Creator or Archivist

Two important channels of creativity - archiving and creating. The act of creating new materials is important to ensure that we continue to generate new material. Then there is the Archivist who is the editor, remastering material, remixing it, producer, director and multi-media artist. Some of this activity will be about looking after the archive of work, ensuring that it is kept in a form that can receive an audience. But some of the activities of the Archivist stray into the creative - just like working with music or the visual arts, words can be shifted into new works. This can be done by expanding on original ideas, reworking, illustrating, creating sequels and prequels. All of this adds to the understanding of the work. It also ensures that the archive of work is not regarded as untouchable. Everything can be reworked, improved and reinterpreted.

The Daily Meme

What is a meme? It is a term borrowed from evolutionary biology. Used in an internet context, the definition (taken from wikipedia) is:

"An Internet meme is a piece of digital content that spreads rapidly, widely, and organically from person to person on the internet. The term is a reference to memes as virus-like self-replicating packets of information."

So, if you are keen to spend time exploring this phenomenon there is a brilliant portal where a new meme is posted each day. It is run by Gary La Pointe, who has his own blog here.

The portal points to many sites where you will find memes. Many of them take the form of '5 questions' or '10 favourites' and spread using internet tag. I've answered this one, now I name 5 other bloggers and ask them to do it too. A bit like a blogging chain letter.

[from the 'Things I found' archive]

Focus

It is incredible just how much of our lives is spent in a vague state of day-dream. Wouldn’t it be good to be really focused, even just for a few hours each day?

Do I know what my overarching goals are for this year? Some of them, yes! But without a direction, we just wander around aimlessly.

My musical interests are broad, and widening – that is a good thing. But I do need a road map to follow sometimes.

My interests in reading and writing are also very broad – yes, that’s a good thing too. But the map needs to be set out so that I don’t disappear under a mound of books and CDs.

So, what am I reading and listening to at the moment:

Books:

1. Paul du Noyer – Liverpool: Wondrous Place

This is a marvellous book which looks at the music scene in Liverpool since the 50s. It covers all the major bands and artists that came out of Liverpool. It’s brilliant to read about the scene when I was there, and a part of it. Some of the writing also encouraged me to dip back into music that I had forgotten about. If you haven’t read this book yet, you should – it is a great read.

2. Peter Senge – The Dance of Change

This is a book about organisational change – I’ve read about 100 pages of it so far and it is packed full of interesting ideas.

Music:

1. Misha Alperin - At Home

Beautiful solo piano album by a jazz pianist. Sounds more like Debussy than jazz.

2. Bob Dylan – John Wesley Harding

Yes, I know I must be virtually the last person to ‘get’ Bob Dylan. But I am now digging back into his really early stuff which is fantastic. This one has ‘All Along the Watchtower’ on it.

3. Antiopic – Allegorical Power Series Vol. 6

A series of albums for free download (www.antiopic.com) which comprise a lot of strange and wonderful noises from the world of music concrete / avant garde and just plain bizarre.

4. Julian Cope – Autogeddon

Yes, I do realise that he’s completely bonkers. But he does write great melodies, and I love all this barking mad stuff. It’s great to hear someone pursuing things to the extreme.

5. Eberhard Weber – Pendulum

An album of solo double bass sounds a bit worrying, but Eberhard Weber is in a league of his own. This album comprises a set of loops and echoes that build up into some beautiful songs.

Creativity as the enemy of productivity

Does Creativity get in the way of productivity? It can do. How do you ensure that spinning around various creative spirals doesn’t detract from the job that needs doing?

At the moment I am producing lots of creative ideas, and my thoughts are developing fast. But my actual productivity levels are quite low. I suppose that this must be part of a cycle of energy where the productivity comes in good time. For now, I just need to ensure that I make best use of the creative flows whilst they are there.

Current musical listening:

1. King Crimson – Starless and Bible Black
2. Robert Fripp – November Suite
3. Can – Landed
4. Jan Garbarek – Rites
5. Burning Shed Sampler No. 2

A good broad range of music which oils the wheels of the thinking mind.

Next week is a really busy one – but I’ll try to drop in a couple of updates.

Whack it unpack it

I have had a pack of playing cards for a few years now that was created by Roger von Oech (www.creativethink.com). It is called a ‘Creative Whack Pack’ and I use it when I am a bit stuck in moving things forwards. For the last two days I have started the day by choosing a card to get the thinking going.

Yesterday’s card was “Set a Deadline” – something which I am experimenting with where I have things that need doing that lack external pressure to get them completed. Seems to be working!

Today’s card was “Change its Name”, which left me a bit confused at first. Not sure what use to make of this concept.

The text on the card reads:

“If an architect looks at an opening between two rooms and thinks “door”, that’s what she’ll design. But if she thinks “passageway”, she may design something much different like a “hallway”, “air curtain”, “tunnel” or perhaps a “courtyard”. Different words bring in different assumptions and lead your thinking in different directions.” What else can you call your idea?

Now, after a bit of thinking two things occurred to me:

1. A task which I am really struggling to get in touch with at the moment is redrafting my PhD thesis. It’s a painful task which I have told myself I don’t enjoy doing. By renaming it, I’m trying to change the allure of this task. It is now ‘Redesign’ the thesis. So, I am currently working on redesigning chapter nine – seems more enjoyable already, and it introduces concepts of redesign that didn’t occur to me in the job of drafting.
2. Change my name – not literally of course. But when you change jobs you have an opportunity to redefine yourself, and particularly to draw out parts of yourself that were submerged in the previous role. This means that I can draw out my creative side much more than previous. Be much more extravert about my creativity.

I’m going to continue with the Whack Pack approach through the working days of next week too, and see what it generates.

Whilst writing this, I am listening to ‘Space Groove’ by Projekct Two (an offshoot, R&D unit of King Crimson). I love this double album for its twiddling innovation. It takes a prolonged groove off into stellar depths. Great stuff!