Keep the Creative Juices Flowing - Issue #9: Creativity Hack: Alteration
Ciao! Mauro here!
This is September 2022 issue nr 9. The 2nd of the series of issues dedicated to Creativity Hacks.
Thank you so much for following along in this Creative Journey.
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Creativity Hack #2: Altering
This is strongly related with the 3 Rs of waste management (Reduce, Reuse, Recycle) with a "creative twists".
Altering has sometimes, or for someone, a not really positive vibe. Alteration can be nasty if done with bad intentions.
Let me start by visually map where we are. That's always helpful right? Like those map in large spaces with the red dot "You are here".
Well, I guess you already know my expression:
Life is a 2x2 matrix
And now we can articulate the concept a little deeper.
Altering Object is easy (sort of)
Yeah, I mean it. If you just past a sticker on your mug, that is an alteration.
Yeah, I know, I know. That is not precisely an alteration because the original object stays the same.
Altering Thoughts
This is not always simple, yet it is an extremely powerful fuel for Creativity.
This 2x2 Matrix you find in the lower right corner is a tool I use constantly in the workshop "UNSTUCK your Project".
Don't worry if you feel that the matrix is not well described, I'll tell you more about it in the following Monthly Challenge section.
The Altering Thoughts xLontrax Tool
Here it is. No need to print this (you can do it, of course), you can make it with any piece of scrap paper or surface.
September Monthly Creative Challenge
I invite you to use the above tool, plus, the video is a crash course about using it, particularly the 2x2 matrix.
Signals&Dots
think: Oliver Sacks on the Three Essential Elements of Creativity
A long read, yes, but everything that comes from The Marginalian by Maria Popova worths a "scan" at very least.
make: the Junk Notebook project
The fear of ruining a nice notebook is totally "a thing", right? So I made a notebook with junk paper only to feel free to alter and play with it without worrying. I loved this project so much that I started to make Junk Notebooks and sending them out there. Maybe you can consider to make one yourself.
inspiration: a curated list of inspiring People with less that 10k followers
While we all follow the big names on YT or IG to get inspired, I'm amazed by the little (in terms of audience) gems I stumble upon from time to time. Here some of the people I found and follow (even if some accounts look dead).
inspiration: Alma Paraskevopoulos on Flickr
I follow her since early 2019. She's a master in altering notebooks, mixed media and blending hand drawing/writing with collages. I'm a huge fan!
inspiration: Digital Ephemera
From the website: "AN ARCHIVE CURATED BY ANTHONY BURRILL THAT GATHERS TOGETHER EXAMPLES OF INSPIRING LO-FI GRAPHIC DESIGN, CHARACTERFUL TYPOGRAPHY AND DISCARDED EPHEMERA."
How cool is that?
The Catch All
I’m a fan of Muji pens and I always enjoy the moment when I arrive at the end of one, however, tossing a pen in the bin it’s always a bit painful.
Plus, I wanted to make my own pen, a "xLontrax Muji pen". Here a couple of ideas I jotted down.
The second drawing is the one I made, with a few tweaks. Is made of reclaimed popsicle sticks and a piece of hardwood that was lying in a drawer.
Here a few moments of the making.
Once done, before waxing it, I did some tests by drawing for a while. The corners were really sharp and although I liked a lot the clean and squared shape, it wasn’t suitable for writing, too painful.
Do you remember the issue #6? We aim to make something useful and beautiful. This time, I loved the look but it wasn’t completely useful.
So I tried to smooth the edges and give it a "smoother" look.
It’s not perfectly as I wanted but I can use it and change the refill when it finishes. It will stay with me for a long time, and that’s is exactly one of the purposes of this small project.
My Stuff
I have 3 Classes about Visuals and Sketchnote on Skillshare
The good news
You can use the link below to join one of my classes for FREE for 1 MONTH
The good good news
Once you join with the link below you can access ALL of the Skillshare Classes for FREE for 1 MONTH
Not bad, uh?
That’s it!
As always, thank you so much for reading this issue! It was a honor spending time with you.
I hope you like this issue, if you don't like it you can always unsubscribe or, maybe, it's just this issue so, please, can you just reply and help me to make it better?
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See you on October, 3rd 2022 at h7.30 AM CEST.
Ciao
Mauro