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Experimentation in Communications Design:

Moving Toward a Methodology of Innovation

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PrefaceMy interest in this topic stems largely from my own attempts at parsing my experiences as a studio artist versus my experiences studying design and working towards merging my practice as a visual communicator so that what-ever ends the projects that I am pursuing come to: they always come from a place of sincerity and autonomy that I hope will better communicate to my viewer. I once saw a lecture by Jerry Saltz where he claimed that in order to really move people, you must be “naked” in your work. I think this statement means different things for different people, and certainly for me, indicates a certain amount of emotional vulnerability regarding personal work. However, I think this statement still translates to the designer who is mediating for a client. That is, people respond to sincerity no matter what the intention of the final outcome. And of course, this is related to the idea of empathy in design. Because empathy and sympathy are two different things. One who sympa-thizes merely pays lips service to the idea that they intellectually understand another persons’ experience. Empathy is more like being a medium in a sense. One who is empathetic, actually feels the psychic energy of the person or group that he or she is conferring with. It is funny that we use the term medium both to describe a vehicle for transference of psychic energy and as a tool for creating visual objects, because when we are creating visual works we are using the tools of paint, pencils, paper, and bits and bytes to transfer the energy of our emotions. So the empathetic designer actually absorbs the emotions of the client and transfers them to a visual medium in order to provide a conduit for others to experience the work.

It is those communicative pieces that really hit home emotionally with the viewer, that ultimately resonate and stand the test of time, whether it be an advertising campaign or a painting. For me, experimentation, in a sense, is the idea of coming by something honestly. That is, I feel that if I can really get my hands dirty and get into something by tinkering, that I can better understand it and connect with it. For me, connecting with a medium is the surest way to ensure that I can be sincere in my work and hence, become a more effective visual communicator.

By connecting with the medium, I hope that it will also bring me full circle back to connecting with my viewer. That is, aside from being a mediator between the client and the audience, I hope to procure a separate relationship with the medium itself, so that I can serve as a translator between the client and the media.

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The conventional approach to commu-nications design is to elevate prac-tice over theory; it is pursued with a commodified end result in mind. However, communications design would benefit from a greater empha-sis on pure research outside the constraints of commodified produc-tion. Free exploration of materials, methods and context would allow practitioners to make profound discov¬eries such as new visual languages, new substrates andnew mediums. Communications design is currently studied primarily as an applied art. Since the late 19th centu-ry, the profession has undergone a great deal of change. From early printers to the poster design of the early 20th century, communications design is often relegated to a role primarily as a communication tool for commerce. However, communica-tions design has a far greater role in society in general. From governmen-tal and administrative communica-tion to a widely disseminated tool for public discourse, the modes and methods of communications design have always played a large role in the dissemination of information in society. For this reason, communica-tions designers must actively pursue a method of practice that allows for freedom of exploration, so that

new tools and innovative means for production can be discovered. Aesthetic explorations are typically most successful and innova-tive when pursued in an open-ended manner, where the ideas and ques-tions posed are the focus as opposed to the product. Although this type of research has long since been embraced by other fields such as art and science, the field of design is just beginning to embrace this mode of inquiry. This is largely due to the fact that design, particularly in the 20th century, was frequently employed in advertising, and many have come to view that as its sole function. Conse-quentially, a debate has emerged within the design community that questions the role of theory-based inquiry as opposed to product-focused activity. The opposing points of view inherent in this debate have typically been referred to as practice versus theory.

introduction

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The Debate: Practice Versus Theory

“The commercial artist who wants to be more than a “stylist” must either become clear as to what his cultural contribution may be, or else be overwhelmed by the demands of clients, myths about public taste, consumer research surveys, etc.”–Paul Rand

What is practice over theory? It is the idea that graphic design is merely an activity that has the direct intent of producing a polished, commodified outcome. It is the idea that graphic design exists strictly to serve the needs of the client and to func-tion as a voice for corporations and commerce. It is essentially part of a world view that emerged in the early part of the 20th century and is closely associat-ed with Modernism. This type of thinking emerged at a time in which idealism was high, and many creative thinkers across the globe sought to contribute to the shaping of a new world view that was revolutionary, expansive and universal in its political aspirations. A quick survey of historical events of the time period reveals a world, which was in constant flux. Rapidly developing technologies and political upheaval were the norm, and many divergent ideologies formed as a result of reactions to these activities. Cultural move-ments such as Futurism, Constructivism and De Stijl developed on the heels of rapidly changing political environments. Manifestos were written and ideolo-gies touted and expressed through works of art, poetry and other communicative mediums. It was a time of truly uninhibited exploration that reflected the tumultuous nature of the time period (Meggs). However, after World War II, the political climate in Europe and the United States became more stable, and this ushered in the appearance of the International Style in graphic design. Loraine Wild discusses this time period in her essay, “That Was

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Then: Corrections and Amplifica-tions.” She talks about the fact that after World War II graphic designers “championed a hidden process that was supposed to deliver a visually potent-product” and espoused the belief that the designer should be “invisible.” Designers were consid-ered mediators that created a seam-less line of communication between the client and the audience (43). Andrew Blauvelt, creative director at the Walker Art Center and curator of the recent international exhibition, Graphic Design, Now in Production, discusses this phenom-enon. He describes a “schism,” which crosses generational boundaries. He notes that many view theory as anti-thetical to practice due to the inher-ent disconnect between thought and action and also due to the common vagaries of design theory. Those who hold this opinion, consider the act of designing to be “external” from the design process and ultimately counterintuitive to the flash of insight needed for creativity (102-3). In her essay, “Education in an Adolescent Profession,” designer and educator, Katherine McCoy discusses this phenomenon in relation to educa-tion. She discusses the fact that the study of graphic design is often focused on application that simulates professional projects. The Bauhaus Basic Course was the first course to establish the idea that all design proceeds from a basic foundational understanding of aesthetic principles, and this has become the model for most graphic design education. However, upon completion of basic

courses, students quickly move into the realm of producing iterations that mirror the applied results of profes-sional practice. (McCoy). This model is an extension of the apprentice model that was commonly used at the turn of the century and probably reflects a holdover from the days before design was established as a profession, and printers piecemealed books and publi-cations in an indiscriminate fashion to quickly produce materials and mass disseminate them. It also seems to be a view that many seasoned designers from the turn of the century still hold. And when one considers the Mad Men era of big business, big advertising and the United States, expansive post-war elation and egotism, it seems proper that designers who were indoctrinated into the profession during this era would have such an attitude. After all, weren’t the citizens, after WWII, asked to do their part by actively participating in the U.S. economy? (put in some post-war posters) If design was considered an adolescent profession at the time that McCoy wrote her article in 1998, it can be considered a profession that was in its infancy in at the turn of the century. It rightly follows that graphic designers of the time were focused on the physical, the here and now. Not unlike a real-life infant first discovering her toes, designers focused on the physical products that they were producing and their practical and lasting effects and potentialities for bolstering the newly reformed economy.

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The remnants of this kind of thinking are still ubiquitous and can be found simply by looking around. The artifacts of communications design continue to riddle our visual landscape with a litany of ephemera that seems a hollow replication of aesthetics divorced from any depth of meaning, historical context, or cultural significance. A simple trip to the subway serves as verification of this fact. (add photos of subway ads) Subway posters alone account for an entire category of produced materials that offer images and type that is divorced from any meaning save an immediate association with a product that screams a message at the viewer. These messages tend to range from being incoherent to indiscriminate, and likewise offer even less to their audience in terms of visual appeal. In his seminal essay, “First Things First,” Ken Garland, a British graphic designer, offers an intense diatribe against this litany of vacuous communication. His manifesto was originally penned during a meeting of the Society of Industrial Artists in London in 1964. In this manifesto, he discusses the fact that, at the time, graphic designers were indoc-trinated into a profession that touted the production of work that directly supported the function of advertis-ing. He caustically describes this phenomenon as a system, which lauds the exploitation of a designer’s creativity and skill in service to such banal items as cat food, detergent, toothpaste and more. He argues that these pursuits amount to trivialities

that fail to contribute anything of value to society. He states, “we have reached a saturation point at which the high pitched scream of consumer selling is no more than sheer noise” (Garland,154-5). He goes on to suggest that there are more mean-ingful uses for the talents that are wasted on these pursuits. Although, this essay was published in the sixties, it still rings true in the present day. However accurately Garland’s sentiments reflect and describe the almost assured indignation of many a contemporary designer, it remains that his argument is a bit more of an emotional response to the situation. But what are the actual consequenc-es of this phenomenon? By many accounts, the conse-quences are a minimization of public discourse, and especially in the Unit-ed States, many see this as synony-mous with allowing the majority of our mass communications materials to be generated by and for, or as a voice for, the omnipotent corporation. In recent years, a derisive criticism of the activities of major corporations has become more and more evident in mainstream culture. Particularly in the wake of recent events involv-ing economic and political issues surrounding the use and abuse of the power of corporations, the general public has come to mistrust the clean and morally inculpable message of the all powerful and ubiquitous corporation (Lavin). Cultural critics such as Kalle Lasn have emerged in dissent of what are deemed to be, the major

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social inequities that have resulted from the abuse of the power of the corporation. As founder of Adbuster’s magazine, Lasn has been fighting the homogenization of public discourse through disruptive communication for years. He suggests that the United States, and in fact the rest of the globe, has been subjected to such an array of manipulative media that “a continuous product message has woven itself into the very fabric of our existence.” He goes as far as to compare our relationship to media as being similar to the substance “soma,” which was used to control the masses in the Aldous Huxley book, Brave New World. He compares our fixation on media as an addic-tion to cool. He describes our media addiction as a “global pandemic” and a “monoculture.” He discusses consumer capitalism as inherently unethical, and suggests random acts of civil disobedience to jar the system. Lasn ascribes to the view-points of the Situationists, led by Guy Debord, who believed in instigating civil disobedience to fight what they termed the “society of the spectacle” (re-quote p. xvi). As an answer to this phenomenon, Lasn promotes the use of “subvertisement” to jar the viewer into action and awareness. Subver-tisements involve mimicking the design elements of a corporate ad, however, imposing a message that is in effect at odds with the values of the corporation and instead draws attention to the negative aspects associated with consumerism. He also advocates the use of “cyberjam-ming,” which involves the use of

online petitioning and “tv jamming,” which is basically subvertising on tele-vision (131-3). Lasn suggests that this type of activity can effectively, break the “media consumer trance and momentarily challenges […] whole world outlook[s] (Lasn). Lasn expounds on these concepts in his more recent book, Design Anarchy, a book whose intended audience is graphic design-ers themselves. The book raises many questions about the role of the graphic designer and their influence on culture and overall is experimental in its layout and conception. Through-out the book, handwritten narratives comingle with typeset pronuncia-tions and splashes of color, crudely scrawled illustrations and neatly placed logos. The layout presents juxtapositions of both ideas and of imagery in such a way that certainly seems to jar the viewer and incite participation. It does so not only through its overall message, which is a call to action for designers to break their own media trance, but also through its combination of surprising and incendiary visual elements that represent a certain ambiguity that calls for the reader to form their own judgments (Design Anarchy). Dutch designer, Jan Van Toorn also criticizes one-sided public discourse in both his ideas and in the physical manifestation of his work. He deems the type of messaging that is typical for large corporations, a “closed message.” He argues this type of work merely reflects the attitudes and beliefs of the propri-etors of that information and for that

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reason designers typically create materials that offer a clean and clini-cal interpretation of a corporation’s message. He argues for disruption of expected outcomes and like Lasn, “breaking the charm of the spec-tacle” to increase the time it takes for a viewer to parse information. In this way, he suggests that a viewer may be more aptly engaged in the process of interpretation, and his or her criti-cal facilities will stimulated and thus his or her intelligence awakened. (requote-Stam) Van Toorn states,

In our culture, the tradition is to strive for a closed product: a kind of statement composed of form and content that is somehow complete in itself [..] graphics designers find themselves in a situation which supports the institution and that becomes part of the product. If you strive for a closed message, both in form and in content, then you are not being true to the communicative character of the message, to the real aim of the communication. Producers of information try to hide their real aims and motives. Information becomes a commod-ity. Design is the ultimate answer to that.” (97)

Van Toorn ultimately ascribes to the ideologies of Roland Barthes and plac-ing authorship with the viewer. He believes that by offering the viewer something more challenging that you thereby slow down the process of

interpretation and cause the viewer to think and engage their critical facul-ties in a way that ultimately leads to participation. Van Toorn’s complex ideology regarding the practice of communica-tions design is influenced by many progressive philosophers and think-ers and is the result of his intense study on these topics. Van Toorn is influenced by the writings of Bertolt Brecht, Magnus Enzensberger, and Victor Schlovsky just to name a few. Enzensberger’s was a poet and cultural critic, and one of his key philosophies focused on the differences between repressive and emancipatory media. He defines repressive media as that which has a central source, a single sender or communicator and many recipients. Emancipatory media, by contrast, involves decentralization and treats every recipient as a potential commu-nicator. The theory of emancipatory media states that each recipient is encouraged to mobilize. He states, “repressive media encourages passive consumption and depoliticiza-tion and is produced by specialists and kept under bureaucratic control. Emancipatory media encourages interaction and feedback, contributes to the political learning process, and is collectively produced and autono-mous” (Poyner, 95). These ideas reflect Barthes’ ideas that the receiver becomes author, through interpretation. Receiv-ers bring the meaning to the message and hence play a part in authoring it. Barthes believed in “polysemy,” which is the idea that one object or image

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can have many meanings, and the meaning is created when the viewer interprets the image. He referred to images as texts and postulated that their meaning was literally created in the process of being read by the viewer, thus placing authorship with the viewer instead of the creator (Baldwin and Roberts, 34-5). These ideas are based on the basic concepts of semiotics as defined by Charles Sanders Pierce, an American philosopher from the late 19th century (13). Pierce used the term semiosis to describe the transfer of meaning from author to viewer and acknowledged that the act of signifying, or creating meaning, is not a one-way process. He suggested that the meaning of a signifier is effected by the background of the viewer or reader, and their personal interpretations and experiences will influence how it is read (Crow, 34). The writings of Victor Shklovsky, a Russian formalist critic, also influence Van Toorn’s work. Schlovsky’s ideology centers on the notion that people need to be jarred to break out of their normal percep-tual modes and “habitualization” that lead them to fail to question or recog-nize their surroundings. He touts “defamiliarization” in art or “making strange.” He calls the process ostranenie (Crow, 95). Van Toorn typically is known for creating forms that reflect this type of process. His constructions are intentionally awkward, and their manifestation reveals the process by which they were created. This aspect of his work is also reflective of the

ideas of Bertolt Brecht, a playwright who thought that audiences should view plays with emotional detach-ment. Brecht felt that plays should not function as transcriptions of reality but instead that they should retain characteristics that make audi-ences aware that they are viewing a representation of reality. He used disruptive techniques, to reveal the mechanics of making a play, such as having actors speak stage directions aloud. This demystified the act a bit and drew on participatory elements, such as having the actors address the audience directly. He termed this type of activity as, “the alienation effect” (97). Van Toorn’s ideas of engaging the viewer in an act of participa-tion is evidenced in one particular spread from his book, Design’s Delight. In typical Van Toorn fashion, he has composed a series of photos together in the same layout that are seemingly unrelated. A photo of a family on a train is superimposed by a smaller photo of a newscast that depicts a young African Ameri-can boy hugging Mickey Mouse. The caption of the newscast reads: America Under Attack. At first the grouping of images are difficult to discern and are seemingly nonsen-sical or unrelated. However, upon inspecting the caption, one realizes that the newscast was from Septem-ber 11, 2001, and the photo of the family on the train is an Iraqi family on their way to Disneyworld Paris. This knowledge immediately helps to construct the narrative, but it is still ambiguous enough that it requires

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the participation of the reader to decode. That is, one must bring their own knowledge of the events and images depicted to realize the rela-tionship between the photos and the inferred meaning. There is other text on the page stating, “ideas become markets,” “five media giants … strengthens the influence of market and politics on journalism.” Max Bruinsma comments on the implied meaning in this spread stating, “close reading of this spread can be summa-rized as ‘the war on terrorism hides genuine problems of clashing cultures behind the repressive narratives of the global (western) entertainment industry” (Bruinsma). However, the piece is open enough to allow for different readings, and ultimately plays on irony and the suppositions of the viewer to achieve its communica-tive effect. In this way it is exemplary of his theories about communications design as a participatory media. Overall, Van Toorn’s work and his philosophy is decidedly experimental and focused on theory rather than outcome. He creates open-ended statements that offer the possibility for different readings, and thus his overall message is not set in stone. Instead he allows the viewer to interpret his work in a way that is not always completely predict-able, and this sense is always fresh and innovative. His work, as a result does not feel formulaic but instead is reflexive and fluid.

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Some Proposed Methods of Inquiry: Pure Science “Design: Where Science and Art Break Even” -–Robin Mathew

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To discover new means and methodologies that promote break-ing out of the typical functions of design, and hence nurture creativ-ity and innovation, we can look to other disciplines as a model. The natural sciences employ a number of research methods that bear a relation-ship to those that are often pursued in design. For instance, probably the best known method for scientific inquiry that exists is the scientific method. The scientific method begins with defining a problem, creating a hypothesis, testing the hypothesis and forming conclusions based on the experimentation that is performed. Communications design is frequently pursued in a similar fashion. Many define the activity of designing as problem solving, and thus a problem solving methodology is employed. In his book on the fundamen-tals design, Introduction to 2-Dimen-sional Design: Understanding Form and Function, John Bower outlines the typical process of problem solving as related to communications design. This methodology is akin to problem solving in other disciplines and is derived from psychology:

(partial transcription)1) Learn Conditions - familiarize your-self with all aspects of the situation. Think of the audience that the project will be directed towards and the physical environment in which the work will exist.2) Identify and Define the Problem - examine the information gathered and

create a strategy to consider sources and options. Use visual diagraming - depicting ideas, concepts and rela-tionships in pictoral form.3) Generate Ideas and Select Solu-tions - prototyping stage. Come up with ideas and solutions and decide which ones are most appropriate to refine.4) Implement Solution and Evaluate Result - apply an outcome and gauge the results. Gauging results could take the form of informal discussion, market research or observation of how people interact with a form.

The scientific method follows a similar approach, and this method is frequently taught in schools. The scientific method follows this basic structure:

1) Define the problem2) Gather background information3) Form a hypothesis (or educated

guess about the outcome)4) Make observations5) Test the hypothesis6) Draw conclusions

One can quickly see the similarities between a problem solv-ing approach to design and the scien-tific method. Bower identifies two different problem solving approaches in design as research and strategy. He states that these methodologies are particularly effective in situations of applied design. That is, in situations where a specific product or outcome is clearly definable, methodologies that more closely mirror the scientific method can effectively assist the

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designer in creating systems that produce a desired effect such as increasing sales. In these situations designers can use specific tools such as ethnographic research or market research to create effective strategies to solve such problems (33-44). However, not all communica-tions design is geared towards such a cleanly definable goal. Bower notes that other qualitative, as opposed to quantitative methods are desirable in the creative process. Intuition is one such methodology that relies more on the designer’s own personal insight. Bower notes that both methodologies can be successful, however, intuition is a large part of the creative process and at times can yield more compel-ling results (17, Bower). Many scientists seem to share this viewpoint in regard to the pursuit of science as a creative discipline . In fact, many scientists feel that the scientific method is almost antithetical to actual discov-ery. Alexakos Konstantinos, in his article “Teaching the Practice of Science, Unteaching the Scientific Method,” advocates for the use of an approach that involves open inquiry. He argues that the scientific method is an overly formulaic approach that is limiting and does not take into account the creative and at times idiosyncratic aspects of humanness that are involved in science. He notes that students who are constantly drilled with this approach, lean on it as a cookie-cutter method and do not employ true creativity. Similarly, the NTSA (Standard’s for Science Teacher Preparation) also advocates for

a method of teaching that is not merely about accumulating knowl-edge but instead should stimulate the discovery of novel approaches that fundamentally change that knowledge (74-5). William McComas’s article “Ten Myths about Science” furthers reiterates this point. McComas points out that, “close inspection will reveal that scientists approach and solve problems with imagination, creativity, prior knowledge, and perseverance. These, he suggests, “are the same methods used by all problem-solvers.” Both scientists argue that science is a discipline that requires the creativ-ity and idiosyncratic response of its practitioners and that true innova-tion cannot be developed without allowing for unexpected outcomes (McComas). Although, neither author states it outwardly, the overall argu-ment seems to support pure research as a more viable way of approaching problem solving. Although, differing methodologies may exist within this category, pure research is defined as an approach to inquiry in which the overall aim is not necessarily to solve a specific problem that is posed, but rather to explore possibilities within the context of curiosity. That is, pure research, involves open-ended inquiry about the natural world, simply for the sake of understanding the world. Pure research, in contrast to applied research, therefore does not necessarily result from a predeter-mined purpose. Scientists frequently employ pure research as a viable method for inquiry. That is, scientists explore the

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known universe in order to answer questions about the way it works. Pure research, by its very definition is more exploratory and open ended. However, it frequently informs appli-cation later. Pure research defines laws by which applied results can later be gleaned. For instance, pure science discoveries often furnish laws that are later used in application of applied science (Feibleman, 306). In science, laws are defined as observ-able facts about the known universe, and theories are hunches at explain-ing these laws (McComas). Without observing the known universe, there would be no laws to test and hence, no science to apply, as in applied science. For this reason, pure research is a necessary step toward achieving practical results. Without pure research, or what is sometimes referred to as “pure science,” applied science could not exist. In the scientific world, there are many historic examples of the success of pure research. For exam-ple, Louis Pastuer discovered the basic principle that dead or attenuated organisms can induce the produc-tion of antibodies in the blood. Later, virologist and medical researcher, Jonas Salk, applied the inherent logic of this theory when he discovered the vaccine for polio. He literally built upon the groundwork of knowledge that Pasteur had already established, moving beyond Pasteur’s original conclusion to develop an unexpected outcome that had hugely positive results. Had he not been aware of the previous work of Pasteur, he would never have had the means for such a

breakthrough in applied science. Another example of a pure science discovery that was later applied to practical results is the discovery of the photoelectric cell by George E. Hale, whose discovery was based on his observation of the sun’s corona in 1894. No immediate use for this knowledge was found, however, it was later applied to the creation of motion pictures (307-8). Although, pure research often leads to practical application, James K. Fiebleman argues that research should not be hampered in light of predicated applications. He argues that the “seriousness of purpose” involved in pure scientific research is comparable to religion or art and that while scientists focusing on application and technology may be very skilled, they equally tend to have “lesser imagination” (309). He goes on to eloquently sum up his thoughts on these matters in a way that is reflective of the assumptions asserted in this document: “In the effort to extend knowledge it is not strategically wise to hamper investiga-tion with antecedent assurances of utility” (307). Lawrence Berkeley Lab is a currently active institution that employs pure research as a large part of their research curriculum. Berkeley Lab is a sprawling 200-acre facility located in the hills of California near the UC Berkeley campus. Funded in part by the U.S. department of energy, Berkeley lab hosts thousands of scientists and researchers who have made many discoveries over the years. The lab was founded by Ernest

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Orlando Lawrence, a physicist who invented the cyclotron. The cyclotron is a particle accelerator that helped to significantly advance our understand-ing of high-energy physics. Lawrence won the Nobel prize for this discovery and founded Berkeley Lab in 1931. The facility was based on his belief that research is best approached from collaboration between teams of people with different backgrounds and expertise. Thirteen Berkeley scientists have won the Nobel prize, and thirteen have won the National Medal of Science. Berkeley Lab has made many discoveries of applied science but continues to maintain hundreds of projects globally that employ pure research and seek to help us better understand our world. The Supernova Cosmology Project one example of an international collaboration led by Berkeley scientists, which was devel-oped in order to investigate super-novae and the principles of physics surrounding their creation and existence (LBNL). Berkeley hosts or contributes to a number of other experiments globally including The Large Hadron Collider, a device located in Geneva Switzerland, where protons and ions are collided in order to study the debris created from the collisions and substances such as quark-gluon plas-ma (LBNL). At the time I began writ-ing this document, the Collider was in operation but had not produced any dramatic results. Since then, the Collider has been responsible for confirmation of the existence of something very similar to the Higgs

Boson particle, or the “God Particle.” This discovery is considered a mile-stone in scientific research, with broad reaching implications about our universe and how it works. Although confirmation of the specifics of the particle and whether or not it carries the exact attributes predicted by scientific theorist, Peter Higgs, is not entirely clear, the discovery has been a cause for a great deal of celebration and is the ultimate testament to the power of pure research.

The New York Times said this of the discovery:

Confirmation of the Higgs boson or something very much like it would constitute a rendezvous with destiny for a generation of physicists who have believed in the Boson for half a century without ever seeing it. The finding affirms a grand view of a universe described by simple and elegant and symmetrical laws — but one in which everything interesting, like ourselves, results from flaws or breaks in that symmetry.

The Higgs Boson is presumed to be the physical mani-festation of an “invisible force field” that essentially imbues all objects in our universe with mass. It is respon-sible for the existence of life. Without this material, nothing in our universe would have physical integrity, and objects would whiz around and pass through your hands like air (Overbye). Among other pure research projects, Berkeley scientists also

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study dark matter and cosmic rays at the South Pole, using a telescope like device called IceCube which probes the surface of the earth. The Homestake Mine is another project in the works, located in South Dakota, which will house an underground laboratory called DUSEL where astro-physics and physics experiments will be conducted. Geoscience and microorganisms that inhabit extreme environments will also be studied here (LBNL). Pure research is an extremely important aspect of many of Berkeley’s projects, and this is evidenced not only through their dedication to pure research experi-mentation but also through their development of outreach programs aimed at educating students about the importance of experimental research. Among them is a project called ESLI, which stands for, ethical, legal and social issues in science. This project exists in the form of a web page that is intended to gener-ate discussion about ethical, legal and social issues in science and is recom-mended for educators and students in junior high and high school. The page is dedicated largely to discussing pure research and to educating students on the importance of pure research (LBNL ESLI). But why is pure research so effective? Essentially, it is because the practice offers practitioners the ability to explore, unhindered by the pressures of producing an immediate-ly useful product or solution. It allows for the use of abductive reasoning, as opposed to inductive reasoning or alghorithmic thinking.

In the book, Drive, author Daniel H. Pink talks about the fact that people need personal autonomy to tap into their drive or motivation to do something. He cites a study with monkeys, in which the animals actu-ally seek to solve puzzles without a banana reward, for the pure pleasure of it. Pink coins the term “intrinsic motivation,” to describe this phenom-enon. He defines intrinsic motivation as motivation that comes from within. He says that “if-then” rewards actu-ally require people to forfeit some of their personal autonomy, and that is why this particular type of reward system does not work. Pink also cites another study that follows a group of artists for a period of time. Some of the artists created work for which they received commercial recognition and hence monetary compensation. Other artists received little or no compen-sation. Over a period of years, the artists were studied. A group of curators was asked to blindly judge the works. The artists who initially received no compensation produced more creative work than those who received compensation. However, this does not necessarily indicate that the production of less creative work was caused by the receipt of money. The fact is that some of the artists, who received little compensation at the beginnings of their careers, later became successful and did receive compensation. The study concluded that the fact that the artists were intrinsically motivated was the cause of their creative work. That is, the artists that were dedicated to making work, due to internal motivations,

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rather than extrinsic rewards, were more likely to weather the difficult periods of receiving lower incomes. Therefore, they remained dedicated to their work, despite the lack of external rewards and were hence more creative overall in their execu-tion of work. Another study cited in the book, involved young children in a classroom setting. Researchers noticed that some of the children in the classroom chose to draw when given free time in class and seemed to enjoy drawing. The researchers broke the children into 3 groups. They told the first group of children that if they drew, they would receive a reward. The reward was a “good player” certificate. The second group was asked if they wanted to draw. The children who chose to draw were later awarded with a certificate, although they had not been told about the possibility of receiving one. The third group was simply asked if they wanted to draw and did not receive an award, nor were they told of any possibility of a reward. The research-ers returned a few weeks later to see if there had been any change in the children’s behavior. They found that the two groups who received no reward or who had received an unexpected reward were still drawing just as frequently as before. However, the children who had expected and received a reward had almost completely lost interest in drawing. Somehow the experiment had turned play into work for the children, and they chose to avoid the activity as soon as it was deemed undesirable.

For the children, the offering of payment seemed to indicate that there was something undesirable about doing the task. Overall, Pink’s research seems to indicate that creativity thrives when it is self-directed. Practitioners are more inspired when they feel personally compelled to pursue the answers to their internal questions, hence internal motivation, as he states, is the best foundation for true innovation in creative practices. This relates to the philosophies that are at the core of pure research. Pure research suggests that a scientist may pose questions about the natural world out of sheer curiosity, which naturally arises from a place of inter-nal motivation. Regardless of the payment structure (or lack of payment structure) in scientific laboratories, the initiation of projects based on pure research tend to arise from an internal source that naturally predis-poses the practitioner to bear some kind of internal motivation and hence, autonomy regarding their pursuit. When no specific intended outcome is immediately foreseeable, the practitioner may align his or her goals more acutely with answering the questions at hand, rather than relying on monetary or commercial systems of approval as a goal, and this atmo-sphere can lend itself to increased innovation and creativity (Drive). Additionally, Pink seems to suggest that somehow the commodi-fication of the creative process can tend to lend itself to an inhibition of innovation. Here we find an unknow-ing dissenter to the traditional

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design-as-product-as-commodity conundrum. This viewpoint has impor-tant implications for design. As designers who are bound to merely emulate toothpastes and continue to emit that “high pitched scream” that Kenneth Garland so aptly referred to, run the risk of producing less creative, less innovative work. This dichotomy tends to pit the artist against the business man in a never-ending tug of war of whose activity/motivation is more valid? Of course someone like Kalle Lasn has his opinion, but some companies are more interested in changing this relationship to better facilitate innovation. One such company is Method. Method co-founders were interviewed by Good magazine, where they expressed a somewhat different viewpoint about encourag-ing cooperation between designers and business. Typically, people use inductive or deductive reasoning to solve problems. That is, in induction, conclusions are reached based on a set of observations. In deduction, conclusions are reached based on generalized facts that have been predetermined. However, in abduc-tive reasoning, novel solutions are invented without a known or prede-termined source. “While an engineer may study problems and devise solutions from a known set of tools, designers must imagine solutions that don’t come from a preexisting set of techniques” (Ryan, Eric, and Adam Lowry). This relates to Tim Brown’s theories about convergent and divergent thinking within the design

process. In his book, Change by Design. He also suggests that successful design projects follow a process that is open-ended and less rigid than some scientific or problem solving approaches. He envisions the steps of this process as being akin to a series of overlapping spaces of activity, the order of which can be rearranged based on the needs of the project. He identifies these spaces of activity as, inspiration, ideation, and implementation. During inspiration, many ideas are produced. During ideation, ideas are narrowed down and prototypes are generated. And during imple-mentation, the final ideas are chosen and implemented in the practical world. Overall, he defines the design process as an exploratory process that should allow for “unexpected discoveries” along the way (16-17). However, Brown also notes the need for constraints in experi-mentation and suggests that what distinguishes designers from artists and some scientists is that, in addi-tion to experimenting, they embrace constraints (18). He uses legendary design team, Charles and Ray Eames as an example of an extremely successful duo that implemented an experimental approach that produced extremely innovative results. However, he also notes the extremely methodical nature of their experimentation. That is, they had strict parameters within which they experimented. This relates to his discussion about the use of conver-gent and divergent thinking in design. In western culture, specifically, we

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are trained to use deductive reason-ing or convergent thinking, in that we frequently draw upon a series of data, analyze it and converge to one choice. However, he suggests that divergent thinking is the phase of thinking in which ideas are generated, and the more ideas are generated, the larger the base from which there is to choose. He suggests that design thinking is a process of moving between convergent and divergent modes of thinking to continu-ously produce innovative ideas and conversely narrow the possibilities to obtain an ultimate solution. He also adds that analysis and synthesis are secondary components to the design thinking process and equally impor-tant (Brown and Katz). All of this seems to suggest the continuous interplay of struc-tured left brained thinking verses, open-ended right brained thinking as hallmarks of the creative process. This echoes the findings of neuroscience researchers. According to the theory of representational change, one of the preconditions for creative prob-lem solving is letting go of perceived constraints. This idea was demon-strated when scientists used an MRI scan to digitally visualize the activity of the brain. When subjects were given a visuospatial problem to solve that involved divergent thinking, MRI scans confirmed that activity occurred in both the left and right hemispheres of the brain, suggesting that both sides of the brain are involved in creativity– as opposed to the more widely held belief that most creativ-ity comes from the right side of the

brain, and linear problem solving from the left. However, scientists noted that when some sort of brain damage had occurred, and the two parts of the brain communicated differently, that more novel creative solutions were produced. That is, the two sides of the brain are thought to inhibit each other in certain ways. However, when those inhibitions were removed, different talents were developed. For instance, some people who develop an aphasia or other language difficulty later in life experience the instance of increased musicality or artistic talent (Erikson). All of this research seems to point to the fact that designers, as creative thinkers, are using their orga-nizational as well as intuitive faculties to approach problems and projects. However, when constraints are released, and the intuitive portion of the mind is allowed to freely explore, more creative solutions can be reached. This supports the idea that experimentation is vital to the devel-opment of new solutions. As creative thinkers, if we cannot disrupt the typical view or constraints of a visual communications problem, then how can we arrive at novel solutions? For that matter, how can our audiences arrive at novel solutions if we cannot disrupt their typical thought patterns as well? If we look to the audience as author and truly value their participa-tion, then we have to offer them the opportunity to stretch their faculties and meet us somewhere beyond the horizon of typical solutions in a realm of higher thought and consciousness.

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PureResearch in Art = Visual Research

“Information presented at the right time and in the right place can potentially be very powerful. It can affect the general social fabric…The working premise is the think in terms of systems: the production of systems, the interference with and the exposure of existing systems…Systems can be physical, biological, or social.” – Hans Haacke

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Pure research has long been a traditional method of inquiry in the world of fine art. Of course, this phenomenon is largely championed by the myth of the fine artist itself. Aside from situations in which commissions are exchanged, at the request of the client, most fine artists function within a tradition that ultimately champions the genius of the artists themselves and leaves the process of creating and discovering solely to them. This type of inquiry is generally termed “visual research” and is particularly touted in academia. Visual research generally falls under the heading of pure research, in that it can be defined as research where the practitioner him or herself initiates the questions or goals, and this stems from curiosity or inner drive instead of from a client or request for a solution to an external problem. Some of the best examples of pure research in art and how it has manifest itself ultimately as innova-tion can be found in the process art of the 1960’s. Process art encompasses a genre of work in which the process of making the work is central to the subject matter of the work. That is, the process of making the work is not only evident in the final product but represents the goal or intended subject matter of the work. Artists such as Richard Serra, Eva Hesse and many more are attributed with working in this manner, and Jackson Pollock is considered to have played a key role in planting the seeds of this movement (Process Art).

Additionally, Pollock is a great example of an artist who developed a unique and innovative style through pure visual research. His “action paintings” represent a stylistic and processual departure from anything that was being done at the time, such that he inspired many documenta-ries and writings. Pollock was apt at explaining his technique, and there was a great deal of interest in filming his process. In one particular video, Pollock is shown painting outdoors on a large canvas on the ground. He moves around the canvas in a very physical way, pouring paint or at times even using a stick. He states that, “technique is just a means at arriving at a statement” and feels that his paintings are imbued with his emotions. He states that he sees a painting as “having a life of its own” and seeks to allow it to take its own course accordingly. Furthermore, he describes the fact that he wishes to “express [his] feelings rather than illustrate them” (Jackson Pollock on His Process).

Process Art: Visual Research as Reflexive Experiment

Jackson Pollock’s methodol-ogy can be traced to influences such as Surrealism and Jungian psychology. Specifically, Surrealist

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Automatism bears a close relationship to his process. Pollock’s early experi-ences studying art at the Art Students League in New York City under Thom-as Hart Benton led him to work as an easel painter for the Works Progress Administration’s Federal Art Project, which offered him a steady enough income to allow him to experiment. In 1936 he joined an experimental workshop where he learned about industrial paints and enamels such as as duco. He later applied these experiments to the poured and spat-tered paintings that he is known for. In 1938, Pollock underwent psychiat-ric treatment and worked with Jung-ian analysts who used his drawings as part of their therapeutic process. From here, he began exploring uncon-scious symbolism in his work and developed a personal iconography surrounding his mental processes. Although Pollock’s process at times seems chaotic, he actually employed a measured and intentional methodology to the implementation of his paintings. He tended to “write them out” from left to right on long pieces of canvas and at times was known to go back and correct certain areas so that they would “work” visually (O’Connor). He is even cred-ited with utilizing a grid system that he learned through his experiences as a mural painter. Additionally, his method of painting (particularly his characteristic method of painting on the floor with unusual tools such as sticks), bears a relationship to the methods of the North American Indian sand painter. Overall, through

experimentation and the combination of varying systems of application from different disciplines, he developed an extremely unique style and methodol-ogy that are still studied and emulated 60 years after his death (O’Connor). Another group of artists who employed open-ended experimenta-tion that led to important innova-tions was a loosely defined group of conceptual artists whose activities spanned largely from the time period of the mid sixties and into the mid seventies. Lucy Lippard was one of the most prolific art critics and theorists of the time period who documented these activities, and her seminal publication Six Years: The Dematerialization fo the Art Object from 1966 to 1972 is probably one of the most thorough collections of documentation about this work. Lippard lived in New York City during at the time and was deeply involved in documenting, curating, and collaborat-ing with artists such as Sol le Witt and Robert Ryman, who are closely asso-ciated with minimalism. In her words, this interaction led to her affiliation with many other artists who were actively experimenting and subvert-ing art world norms through their exploration of immaterial or “little c” conceptual art, as it was dubbed by Le Witt. The work of this period “focused on the de-mythologization and de-commodification of art” and questioned authorship through owner-ship from the perspective of art as a commodity (xiv). This movement in art is closely related to communications design through its immediate goals

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of communication, its largely textual basis, and its focus on proliferation and inexpensive means of production. Lippard states “for me, conceptual art offered a bridge between the verbal and the visual,” and she toyed with syntactic experiments in her writing, such as replacing textual paragraphs with pictorial information that was intended to communicate verbal narratives visually (x). During this time she sought to create hybrid forms of critical communication that reflected her influences from this movement. At one point, when she was asked to write a text about Marcel Duchamp for the MOMA. Instead she produced a series of ready-mades chosen randomly with a system she devised involving the dictionary (Lippard). Similarly, Ed Ruscha, an artist whose work frequently employs the use of typography and methods of mass production associated with communications design, toys with the notion of image as text and vice versa. In one particular series of projects created 1962-66 he produced books of photographs that catalogued images of buildings, gas stations, small fires, and apartment buildings. The books were entirely without text, and he considered them to be strictly factual and more akin to the idea of readymades than to art. He purposely employed the use of mass production techniques to create the books and stated that this was, in part, the inten-tion of the projects (11-12, Lippard). Hans Haacke is another artist whose work bears a relation-ship to the practice of communica-tions design, and he was also very

active during the period that Lippard discusses. One of his most famous pieces was a series that was actu-ally censored form an exhibition at the Guggenheim museum because of its incendiary content. The piece was related to Ruscha’s in the sense that it presented factual photographic information. It consisted of a series of photos of New York City tenement buildings accompanied by docu-mentation collected from the public records archive at the County Clerk’s office. The documentation merely reflected real estate speculation and the relationship between different investors and partners related to those real estate holdings and offered no personal reflection on the informa-tion being presented. Another portion of the exhibition included demo-graphic information about museum go-ers, gathered through a poll that Haacke circulated and updated onsite. Although the piece did not openly make any inflammatory assumptions, the work was deemed to be extreme-ly offensive by the proprietors of the Guggenheim, and Haacke’s exhibition was cancelled. Haacke considered the piece to be a an example of a social “real time system.” Although the piece did not follow any traditional formal qualities associated with fine art, it has remained an influential and memorable piece. Lee Lozano is another artist who was among the most influential conceptual artists at the time, and she considered the fact that her work was unsellable to be more democrat-ic. She was known for documenting common daily activities as art, and for

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pushing the envelope in the art world in such a way that, like many of her contemporaries, “bordered on hostil-ity.” One piece in particular consisted of her throwing up a number of Art Forums and letting them fall to the ground. The piece was aptly named with the snarky title, “Throw-Up Piece” (Smith). Lippard states “For artists looking to restructure perception and the process/product relationship of art, information and systems replaced traditional formal concerns of compo-sition, color, technique, and physical presence. Systems were laid over life the way a rectangular format is laid over the scene in paintings, for focus. Lists, diagrams, measurements, neutral descriptions, and much count-ing were the most common vehicles for the preoccupation with repetition, the introduction of daily life and work routines..” Despite this works’ focus on communication, however, she observes that at this time, commu-nication was largely associated with distribution. And while distribution and accessible formats suggested democratic communication, the content did not (xvi, Lippard). That is, the content of the work remains largely obtuse, self-referential and difficult to access, and in this sense bears a relationship to the work of Jan Van Toorn. In an attempt at more solidly fusing the connections between this work and the practice of communications design, I have chosen this sampling of artists,’ because their work clearly reflects an intersection of methodologies

that illustrate the inherent strengths of an exploratory method of inquiry and how this can be transformed into innovation. Although, these artists activities are definitively located within the realm of the profession of fine art, the knowledge gained and questions posed are clearly related to communications design.

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Visual Research in Communica-tions Design:

“Experimentation is an anticipation of innovation” –Russel Bestley (check source)

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While pure research seems to be a method of inquiry that is more closely associated with fine art, it is not without precedent in the field of design. Aside from Jan Van Toorn, whose experimentation is paramount to his practice and reflects methods very closely associated with those central to visual research in fine art, many others have made experimenta-tion central to their design practice. Anni Albers (1899-1994) was a textile designer, weaver, writer, and printmaker who inspired a recon-sideration of fabrics as an art form, both in their functional roles and as wall hangings. Albers studied at the Bauhaus, beginning in 1922 and eventually began teaching there. She is known both for her innova-tive approach to textile design and also for her teaching methods. In her essay, “Weaving at the Bauhaus” she discusses experimentation in her work. Her innovative methodology included the following steps:

1) Begin at the beginning. 2) Discard traditional ideas. 3) Focus on the materials. 3) Disregard any previously

employed device for handling the materials.

She notes that the among the reasons that such innovative work came out of the Bauhaus weaving course is due to the fact that the students came in without any former training.

She states, “Unburdened by any consid-erations of practical application, [an] uninhibited play with materials resulted in amazing objects striking in their newness of conception in regard to the use of color and compo-sitional elements– objects of often quite barbaric beauty […] such a free way of approaching a material seems worth keeping in mind […] Courage is an important factor in any creative effort. It can be most active when knowledge in too early a stage does not narrow the vision.” It was Alber’s belief that creative possibilities must be explored freely before considering the utility of an object. She states that in later stages, utility can become a necessary constraint to experimen-tation. Annie was married to the influential teacher, writer, and color theorist, Joseph Albers, who also taught at the Bauhaus. After the clos-ing of the Bauhaus, the two went on to teach at Black Mountain College, another influential and experimental art and design school. Their innova-tions continue to be influential today (“An Introduction”). In more recent years, graphic design, as a discipline has embraced a more experimental approach. Ian Noble, Director of the MA and MFA programs at Kingston University in London, has been a central figure in writing and discussing this phenom-enon and in ushering in new think-ing about design practice. He is the author of multiple books about this

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topic, including numerous books about visual research and one book entitled, Experimental Layout. He is strongly influenced by the work and ideas of Jan Van Toorn. He is primarily concerned with the process of graph-ic design’s impact on society, visual research, and “a reflexive process exploring the relationship between making and reflecting on the theory of practice that is directly concerned with a user-centered approach to designing.” (The Design School: Ian Noble) His book, Experimental Layout, begins by discussing early experimental design in Europe, in which white space, asymmetry and sans serif type became stylistic tropes that were widely used. This early work also focused on the use of grid and the geometry or propor-tion of the piece. The experimental nature of graphic design at this time had its conceptual roots in ideal-ized notions about society and the creation of a new social order. It was based in avant-garde thinking and the utopian ideal of universality in visual communication. However, these ideals became more and more diluted as they were more widely adopted, and were eventually not much more than a visual style that was increasingly associated with corporations and industry with little to no connection to its original values. In more recent years, graphic design has begun to embrace the notion of “multiplicity of meaning,” and layer-ing and complexity have emerged as stylistic components. Readability

versus legibility has become a central issue, and designers have begun to embrace ‘disorganized’ visual organi-zation. Appropriateness for particular approaches is linked to the audience’s sensibilities, however there remains a newly found embrace of ambiguity (32). In addition to stylistic play, new theoretical frameworks have begun to emerge as well. Designers have begun to analyze their practice, embracing the notion of their activi-ties as being intellectual. Designers are attempting, more and more, to look beyond their formal sensibili-ties and generate new meaning for their activities. They are reflecting on the practice of designing itself and therefore constructing validity to their activities outside of the role as merely a vessel for information from an unrelated field. As communications design grows as a discipline, this reflection and re-examination of the practice has naturally led to experi-mentation.

Katie Salen states,

“Research and exploration are key elements in the growth of a disci-pline. Graphic design continues to adjust, and to accommodate new approaches, which define the activ-ity of what has been called visual communication. The breadth of the field is now no longer only contained by the vocational demands of techni-cal rationality and competence. In fact the discipline has to an extent

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become its own benefactor, and the more eclectic and idiosyncratic methods of designers and design groups […] have become significant factors in the further development of the subject in general.”

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The Experimentation of John Cage

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Having established the importance of experimentation in communications design and examin-ing the existing precedent for it, the next step is to look at how an experimental research approach can be framed in a way that allows a structure for extracting the maxi-mum benefit of the activity. That is, by examining specific research practices rather than merely theories, we can establish a starting point that acknowledges the achievements of the past and charts a course for the future. John Cage, although not a graphic designer, was an artist and musician who is known for experi-mentation and for creating systems to assist him in his creative process. He studied architecture in Europe and developed an interest in modern painting. However, around that time he decided to dedicate his life to music. When he returned to the US he studied under Arnold Shoenburg who believed that harmony was struc-tural, not just “coloristic” as Cage puts it. After studying together for a time, Shoenburg decided that Cage would never be able to write music due to his basic lack of a “feeling” for harmony. It was then that Cage began to experiment with percussion compositions. His wife at the time was studying bookbinding, and they would have small concerts at the house with all of the bookbinders playing instruments. While working at the Cornish School of Music in Seattle he discov-ered “micro-cosmic-macrocosmic rhythmic structure,” which suggested

that the larger parts of a composition had the same structure as smaller ones, the same proportions. He found that the components of a song could be replaced with any sort of sound. Cage was confounded by the academic notion that music was meant as a means of communica-tion. He felt that at times when he purposely sought to evoke a specific feeling in his work, that people tended to have the opposite reaction. He vowed to find a reason for making music, other than communication. It was then that he began to study Zen Buddhism and was exposed to the Indian singer and musician, Gira Sarabhai, who believed that the func-tion of music is not to communicate but rather to calm the spirit and open it to divine forces. At this time he was also exposed to the writings of Ananda K. Coomaraswammy, who believed that art should imitate nature. Before he left the Cornish school, Cage invented the prepared piano. It was his way of merging percussion with the piano. He was confronted with a situation where he was asked to compose music for a performance with an African theme, however there was no room for the instruments, so he had to devise a way to achieve the sound of multiple percussion instruments with one instrument. He created the prepared piano as a solution. He created it by placing objects between the strings. In this way, the piano functioned as a sort of “percussion orchestra” but with a lower volume.

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At this time his interest in music experimentation was strong, and he spent two years trying to establish an experimental music program, sponsored either by a college or some other funding source. However, his idea never received enough support to be actualized. He ended up joining the faculty for Moholy Nagy’s school of design in Chicago and went on to work with Merce Cunningham. Like Anni Albers, he also taught for a time at Black Mountain College, which was devoted to experimentation. It was there that he met Buckminster Fuller and other controversial innovators. At Black Mountain College Cage organized an event that is by some considered the first “happening.” The event included an exhibition of paintings, poetry readings, dance performances, and lectures, the timing of which was all based upon chance operations. In the late 40’s he found out through experimentation that “silence is not acoustic” and instead attributed it to an altered decision or changing one’s mind. His work then became an exploration of “non-intention.” It was then that he developed a complex system of composition, which includ-ed the use of the chance operations of the IChing, in his words, “making my responsibility that of asking ques-tions instead of making choices.” One of the projects that exemplifies the experimental spirit of his work is his “Music of Changes” piece. This piece was created using the IChing. (http://johncage.org/autobiographi-cal_statement.html) Cage used the IChing in many

experiments including experiments in visual art and visual research. The details about the specific methodol-ogy he used are a bit foggy in areas, and Cage himself admitted at times, forgetting the process. However, the basic principle that he employed involved removing his own intention in his work. That is, when making decisions about creative projects, one tends to bring their own subjec-tive experiences and tastes to the equation. This was his attempt at circumventing those types of subjec-tive selections. He used it to attempt to free himself from making decisions and instead made his sole responsibil-ity that of asking the questions of the IChing (Marshall). The IChing itself is a visual system of 64 hexagrams. Each hexa-gram has 6 lines. Each line has four different possibilities. The line can be solid, broken, solid “changing,” or broken “changing.” The lines are formed through a process of selec-tion that is based on randomization or chance as Cage prefers to call it. One can use either coins or yarrow stalks, which are dried stalks of the yarrow plant and resemble, long smooth sticks. One begins by concentrating, asking a question, and then proceeds to divide the sticks into sections. In determining the character of the first line of the hexagram, the questioner places one stick to the side, as a symbolic witness to the act. Then the stalks are divided into two sets. The first set is laid to the side, and the second set is counted out. The group-ing is counted in sets of four, and laid on the table until four or fewer stalks

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remain. These stalks are placed between the ring finger and the middle finger of your left hand. Then the questioner picks up the grouping of stalks that was first laid to the side, divides this group into roughly half (without counting, this is part of the randomization) repeats the above process. After all of the sticks have been counted through, the questioner ends up with either 9 or 5 stalks. The number is always the same due to probability and the number of stalks that were started with. If there are 9 stalks, the value of 2 is assigned, and if there are 5 stalks, the value 3 is assigned. The questioner rights down this number and begins again, until he or she has done this three times. Those numbers are then added up. At this point the only possible numbers that can be produced are 6, 7, 8, or 9. Each of these numbers determines whether the line is broken, unbro-ken, broken changing, or unbroken changing. This process is completed 6 times to produce a hexagram. The hexagram is a visual symbol that corresponds to a text. The text is intended to answer the question originally posed by the questioner. The length and laboriousness of this process is intended to ensure that the questioner is truly focused on his or her question and is intended as a sort of meditation. John Cage’s fascination with this oracle is probably related to his study of Zen Buddhism and to the idea that music could be a means for calming and mediation as opposed to a communicative endeavor. However, it is not entirely

clear whether Cage used the “yarrow stalk” method for divination or the “coin method” which is slightly less laborious. Regardless, he embraced the idea of chance and of changes, which is a central theme of the IChing. Cage was at times vague about how he used the IChing in his methodology. However, in her book, John Cage – Visual Art: To Sober and Quiet the Mind, Kathan Brown discusses the process that Cage used in creating one of his first print projects. Brown owned a printmaking press called Crown Point Press, and Cage began making etchings there towards the end of his life– for the last 14 years. He would number the tools and ask the IChing which ones to use. Then he would ask how many marks to make, and how many should be particular lengths. He would ask the questions ahead of time and bring a printout of the answers to the studio, so that he could quickly make decisions and work on the spot without throwing coins or using the yarrow sticks each time. Appar-ently he also at times generated a reference sheet with a listing of the hexagrams and simply selected the next one on the list to make a choice. His methodology usually focused on the number 64, since that is the number of hexagrams that comprise the IChing. At times he would decide that the first half of the numbers, say 1-34 would determine one item or alteration, and 34-64 would deter-mine another. (Brown, Kathan and Marshall).

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Embracing Chance: The Creative Potential of Randomization

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Cage’s process wasmethodical and obsessive, which makes it by its very nature interest-ing. However, the most interesting part about his process may be the intentionally produced element of chance. By its very nature chance, or randomization can present creative practitioners with different possibili-ties that they may have otherwise discarded or failed to consider. Unex-pected adjacencies may be observed whenidiosyncratic outcomes are embraced, and truly new and innova-tive ideas can be discovered. Chance = the x factor that produces unexpected outcomes. An apt metaphor for this phenom-enon can be found in the mathemati-cal concept of chaos theory. Chaos theory suggests that deterministic systems can produce unexpected outcomes. Cage’s experiments set up deterministic systems– systems for which there is a decided outcome i.e. a song or print or painting and uses a variable factor to alter the outcome. Historically there is a precedent for this phenomenon in visual art. Randomization was a key theme in the development of work by the Surrealists. The Surrealists frequently played games of chance and participatory games to create works of unusual potential. Surreal-ism was an intellectual movement, which spread internationally around the turn of the 20th century. It was inspired by psychoanalysis and the ideologies of Marxism. The move-ment began primarily as a literary movement, and its core theories were formulated by a group of

Parisian poets. The poet Guillaume Apollinaire coined the term Surreal-ism, and although he left the defini-tion of the term somewhat vague, he seemingly defined it as a form of expression that not was not only hyper real, or exceeding realness, but also involved a “strong element of surprise.” This intention was decidedly to be achieved through “unexpected juxtapositions” (Ades and Gale). The central ideas of the Surrealists were largely based on the ideas of the poet André Breton. He penned The Surrealist Manifesto and described Surrealism as, “Psychic automatism in its pure state, by which one proposes to express -- verbally, by means of the written word, or in any other manner -- the actual functioning of thought. Dictat-ed by the thought, in the absence of any control exercised by reason, exempt from any aesthetic or moral concern” (Surrealist Manifesto). The Surrealists believed that the most potent juxtapositions that arise are from unconscious, rather than conscious deliberation. Breton and his colleagues used ‘automatic writing’ to tap into this unconscious flow. The first experiments with this method took place around 1919. They were influenced by the automatic writing of spiritualist mediums, who would fall into a state of hypnosis and continue to write or communicate in a manner that was perceived to be drawn from a mystic or supernatural source. Although, the Surrealists were aware of the similarity of their practice to that of mediums, they believed that their writings came from an internal

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unconscious source, as opposed to a supernatural source. The second source of inspira-tion that precluded the formulation of these experiments was derived from Freudian psychoanalytic techniques. Breton developed an interest in these techniques specifically through his experience as a wartime psychiatry specialist. He had tried psychoanalytic techniques on soldiers who sustained shell shock, and found that their seemingly “irrational monologues” were extremely imaginative. Surreal-ists also believed in the “poetry of chance encounters.” Surrealism in the visual arts developed many different manifestations over the years, and many artists that were supposedly creating in this prescribed “automat-ic” fashion were criticized, because although their subject matter was automatic, in the sense that it drew from dreams and the subconscious. Surrealist purists argued that their execution or process was deliberate and therefore not a true representa-tion of the core theories of Surrealism (Ades and Gale). Surrealist Automatism was among the most important tech-niques that were developed, although many systematic games of chance were used. The Exquisite Corpse game was one such game, which drew upon the elements of chance to produce the final outcome. Aaron Koblin is a multimedia designer who utilizes chance in his work and specifically has utilized the method of the “Exquisite Corpse” in his most recent undertaking. He is known for innovative uses of data

visualization and crowd sourcing (Wikipedia) He uses online mechani-cal turks to randomize data collection and also tends to call upon unknown participants for input, as another form of randomization. In this sense Koblin plays on the ideas of Cage and the Surrealists, putting randomization to use to produce unexpected outcomes. In one particular project, called Bicycle Built for Two Thousand, Koblin used Google’s online Mechanical Turk to collect audio clips of people imitat-ing notes from the song, Daisy Bell. Participants were not aware of what the outcome of the project would be. When they entered the site, a tone was played, and the participant was asked to mimic the tone to the best of his or her ability. The result was an eerie amalgamation of over 2800 voices singing the song. In two more recent projects Koblin, utilized the Exquisite Corpse method specifically. One project called, The Johnny Cash Project invites visitors to the site to create one frame of an ongoing video portrait, accompanied by the last song that he recorded before his death. The result is a continuously changing stream of imagery that overall creates an idiosyncratic and beautiful portrait.(thejohnnycashproject.com) In another recent project entitled, The Exquisite Forest, he also uses the Exquisite Corpse game to realize an exceptionally imaginative outcome. This project involves crowd-sourcing a series of animations based on similar themes, which are

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then archived into an interactive “tree” formation. The result is a multi-faceted, idiosyncratic narrative that continues to grow and change as users submit online (Exquisite Forest). Overall, Koblin’s work is a great example of how randomization and chance operations can enhance creative projects, and in that sense his work is decidedly experimental. The unknown factors produced by his crowdsourcing techniques bring a fresh approach to the chance opera-tions that John Cage implemented and also draw on the experiments of the Surrealists in an unexpected way. His work is a great example of how randomization can produce unexpect-ed results that garner innovation. As designer’s if we are to achieve innovative results it is clear that pursuing our activities in an open-ended way that allows for random unexpected insights and novel solutions must be pursued. Visual research should be approached in a such a way that allows practitioners not only to explore the answers to their own, self initiated questions but also that allows for the appearance of results that might otherwise not have been considered. Randomization is one way to achieve this, and should be incorporated into visual research.

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