Leonardo da Vinci, one of the greatest minds in history, left a prodigious legacy in science, architecture, sculpture, painting, engineering, music, and mathematics. During his lifetime he filled up 13,000 journal pages with designs for wings to shoes for walking on water. Let Leonardo inspire you. Turn up your creativity by keeping a visual journal. Record beautiful things, ideas, and inspirations that you see in your everyday life. Write, sketch or doodle. Glue photos from magazines. Whatever works for you. Start with loose-leaf paper secured with a fancy clip or invest in a bound journal made of buttery leather. Discover how keeping a visual journal refines and elevates your design sensibilities making them deeper and more complex.
“It’s on the strength of observation and reflection that one finds a way. So we must dig and delve unceasingly.” — Claude Monet
To create a home that nurtures and inspires, we have to dig beneath the surface. Exploring our personal archaeology, or Self-Archaeology, is challenging, but it is definitely worth the effort. Remembering where we have been helps us find our way in the future. To make the excavation process easier, try making a timeline to show how your personal style has changed over the years from your early twenties to the age that you are today. Above the timeline describe where you have lived. Below the line, describe or draw what you wore at that time and what was in your room, apartment, or home. Use magazine clippings and family photos too. Have fun with the process. It will provide clarity and help you make design decisions in the future.
Here is a video that I show when I lead the Self-Archaeology exercise during design retreats.
At the 2008 Art Center Design Conference in Pasadena, California, Tim Brown, the CEO of IDEO, which is a firm specializing in design and innovation delivered a seminar entitled Serious Play. During his time on stage, Brown made a strong case for the critical connection between play and creativity. As kids, we are free to play. Taking risks without fear of judgement, exploring how ordinary objects can be used in fantastical ways, and seeing potential possibilities are what kids do everyday. Being a kid is being creative. Brown goes on to say that as adults we need to bring back play in the workplace to foster creativity. The key is to create environments based on trust that allow adults to explore divergent thinking through brainstorming to give full range to our ideas and to build environments that encourage thinking by doing, hands-on building, and role playing.
The ideas in Serious Play are exciting. The seminar got me thinking. Should we bring back play only in the workplace? What about home? Building fun environments based on trust to foster creativity in our personal lives could be very powerful. Just a little food for thought.
When friends enter a home, they sense its personality and character, the family style of living — these elements make a house come alive with a sense of identity, a sense of energy, enthusiasm, and warmth, declaring “this is who we are: this is how we live.” — Ralph Lauren
Grand or not so Grand Tours
Traveling near or far adds layers of patina to our lives. Being exposed to new influences and ancient cultures refines and elevates design sensibilities which has a direct impact on home. We bring back adventurous artifacts, creative ideas, and a new way of looking at the world. Don't hesitate to leave your comfortable nest and explore new destinations. Traveling is transformative. Bon voyage!
Conversation Starters
What inspires you? What gets your creative juices flowing? Here are some snapshots to get the conversation started. To see what else speaks to you, start collecting snaphots and magazine clippings of your own. Enjoy the hunt!
