“If you want to understand the inner workings of an artists mind, then of course the desk is the most telling space for that. The way the desk is arranged, the way the desk is cluttered—the mess you find at the end of the day, tells you a lot about a person who works there.”
In doing research for capstone I found this video to be a good starting place for my idea. This video is an example of the kind of mapping I am attempting to go towards that includes dialogue, images, and data. But, I also see the subject as being a form of mapping as well in the sense that desks “reflect your mental process." How do we design our spaces to represent our processes, do they reflect ourselves? I think that it is mainly a place of (for me, messy) organization, physically and mentally. The arrangement of the space is designed like a map because objects, papers, computers, paints and books all combine and create your working, problem-solving world. I like what Kurt Andersen says about having things visible, that unpredictable things “ping” off each other, I work in a very similar sense. I am always really curious to see other people’s creative spaces, what works for them? What kind of tables do they use or images are on the walls? Why? At the start of the video, critic Alice Twemlow says that today we have a nomadic sense of the workspace with our phones and laptops; we can go everywhere and anywhere. Being able to go different places to find creative inspiration or atmosphere only means that those places were already created for you. Do we work better in these spaces or with those a more personal, permanent sense? Does this video make sense as a form of deep mapping? Look it up on wikipedia: deep mapping.
Here is my desk!
The video was great. This made me think more about the space that I work in. It is kind of funny to think about, because I have a desk in my room, but I never really use it. With the piles of clothes on my floor and papers everywhere, I rather work in my basement. I have a pool table and there is a table top that I place over the table and that is my work space. I feel less cluttered compared to my room.
ReplyDeleteI need a personal space to work and generally prefer an orderly clean space, but during the course of a quarter my desk is an explosion papers books pencils just splayed out in chaos. So, I guess I am of two minds on the topic of a clean workspace.
ReplyDeleteThis makes me think of the work process and creation overall kind of like a process of metabolizing materials and energy to make something great!
ReplyDeleteBTW- i applaud the organization of your desk space! Mine is terrifying!
The desk space is a big reflection of someone's work process, in the same way that the computer desktop is or the folder where all the work is. Every time I think of someone's work space it never looks the way I think it will look. I remember I saw a picture of one of my favorite designers and his space. It was completely clean and empty desk, just his computer, keyboard, mouse and that's it because he like a clean space to work with. I had expected his space to be filled with designs and inspiration and posters, etc. and I was kind of shocked to see how plain it looked.
ReplyDeletefirstly, i would like to point out that your desk is pristine compared to mine! you bring up a good point that the workspace says a lot about the artist. i know that wherever i work, whether it is at home, the office, or the computer lab, my work area is typically cluttered with sketches, low calorie cereal bars, and some sort of caffeinated beverage. it's ironic because i have a clean aesthetic, yet the environment i create my designs is usually in disarray. however, i feel uneasy when my desk is spotless.
ReplyDeleteperhaps for your project you could draw comparisons between the different workspaces and the designs that are produced within them?
I've been experimenting a lot lately with my workspace in my room, which is small and crowded but also heavily personalized. The advantage of having my workspace be in my bedroom is also its greatest weakness -- it's almost too comfortable, and sometimes I can't work because I end up getting distracted by non-work things (or the bed!). I recently cleared out all the Post-Its that were blooming around my computer monitor because it seemed to me that lately they were more distracting than I thought they'd be, and I also cleared out stuff from a bunch of old folders and binders.
ReplyDeleteOn the other hand, I think I'd hate to work in a completely clean and sterile workspace. I guess it's a matter of where I need my mind to be at any particular moment. If I want inspiration and to feel creative, I'd like to be in a "messier" place, but if I need to focus on work, then I gotta clean up and clear out.
really interesting video about some really interesting minds!
ReplyDeleteThis seems like an excellent deep mapping topic. Your video made me long for a corner that's more my own... lately I've been craving a cozy place, whereas my workspace right now is a hand-me-down, haphazard and flighty thing. It does reflect my life right now, but not what I want it to be in the near future. I wonder if changing the space can change your mentality, or if it's just one way?
ReplyDeleteI really like this idea and the video as well. Seeing an artist's work space can be just as it's interesting to see an artist's process.
ReplyDeleteLove the video, the desk of a person definitely says something about a person and it is really interesting to see in the video how each person had their desk set up and what gave them creative inspiration.
ReplyDeleteI clean off my desk every weekend because somehow it always gets messy. But the thing is...I generally sit on my couch to work. Especially on design, because my desk is in my "office" which has become a display place for all of the hockey collectibles that I own. I frankly can't really work on other creative things while I'm surrounded by things that I find inspiring, as strange as that sounds.
ReplyDeleteI have the most cluttered desk space! Which is why I rarely do work at home, I always have to be somewhere clutter free like a cafe or library. I just can't keep a clean desk or room for that matter.
ReplyDeletemy desk is my home. i do everything at my desk, and it has seen a ton of action. i have had the same desk for years and i cannot part with it. so many all nighters...
ReplyDeleteI actually have two desks! I have one for my computer design side and another for the hands on side. My computer desk has a printer and is pretty crowded. But my art desk is bigger and I have a plastic drawer set with all the essential tools at hand.
ReplyDeleteAgreed, a designer's workspace says a lot about them. You can always find a cup of coffee at mine! What that says about me is up to you to decide.
ReplyDeleteI don't have a desk but i wish i did I find myself using the counter and I often have to keep cleaning it up during projects. If i did have a desk I would imagine it being organized, I think.
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