Visual thinking spaces is a module in visual thinking school, a course designed to help you learn how to think and communicate better using the visual part of your brain.
Thinking spaces can be anywhere. As you work on your visual thinking you will find that some spaces are good for thinking and others are not.
For independent thinking you might seek out solitary spaces. For collaborative thinking you might like colored markers and a whiteboard -- or you might prefer a cafe because of the informal, conversational atmosphere.
Your personal work space
- Annotated work spaces
- Annotated work spaces is a group on Flickr where people share photos of their work spaces. What makes the group special is the notes people add to the photos that explain the various elements and how they relate to the work.
You'll see everything from a tiny animation studio to a train engineer's cabit to an artist's garret in Paris.
Check it out -- and while you're there, share a photo of your work space.
Chairs
Herman-Miller has designed the perfect chair for creative thought. It's called the Aeron chair. It's expensive but worth it.
It's fully adjustable and you can sit in it for hours in complete comfort.
Sweet!
My office for the we...
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Exercise: Defining and designing visual thinking spaces
Get some paper and a pen or pencil and see if you can capture your best thinking and creaive experiences in each of the following categories:1. Solitary spaces:
Make a list of the places and times that great ideas seem to come to you. Where, when and how do you do your best thinking? Does a window help inspire you or does it distract? Do you like to be indoors or outside? Music or silence? What are the characteristics of a great solitary thinking space? How can you make these spaces better for thinkig visually?
2. Community spaces:
What groups or communities do you like to think and create with? Who inspires you? What are the "watering holes" where these people tend socialize or congregate? How can you make them better visual thinking spaces?
3. Informal spaces:
Think back to the most interesting conversation you had recently. Where did it happen? Is there anything about the space that helped spark the conversation? What were the key attributes of the space? How can you make such spaces better visual thinking spaces?
Now see if you can draw the spaces that you want, by making a sketch or plan-view diagram. Do your drawings generate any further ideas? If not, show them to a friend and see what ideas it sparks for them.
Links on space and culture
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- Sketching
- Learning to sketch is primarily about learning to understand your visual system. It's about learning to see.
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