gif of what a new idea looks like, and apps for capturing them

    We were instantly smitten by this mesmerizing gif by Pataak that pushes gif-dom to new heights of loose abstraction. For us it combines the chic of polka-dots with the ephemeral way ideas come and go.  Strange magic. Lately, we’ve been checking out apps and software for mapping our gazillions of ideas that often, once out…

Read More

phillip henson: embracing limitations can drive creativity

(Video link here.) This slightly rough, illuminating 4-minute TED talk is by Philip Henson, an artist who developed permanent nerve damage that made it impossible for him to make the fine drawings he loved; his hand shaked so much he could only draw squiggly lines. When his neurologist asked “Well, why don’t you just embrace…

Read More

how to be an explorer of the world

We’re loving How to Be an Explorer of the World: Portable Life Museum, illustrator Keri Smith’s 59 ideas for how to creatively “shift” and wake your mind by engaging with your surroundings in new and interesting ways. As Brain Pickings noted recently: “…they’re potent training for what Buddhism would call “living from presence” and inhabiting your life more fully.”…

Read More

the 7 vices of highly creative people

D.A. Blyler wrote the Seven Vices of Highly Creative People in reaction to the grumbling he was hearing about people working in offices where Stephen Covey’s bestseller The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People had been implemented. Personally, I’ve found Covey’s book to be strangely unreadable, and relate much more to Blyler’s recommendation for sex, cocktails, and gastronomy – specifically…

Read More