La Vita e Bella: June 2011

Tim Owens’ discussion about all things design

So I am a sociology major taking ds106 because I thought it would be a fun class to take. So far it hasn’t disappointed. It’s certainly very different from any class I’ve taken and I’m glad I got the opportunity to take it, especially with Dr. Oblivion because I don’t think I would be getting the same experiences with another professor. Tim Owens mentions that people aren’t born creative, but they learn and develop their creativity as they grow. I find this point taking some time to sink in because even though I know that talent is a combination of some “genetic” disposition and environmental factors, I can’t stop my mind from thinking that people are born with creativity. I know this thinking is a copout as Owen’s says to not trying to be creative. We can all learn to be creative and develop that creativity to higher levels. I’ve noticed my own creativity developing in the daily shoots. Before this class, taking this picture was just about snapping and clicking and not really focusing on how I want that image to look like. It’s true that some of the best photography moments are those that are unplanned or even taken accidentally but other times, it takes some level of thinking and conceptualizing what you want to capture.

Owen’s point about being creative when challenged or hungry is one I am most familiar with. The challenged part, not the hungry part, though I have been known to create some very creative food concoctions when I’m hungry. Creativity is about being challenged and stepping out of our comfort zone in order to create something that will most likely be put on display for others to see. I know I have my own issues with making videos (but I’m working on it!!!). The way I would deal with this is probably create an alter ego to go on camera be my puppet.

The final point that Owens makes is that there is inspiration all around us and we must allow ourselves to absorb that inspiration and learn from it. One of problems that I’ve been struggling with is how to incorporate the things I love into the assignments. I’ve already experimented with the daily shoots by making my family and friends my subjects but I feel like if we are to be making our own digital identity, how do we go about doing that without crossing the line, is there a line? Maybe I’m just being a perfectionist. As students we are so used to have strict guidelines and checklist of things to do for assignments so now that I’m in a class where all is fair game, I’m struggling to get a grasp on some set of rules to follow.

Everything is a Remix Part 3 from Kirby Ferguson

So the three points that I take from this video is that no one is an original. Creativity is something that develops from copying what others have created. Children learn to write by copying what their teachers write down and then as they grow up, they add their own words and create new sentences and maybe go on to write their own books. These three elements (copy, transform, combine) are something that we need to keep in mind as we progress in this class. Often I’ve looked at other people’s ds and visual assignments wanting to know how they do it but somewhere in my mind I shy away from wanting to learn that because I don’t want to be a copycat. Ferguson teaches that it’s ok to be a copy cat as long as you learn to put your own spin on it.