Keeping Creativity Awake: Experimenting with Improvisation
As a creative, including play in the design process, can be as important as planning for a project. It is the perfect way to develop new and exciting outcomes and to create freely without constraints. In my student days, I was encouraged to experiment and explore when developing design work. This ice experiment is one of my favorite processes.
Building on the elements of chance
The concept of this exploration was to develop something new from something old using a process of improvisation–the notion of doing something not planned. To start the process of “letting things happen,” I cut and ripped three random designs, which represent the old. Then submerge the pieces in containers with water. I added food coloring to change the color of the water to orange and blue. I placed the containers into the freezer to be frozen. The results were misty concrete blocks that yielded lines, patterns, and shapes. I was intrigued by the outcome.
Deeper exploration
I continued to explore by placing a white poster board on the ground, then dropping the blocks onto the poster board to create a shattering effect. At first, the ice would not break, so I continued the dropping motion. Bit by bit, the ice broke. The blue block shattered faster and easier than the orange block. With a hammer and a screwdriver, I chiseled the chunks that would not break into smaller pieces. I stood back and observed. The ice didn’t shatter in the way I perceived it would, but the colors were spectacular.
Observation: solid, shattered, liquid, and dried
I noticed the shattered ice pieces created an array of patterns, shapes, colors, and tones. Anytime I observed something fascinating throughout my exploration, I took photos to use in a design project.
After I shattered the ice, I left the ice pieces to dry. Photographs were taken every half-hour, for two hours. Then once an hour for three hours. I allowed the ice to dry before I took additional pictures.
The result
The images collected during the four stages of observation were colorful, unique, and captivating. Several pictures were selected and used in the cover design for a hand-made artist book that told the story of my journey as a designer.
