Personal Creativity Manifesto

“...without a manifesto, we cannot conceive the future.” (Kyes, 2008)

The artists’ manifesto can be defined as a “document of an ideology, crafted to convince and convert.” (Caws, 2000) On a more personal level, the artist manifesto is an individual document written to inspire, challenge and motivate. It can help the author to articulate the parameters of their creative practice and what philosophies the process is built upon. 

I haven’t written a personal creativity manifesto as yet. But I have identified that having an engaging narrative supporting creative ideas is at the core of my creative practice. Seth Godin's (2009) tribe building theory is underpinned by the central aim to tell a story that connects with its audience and creates a sense of community.

Daniel Pink says that storytelling is important because as “facts become so widely available and instantly accessible, each one becomes less valuable. What begins to matter is the ability to place these facts in context and to deliver them with emotional impact.” (Pink, 2009) Narrative therefore helps to generate interest in ideas, and provides people with a story with which they can subscribe to.

Godin says that we are searching for meaning and a tribe to ascribe to, articulating that we "are living through and are right at the key moment of a change in the ways ideas are created, and spread, and implemented." He calls this the ‘time of Tribes' – which is defined by storytelling, ‘connecting people and ideas.’ (Godin, 2009) The objectives for my creative projects are underpinned by Seth Godin’s leadership theory of building a tribe, described by his four steps; Telling a Story, Connecting like minded people, Leading the movement to Make Change. 

Telling a Story

For my projects to be successful they must connect or resonate with their audience. 
Godin and Pink see a future defined by shared storytelling, a way to connect like-minded 
people and ideas.

Connect Like-minded people

Projects are interactive and experiential, helping to cultivate a wide audience.

Collaboration is key. Projects share visions, and contributors bring a variety of skills from 
different disciplinary backgrounds.

Leading the Movement

Be exemplary and step into the unknown as a role model, mentor and guide.

Make Change

Ensure the projects have longevity and new ideas can keep being adapted from previous ideas.

Challenge creative thinking processes in order to find new connections and propose 
new cross-disciplinary relationships. 

Caws, M.A. (2000) Manifesto: A Century of Isms. University of Nebraska Press: USA.
Godin, S. (2009) The Tribes we Lead. TED Talks [Online] Accessed 20/06/2014, from http://www.ted.com/talks/seth_godin_on_the_tribes_we_lead 
Kyes, Z. (2008) Manifesto’s of the Future. e-flux [Online] Accessed 20/06/2014 from, http://www.e-flux.com/journal/manifestos-for-the-future/#_ftn5 
Pink, D. (2005) A Whole New Mind; Moving from the Information Age to the Conceptual Age. Riverhead, Penguin Books: USA.

Cardboard as Currency

 

 

Cardboard as Currency is a photo essay that looks at the social invisibility of cardboard collectors within an old Chinese neighbourhood in Singapore, exhibiting that compassion fatigue is endemic in the developed world. Social issues in Singapore are abound, but also well hidden - at first glance, the country is wealthy, tidy and well organised. This photo essay communicates the relationship between people and place, and shows a generational shift in social responsibility and shows differing attitudes towards the social issues of homelessness, an aging population, family responsibility and social welfare. 

Selected photographs are exhibited at the Institute of Contemporary Arts, Singapore from February 15 - 26 as part of the Cities and Their Thesis exhibition.

Urban Camping

“The city is seen imaginatively as the heart of contemporary darkness [...] a jungle of brick, stone and smoke, 
with its greedy predators and apathetic victims, its brutal indifference to either communal value or individual feeling."  
  Nochlin, L. (1971) Realism. Penguin Books : London

In a failed attempt to get away from the city over Chinese New Year, Molly and Chad pitched a tent in the alleyways and carparks of Tiong Bahru Estate. Naming their adventure Urban Camping, and armed with a camera and two iPhones, Molly and Chad shot a series of dissociated holiday snaps, capturing the isolation they experienced, alone in an abandoned suburb.

Why do we live in cities so full of life and possibility, yet feel so alone? Artist Edward Hopper explored these themes through his realist paintings. We are faced with the antithesis of city dwelling – a feeling of disconnection, isolation and aloneness that accumulates as brooding sentiments of anti-urbanism.