Creative Communities: Designing to Invite Participation in the Creative Process

Dan Johnston, MFA ’09

thesis abstract

How do you define creativity?

Creativity is not defined by the best looking poster or slickest packaging. Creativity is the capacity to identify a problem and then move quickly to deliver a solution. I believe many people have this creative capacity within them, but not everyone is in a place to express it. My role as designer is to create conditions that invite people to explore this creative aspect of themselves.

Over the course of my studies I have designed and built several systems that attempt to bring people together to create and share something. Each case study explores new ways that groups or communities can bridge gaps between digital and physical experiences. I am particularly interested in systems that allow a community of users to make their own creative decisions and draw their own conclusions.

Why?

In order to move forward as a society, we must forever become more specialized. Take a job title from another generation, “Computer Programmer”. This industry has seen such explosive growth that the original title no longer conveys enough meaning to include it in a job posting. “Programmer” has evolved into modern job titles like: “Lead UX Consultant”, “SEO Specialist”, and “iPhone Application Developer”.

As we become more specialized, we need to find new ways of connecting. The human being is a social animal after all. I am interested in using dynamic media to create a shared experience for our specialized world. The kind of experiences a Physical Therapist and an iPhone Application Developer can share are the same things our grandparents did: a song, a conversation, a meal.

Download “Creative Communities: Designing to Invite Participation in the Creative Process” (PDF, 4 MB).