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အတိုချုံးပြောရရင်

Like brainstorming, but more active, artstorming invites participants to jump directly into the creative process, resulting in better ideas, and often amazing creations.

The real seeds for revolutionary changes can grow in artistic practices.

— John Jordan

Brainstorm sessions should be a great way for groups to arrive at an idea that is better than any one individual could come up with, but they often don’t work that way. In a big group, the ideas of a few people who feel confident enough to share their half-baked musings tend to drown out the rest. Yale University researchers actually found that brainstorming can reduce a group’s creativity. So when collectively designing an arts action, instead of brainstorming, try artstorming!

When artstorming, instead of a blank wall where people write up ideas from the group, everyone stands up and starts improvising together with all the tools at hand. Instead of theorizing about what would look or sound good, they try it out. It starts with physical movement (proven to enhance creative output), then some form of improvisation (word association, or improv theatre games), which prepares the brain to take risks.

By engaging the full spectrum of our creative intelligence, artstorming taps into parts of us that might be snoozing most of the time.

Artstorming is useful because it:

Makes space for multiple intelligences and fluencies. Artstorming creates space for the spatially, kinesthetically, and musically gifted folks who might be alienated from a verbal brainstorm.

Invites people to be fully present. By engaging the full spectrum of our creative intelligence, artstorming taps into parts of us that might be snoozing most of the time. These parts will be badly needed in an arts action.

Supports creativity. In an artstorm, people’s honest expression of the feelings and ideas that brought the group together in the first place are safe to come out and play, so more expression happens.

Is anti-capitalist. That’s right. Hakim Bey asserts that under capitalism we have become increasingly alienated from our direct experiences with each other and with our art. Artstorming is an opportunity to reconnect with ourselves, our art, and each other.

Originally published in Beautiful Trouble.

ဘယ်လိုသုံးမလဲ။

To design an artstorm, begin with the simple question, “What art could we use to effectively convey X message to Y audience to achieve Z result?” (X, Y, and Z are figured out before the artstorm).

Use a brainstorm — not all brainstorms are bad — to list all of the different art media possible, including both visual and performing arts.

Next, break up the room into groups that will artstorm using one to three media of their choice to develop their message.

After ten minutes, have each group report back and give each other feedback so each can arrive at a focus for the next stage. Allow people to switch groups at this time if they’d like.

Now the real artstorm begins, focusing on a single idea from the first round with a group of people who all want to make it happen. Invite people to take turns experimenting, with minimal verbal feedback. Eventually, groups will hit on an idea that works and morph into a group-led process of artistic co-creation.