is being chosen?

Ideation fit

2011-06-28T06:18:00.001-07:00

The reporting that Singapore Armed Forces's recruits doing Basic Military Training (BMT) will be armed with a handheld touchscreen device such as an iPad to sharpen their fighting skills raises the question: Should design schools equally equip new students with similar sets to increase their ideation skills?

Taking a line for a dance

2011-05-11T00:50:00.000-07:00

Martha Graham's major contribution to the art of dance was her introduction of a technique and a body of work that, far from depending on classical ballet, was remarkably different from it and highly original in its own right.

But while a classically trained dancer can learn the Graham technique quickly, a Graham dancer cannot subsequently acquire a classical technique. Yet the Graham technique has extended the range of movement available for those originally restricted to classical ballet.

By analogy, could it be that the Graham technique is to classical technique what digital drawing is to classical (traditional) drawing?

When the idea becomes a thing

2011-05-05T00:50:00.000-07:00

"People call me a conceptual artist, as if the idea was all, but actually what interests me is what happens when the idea becomes a thing. Ideas are by their nature generalisations, something that can be applied to lots of things. But making art is about making particulars, and that particular something can be the generator of a generalisation." Artist Michael Craig-Martin

Ideator vs Fabricator

2011-04-29T08:21:00.000-07:00

Those who are named "artists" are sometimes remote from the physical act of production because crafts people and makers have skills and knowledge of materials that artists usually do not. Says British artist Marc Quinn: "Whenever I have a new idea, we work on finding the technology to do it. It's quite obvious you can't do it all yourself, so I'm not going to pretend I did".

Leaping off with ideas

2011-04-19T01:52:00.000-07:00

"I start sketching and trying things until, all of a sudden, something emerges that becomes interesting and I sort of follow it. But it’s intuitive. It’s not preconceived. I don’t have an exact plan of action, and I always feel like I’m leaping off a cliff", says archiect Frank Gehry.

For example, Gehry’s Dr Chau Chak Wing building for the University of Technology Sydney’s Business School was inspired by the idea of a tree-house structure with “a trunk and core of activity and… branches for people to connect and do their private work".

Ideation as craft

2011-04-04T08:08:00.000-07:00

Maybe the art of ideation cannot be taught but there's an element of craft
involved. The craft aspect of ideation, then, highlights skills and techniques
needed for representing and presenting ideas in a range of media.

iPad as ideation tool

2011-03-25T16:29:00.001-07:00

Given the portability, connectivity, large touch screen and a range of apps (software), such as Evernote (for multimedia notes and voice recording), Ideate (for concept visualisation), or Compendium (for managing and visually organising personal or group digital information sources and then connect ideas to them), the iPad, or similar touchscreen devices, appears a versatile ideation tool.

Ideation is reflective practice

2011-03-18T05:00:00.000-07:00

Sometimes ideas brainstorming is so lively that you realise nobody is actually listening to anyone else. In contrast, ideation is a reflective process that encourages participant to opt in on ideas exchange in more thoughtful ways.

First step

2011-03-11T09:33:00.000-08:00

"I'm always excited by the potential that lies within a sketch... the absolute first step towards a new building."Norman Foster, Architect.

Apple ideas

2011-02-27T10:50:00.000-08:00

Apple designer Jonathan Ive uses Zen-like meditative processes to refine his ideas to the minimum, says Stephen Bayley, Design critic.

Quiet sketch

2011-01-24T07:58:00.000-08:00

'I don't want an intellectual image, I'm a fashion person ... For me, to sit down and sketch quietly is a luxury'. Karl Lagerfeld

Notebook is my studio

2011-01-09T01:29:00.000-08:00

Gabriel Orozco, the artistic nomad who prefers to work quickly, on the move, inspired by his ever-changing surroundings, says: 'I travel between my houses, and still have no primary studio. Mostly I draw and plan in my notebook, so my notebook is my studio'.

Jot it down

2010-12-25T07:52:00.000-08:00

Across creative fields, and irrespective of the expressive medium, the challenge is the same: How to capture ideas? Eric Satie, the French composer, for example, was observed stopping to jot down ideas by the light of the street lamps he passed.

On-the-road ideator

2010-12-01T08:23:00.000-08:00

Designers traditionally ideate with pen in hand using sketchbooks, notebooks, whiteboards, even drawing on napkins. That said, the processing, storage, editing, and communication benefits of computers ensure that designers also work on screen at the conceptual stages of the design process. Moreover, the hardware and software of digital drawing have evolved enough to be useful for on-the-road ideators. For example, smartphones controlled by multi-touch display now allow spontaneous on-screen sketching turning smartphones into ideation tools for out-and-about designers.

Communicate and share ideas

2010-11-02T00:56:00.000-07:00

You can have all the ideas in the world in your head but to make them happen you need to visualise or write the ideas down and communicate them to others. Because having the idea is just the first step to making that idea happen, and ideas are seldom accomplished alone. Sharing your ideas liberally not only gives you feedback but can help you realise the idea.

Making it happen

2010-10-24T08:24:00.000-07:00

Ideation, unlike "brainstorming" (which is jumping from one idea to another while developing none), is more than coming up with ideas. It is as much about fine-tuning and communicating the idea in preparation for action to realise the idea.

Ideas for apples

2010-10-08T00:53:00.000-07:00

If you have an apple and I have an apple and we exchange these apples then you and I will still each have one apple. But if you have an idea and I have an idea and we exchange these ideas, then each of us will have two ideas. GEORGE BERNARD SHAW (1856-1950)

Ideation language

2010-09-17T00:11:00.000-07:00

Introducing the ideation workshop to design students in Singapore, the outcomes confirmed the importance of language when ideating. The dominant conceptual tool for getting started across 3-dimensional design disciplines (interior/furniture/exhibition/jewellery design) was words (written and spoken, including mind-mapping) which in turn triggered sketching (pen & paper), physical sketch modelling (using card, plastics, wire etc), and computing (multimedia/CAD), as single ideation tool or in combinations.

Ever ready tools

2010-08-24T00:37:00.000-07:00

Tool-up for big ideas! A sharp mind needs sharp and ready tools. And to capture constructive daydreaming needs ever ready tools too.

Ideation "on-the-go"

2010-08-19T02:54:00.000-07:00

Computers, mobile phones and handheld gadgets make up 58% of 16- to 24-year olds' media diet, according to Ofcom, the UK communications regulator. This age group is particularly adept at "simultaneous" media consumption. They cram nine and a half hours worth of media into six and a half hours of actual time. This represents a growing trend in media consumption "on-the-go". How will this trend impact the use of ideation tools? Or is the use of a range of ideation tools already a kind of simultaneous media consumption?

Idea presentation

2010-07-05T23:22:00.000-07:00

Successful idea presentation depends on skills and preparedness similar to, say, the Cambridge University admission interview: 'How well a candidate can explain what they know, and whether they can apply their knowledge to a new problem or argue their position'.

Ideation is interplay of images and words

2010-06-02T06:39:00.001-07:00

Design is often thought of as a visual activity. But while visual tools are necessary for ideation, the ability to put ideas into clear words is important too, notably when presenting.

Futuring ideas

2010-04-08T00:42:00.000-07:00

Ideation is the key for better designs to come. Let ideas unlock the door!

Ideas shine

2010-03-11T03:41:00.000-08:00

Design is often referred to as a problem-solving activity. Ideation, however, is also about opportunity: seize the chance to shine!

Delightful ideation

2010-02-27T03:47:00.000-08:00

In ideation order and disorder come very close. But is ideation biased towards order and therefore primarily an intellectual activity? If so, does ideation offer more intellectual than emotional excitement? Or does ideation constitute a primeval experience of both intellectual and emotional delight? To find out, record or trace your ideation experience!

To ideate is to contextualise

2009-11-15T12:38:00.000-08:00

Ideas reflect their ideators and contexts. All we have to begin with when we design products and services are contexts; notions of what might work and what might not. Until we actually contextualise our ideas, we can never know for sure how successsful they will be. To ideate, then, is to contextualise; to use our knowledge, experience and intuition to generate, develop and communicate ideas in their surroundings.

Ideas foundation

2009-10-24T04:12:00.000-07:00

Where ideas are weak you may need a stronger ideation structure. So establish a robust foundation of ideation tools for you to build upon.

Ideator's edge

2009-10-06T00:48:00.000-07:00

Ideators know their stuff. They have fully invested in deepening their knowledge and improving their ideation skills, and it really shows. Never to become complacent, though, you will need to continue on your knowledge-seeking adventure in order to keep that ideation edge!

Telling ideas

2009-10-01T03:53:00.000-07:00

Frame your idea using ideation tools. Then story-board or animate your idea and tell it in the spirit of story telling.

Co-ideation

2009-09-18T00:20:00.000-07:00

Although ideation is a way of creative thinking and expression that tends to focus on individual rather than communal activity, it can be beneficial for students to co-ideate, or to experience what I call co-ideation. The reason for this is that when students help each other to ideate (typically in pairs or groups of 4 - 6 students), they go through an intellectual and emotional learning process that help clarify their own thinking and understanding of ideation. Similarly, and as designers typically design for others, co-ideation with stakeholders (non-designers), may help designers find out what stakeholders think, what they value, and what would be useful to them.

Ideation and language

2009-09-05T03:03:00.000-07:00

We don't need logic to generate smart ideas. But intuition doesn't diminish the significance of thought, and language is necessary to communicate our ideas to anyone else.

Computer-aided ideation (CAI)

2009-06-29T02:31:00.000-07:00

Now that digital media, including CAD, are built into the front-end of design processes, computing has become intuitive enough to be part of ideation. Only lack of awareness and/or fear of new technologies, then, would present Computer-aided ideation, CAI, as a disruptive concept.

The Ideator's stone

2009-05-26T08:03:00.000-07:00

The ideator's stone is an ideation tool capable of turning base ideas into optimal ones. The tool has the magic of words, the beauty of drawing, the malleability of clay, and the ingenuity of computing.

Tools and ideas

2009-05-04T00:41:00.000-07:00

Idea sketching, as process, is part of design ideation rather than the idea itself. The idea sketch, as outcome, is evidence of the idea.

Ideation stratagem

2009-04-18T01:28:00.000-07:00

Ideation can take the form of a stratagem - a plan or scheme that evolves and improves with accumulated knowledge and practice.

Find inspiration

2009-04-14T02:01:00.000-07:00

'Inspiration is hard to come by. You have to take it where you find it'.
Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan's new album Together Through Life is out April 27 on Columbia Records

Ideation tools

2009-04-02T02:20:00.000-07:00

Design ideation suggests a relational process. To capture and communicate the ideation process, designers need tools, what I call conceptual, or ideation tools. Such tools include sketching, words (speech and language), modelling (physical and virtual), and computing. The aim of the ideation workshop is to help improve the use of conceptual tools (see also below).

Too many big ideas?

2009-03-08T05:26:00.000-07:00

The world is full of people who think they know how to make the world a better place. Perhaps that's the problem. If there weren't so many smart Alecs with so many big ideas, we'd all get along a lot more easily. So what we need is not more big ideas but more thoughful ideas?

Ideas - so what?!

2009-02-25T14:35:00.000-08:00

It's not enough to have an idea. It's what you do with your idea that matters. You need to see things through. So get your ideas out of your head: Articulate them! Argue them! Communicate them, and convince others your ideas are worth implementing!