Ideation workshop facilitates design thinking

The designed life is about possibilities: What if? And so, new ideas are born out of curiosity. Design ideation, then, captures creative energy and fuels optimism about what is possible: Change! Ideation, moreover, inspires collaboration and nurtures healthy competition. From first thought, the great idea develops through questioning, experimentation, and trial and error. Ideation acknowledges human intuition and common sense and rejects reducing complex problem-solving to a computational process. Ideation invites reflection and encourages designers to spend more time thinking, to focus on improving quality in their ideas. Indeed more digital devices leave less time to concentrate and to think without interruptions. And while digital communications technologies, AI included can substantially speed up the design process, they are also squeezing out individual thinking time. To meet this challenge, the ideation workshop, a liminal space encourages lateral thinking, that is, participants move from one known idea to creating new ideas using both quantifiable (fixed or universal) data and qualitative (descriptive or conceptual) data.

Human-centred ideation

Distinction between the conceptual and manual aspects of design production emerged in the modern period when growing professionalisation resulted in the separation of science from art, of engineering from architecture and of the designer as "thinker" (direction) from that of "maker" (execution). In the digital age, however, the old distinction is less accurate or relevant as the design process, as a collaborative activity sits at the intersection between conception and execution, and facilitated by digital tools. That is to say, conception is enhanced by generative artificial intelligence (AI), and execution optimised by computer-aided-design (CAD), computer-aided-engineering (CAE) and computer-aided-manufacturing (CAM). Indeed the design process is, for all practical purposes supported if not driven by computer soft- and hardware, such as Building Information Modelling, BIM. It is against this development that the ideation workshop faces a challenge - learning how to ideate in ways that do not lose the human perspective and user influence on the design process. For this reason, the workshop is built around participatory, hands-on studio activity recognising that while AI and digital tools are effective they cannot fully resemble complex human cognition.

Time and space for reflection

Ideation involves generating, developing and communicating ideas. This process requires a combination of inspiration, discipline, and problem-solving skills.While ideation takes place in many places, it calls for time and space for reflection often provided by the studio. The studio culture, however, has come under pressure in the digital age which tends to favour immediate gain or short-term result over long-term merit or reward.Yet to counter the digital tendency to short-termism, many creatives, and throughout history have been known to practice stoicism, a philosophy that emphasizes reason and self-control. Stoicism, then, may enhance creativity by encouraging a positive mindset for dealing with unique challenges, criticism and rejection that are inherent in the creative process. By accepting what they can control and what they cannot, creatives may find stoicism helpful to stay focused on the task at hand and maintain a sense of perspective and avoid becoming overwhelmed by obstacles.

Ideaflation

AIdeation, or ideation facilitated by generative AI, is adding to the risk of idea overload, that is, having too many ideas and being overwhelmed with choice.Yes, ideators, with the help of GenAI can run the risk of being overstimulated for their own good. But there are ways to handle ideaflation too. 1. Jot down your ideas in real time (words, images, sound). 2. Record your ideas, and store them in a folder so you can retrieve them as and when. 3. Revisit your ideas and update as necessary. 4. Share your ideas with others - don't hoard ideas for the sake of it. And so, beat ideaflation by managing the flow or stream of ideas creatively. In this endeavour, a creative mindset plays an important role not only for producing something new but also for driving and delivering the ideation process. But remember, a good idea is nothing but an idea. Or, to paraphrase Shakespeare; What's in an idea? That which we call an idea by any other name would be as good.

Ideation toolbox

The evolution of computing platforms, online networking and cloud-based CAD have accelerated the digital design process and the result is that new generations of designers across industries are getting less familiar with traditional studio skills such as freehand drawing or hands-on physical modelling. In fact, virtually no product today is created without the use of CAD software—through design, simulation and manufacturing. But digital default settings also impact face-to-face interpersonal skills and designers commonly find themselves physically isolated with their own screens. Yet what are designers' tool needs in order to achieve, or retain harmonious passion for ideation? CAD, for example, has been seen as a technology that takes away from the creative design process as designers might immediately jump onto CAD tools after coming up with an idea, an idea that, moreover might have been generated by AI chatbots. Everyday casual studio observation, however, suggests that increased screen time doesn't necessarily reject analogue tools such as the sketchbook or the whiteboard. But whatever toolbox, analogue or digital, designing involves tools options for designers to choose from, at least in the early stages of the design process.

AI isn't the enemy of creativity

Generative artificial intelligence technologies are making rapid advancement in creating, or at least facilitating new content such as audio, text, images, and video. Does this suggest that AI driven design education would reduce the role of face-to-face teaching or make facilitators redundant? In support of  in-person teaching, such as workshops is that AI is not yet capable of providing the kind of personalised and nuanced interactions that human facilitators are able to provide, including emotional intelligence. That is, AI can be a valuable tool to supplement or enhance but not replace traditional facilitation methods. And so research at Harvard university, for example, suggests that generative AI tools can augment the creativity of designers (and employees and clients) and help them generate and identify novel ideas as well as improving the quality of raw ideas. In short, generative AI’s greatest potential is not replacing humans; it is to assist humans in their efforts to create hitherto unimaginable solutions. In the debate about AI/human interaction, moreover, the game of chess is illuminating because chess computers with sufficient processing strength will always be able to beat any human, calculating the most efficient move. Yet the world of chess didn't crumble because of AI because the game is a passion, a source of intellectual combat, an art form or a way to test and improve each player's mental and creative abilities. And so is design - and a reminder that chess and design both have a rich history and cultural significance. https://hbr.org/2023/07/how-generative-ai-can-augment-human-creativity.

Ideation and the blank piece of paper

The metaphorical concept of beginning with a "blank piece of paper" or a "clean slate" typically heralds a fresh start or starting afresh without reference to previous circumstance or condition. But designers faced with a blank piece of paper may experience creative blockage. Yet there's plenty of advice to overcome a creative block, from practice, practice, and more practice to brainstorming to using search engines, such as Google or AI text generator such as ChatGPT. Why, then, one could argue, bother with a blank piece of paper when there's lots of online stuff and ideas to get started with? The questioning of this approach is that ideators would follow someone else's initiative rather than finding their own way onto something new or innovative. Moreover, in education, the risk that ChatGPT might compromise learning, notably critical thinking in design. Yet what is a fresh start or a new idea anyway? Could it be that the notion of beginning with a blank piece of paper is misunderstood because, from a biological and developmental perspective, humans don't start as blank slates. That is, humans are seen as born with genetic predispositions and are influenced by the environment and upbringing from the moment they are born. Accordingly, these genetic and environmental factors, including the use of technology such as AI systems, contribute to our individual growth and personality and influence our ideas.