Ideator vs Fabricator

Those who are named "artists" are sometimes remote from the physical act of production because crafts people and makers have skills and knowledge of materials that artists usually do not. Says British artist Marc Quinn: "Whenever I have a new idea, we work on finding the technology to do it. It's quite obvious you can't do it all yourself, so I'm not going to pretend I did".

Leaping off with ideas

"I start sketching and trying things until, all of a sudden, something emerges that becomes interesting and I sort of follow it. But it’s intuitive. It’s not preconceived. I don’t have an exact plan of action, and I always feel like I’m leaping off a cliff", says archiect Frank Gehry.

For example, Gehry’s Dr Chau Chak Wing building for the University of Technology Sydney’s Business School was inspired by the idea of a tree-house structure with “a trunk and core of activity and… branches for people to connect and do their private work".

Ideation as craft

Maybe the art of ideation cannot be taught but there's an element of craft
involved. The craft aspect of ideation, then, highlights skills and techniques
needed for representing and presenting ideas in a range of media.

iPad as ideation tool

Given the portability, connectivity, large touch screen and a range of apps (software), such as Evernote (for multimedia notes and voice recording), Ideate (for concept visualisation), or Compendium (for managing and visually organising personal or group digital information sources and then connect ideas to them), the iPad, or similar touchscreen devices, appears a versatile ideation tool.

Ideation is reflective practice

Sometimes ideas brainstorming is so lively that you realise nobody is actually listening to anyone else. In contrast, ideation is a reflective process that encourages participant to opt in on ideas exchange in more thoughtful ways.

First step

"I'm always excited by the potential that lies within a sketch... the absolute first step towards a new building."Norman Foster, Architect.

Apple ideas

Apple designer Jonathan Ive uses Zen-like meditative processes to refine his ideas to the minimum, says Stephen Bayley, Design critic.