I ran across this in National Geographic last night; the PEACE symbol is 40 years old this year.  It was created by a British designer, Gerald Holtom, in 1958 for anti-nuclear demonstrations.  The origin of the symbol is very interesting and can be found here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peace_symbol#The_peace_symbol

PEACE -

Ask ten people what Helvetica is and you will most likely get this response: 7 will tell you they have no idea, 2 will say that it is a font, and 1 will tell you it is a typeface.  Although “font” is technically correct, “typeface” is probably more accurate, and if you know this, you might be a snob. 

So why watch a documentary about a typeface?  Strangely enough, though few recognize or admit it, typefaces (fonts) have a significant effect on us everyday.  Every printed letter exists in some typeface (what your reading right now is Times New Roman), and that typeface effects not only the read-ability of a text, but the emotion that it conveys as well.  Wait a minute…

Did he just say fonts effect my emotions?!  No, I said typeface effects your emotions (cause I just might be a bit of a snob on this topic).  If you strongly agree or disagree with this statement, you should watch this documentary.  I was fortunate to grow up with a close friend who became a graphic artist and industrial designer, who opened my eyes to the power that something as simple as a “font” can have on a viewer.  Helvetica, the documentary, does just this; it tells not only the history of the Helvetica typeface, but also conveys the power of typography, graphic design and global visual culture.  It is a very concise and visually beautiful film that just might make you think twice the next time you pick a font and start typing a report for work.

 Here is a link to the film’s website: http://www.helveticafilm.com/

Check it out – watch it – and next time we meet we can have a few beers and debate once and for all whether “serifs” or “sans serifs” rule!

If you haven’t visited http://www.ted.com/ yet, then you need to right now!  Who is TED, you ask?  Turns out, TED is no-one; TED stands for Technology, Entertainment, Design.  What started out as an attempt to combine these three fields into one harmonious meeting of the minds has grown into something truly wonderful.  TED conferences, currently held yearly in Monterey California and other global locations, bring together many speakers from very diverse backgrounds from all around the world.  In the true spirit of sharing knowledge, TED makes these talks available by streaming and download for FREE on their website!

 Talks are generally 20 minutes or less, and therefore, very to the point.  Topic range wildly, from science, economics and design, to art, literature and mathematics.  You can search for talks using common queries like subject matter or speaker, or in more interesting ways, like “most inspiring” or “most ingenious.”  You would be hard pressed to not find something that turns your crank.  One feature I particularly like is TED’s built in video viewer.  You have all the common features like play, stop, pause, forward/reverse and volume, but you also get an interesting overlay when you place the mouse over the video.  An overlay pop-up appears at the bottom of the video and shows the content of the talk in a time-line fashion.  This time-line allows you to skip to a particular part of the talk that may be of more interest to you, and definitely helps if you want to show someone else just one part of a talk in particular. 

There are so many good speakers and topics its hard to know where to start; my personal two favorites are:

#1: Ron Eglash: African fractals, in buildings and braids - this one is awesome!

#2: Vusi Mahlasela: “Thula Mama” – my favorite new artist, this guy is amazing (I reviewed his latest CD here)!

 There is a wealth of free knowledge available on the web, but rarely is it presented in such a fun, clean, and creative manner.

I pondered this for a while and concluded that very little gets invented, or done for that matter, without a “need” first existing.  The “need” provides a focus and/or a direction for our creativity.  Creative thoughts, ideas and contraptions that pour forth from a person are largely just novelties until they meet a need of someone else – then they become inventions.  There are exceptions to the rule, of course, like pet-rocks and Chia pets (no one needs this stuff, but these inventors created a market for themselves), and sometimes inventions happen by mistake.  But generally it is a need that must be fulfilled which acts as the reigns for that wild horse creativity.  Together, need and creativity (freedom) get things done.  Maybe this grossly over-simplifies things?  It seems like a bit of a paradox, though.

Creative thinkers “think outside the box.”  But usually we use this term about people when we are trying to solve a well defined problem.  The problem exists, it has definite borders and limits, it is quantified; kinda like a box.  So a good solution to a “box” problem is to think “outside the box.”  That’s wacky.  It’s been said that “Creative problems require creative solutions.”  This is a bit more accurate of a statement I think, but I would argue that a “creative problem” is just like any other problem, it’s just that it has not been exhaustively researched yet.  After close examination and good research, I believe a “creative problem” becomes a “box” problem and again, creative thinkers think “outside the box” to come up with a novel solution.

I made a statement earlier (be it right or wrong), that the spewings of creative people are really just novelties until it meets someones need and becomes invention.  Novelties is probably the wrong word, though, so how about art.  I would gladly put pet-rocks and Chia pets into the realm of art, because I think that is what they really are.  You could argue that we “need” art, but I don’t think my love for art as a need, as much as a passion.  Art, for me, elicits feelings, emotions and desires; but it does not meet a need like an invention does.  What happens when you combine art and invention?  Masterpieces are born!  I use to drive a Subaru Justy; it was a great basic car that met my needs.  A Ferrari, on the other hand, is a masterpiece; it would meet my need for basic transportation, but it is also a thing of beauty, a work of art.

OK, OK, OK so what does any of this have to do with Haikus?  Well it’s probably not accurate or fair to say that all creativity without a need is just art.  Take the Haiku for example (wikipedia).  Here is an art that “imposes” some relatively strict guidelines but is wide open to creative implementation.  Traditionally an English style Haiku has a 5, 7, 5 pattern, separated onto three lines.  The 5, 7, 5 pattern is generally created with sounds.  Those are the “rules”, so now what?  That’s it – you can do whatever you want.  It’s actually quite beautiful.  Your given a “box” which has an inherent necessity to be filled.  How do you fill it?  You think “outside the box.”  The Haiku represents a necessity, or is itself a necessity.  Therefore, “Haiku is the mother of invention.”  Hmmm…I’m not sure if I buy any of this.