Author: Nia Isehak

Reading Response

The reading explores the idea of consciousness and how we can become more aware of ourselves. It recognizes that ancient practices may not work well in today’s world, but it emphasizes the importance of freeing ourselves from societal rules and our own impulses. One key concept is “flow,” where we feel fully engaged and focused on a task. The reading explains that to experience flow, we need to find challenging tasks that aren’t too difficult. It also highlights how controlling our thoughts and focusing on our goals can improve our overall well-being.

Moreover, the author discusses the role of sports, games, and other activities in altering our reality and providing enjoyment. This made me reflect on how we could structure our lives to enter a state of flow in our work. By consciously shaping our mindset, we can overcome self-doubts and fears, as described in the book Art & Fear. Constructing our consciousness in such a way may allow us to find joy and fulfillment in our creative endeavors, experiencing a heightened state of flow throughout the creative process.

Mariana Carvalho

  • Prepared piano and free improv
  • Nylon bites (only you or duet)
  • Sharing the sound of the body with someone else
  • Sound as a way of relation to people and to things
  • Singing inside someone’s mouth…
  • No amount of lateral thinking would have gotten me to her eating voices project I was VERY surprised and I would love to hear more about it

Final Paper

When I was placed into this class, my first thoughts were, ‘Yay! I’m going to paint and do pottery and visit other European countries. I can’t wait!’ Shortly after that, I found out the class was taught by the head of the IM program at NYUAD, and my thoughts became, ‘Oh no, that sounds more like coding and making games. The professor is also the head of a program. You don’t just become the head of the program with easy classes. What did I get myself into?’

Three final exams, two all-nighters, and one flight later, I found myself sitting in a class in Berlin, listening to the professor map out our next three weeks. My thoughts at this point were blank. I didn’t know where I was going or how it would end. All I knew was that I had to be creative and that it was all about the process.

My creative journey in this class typically began with meditation and slap showers—a concept very unique to this class. These moments of mindfulness provided a much-needed pause from the hustle and bustle of everyday life, allowing me to cultivate a deep sense of calm and presence. Initially, I approached these meditations with a restless mind, finding it challenging to quiet my thoughts and fully immerse myself in the practice. However, as the sessions progressed every day, I began to experience a shift. The shift was not so profoundly transformative, but it was refreshingly different from my past experience with breathing practices. Sometimes, the guided meditations, particularly the breath-oriented ones, helped me ground myself in the present moment and clear my mind before starting class. Other times, it felt like a nap.

What I loved most about this class were the daily creating assignments. They were a means for me to immerse myself in the world of creativity on a regular basis. Among these assignments, the second one, ‘make something else with the same theme,’ was my first real obstacle, and it challenged me in ways I didn’t expect. Typically, I tend to stick to my initial perspective and get tunnel vision. So, when I heard the prompt for the second assignment, I felt a sense of discomfort. The idea of deviating from my initial thought-out approach with the ‘rainbow’ made me slightly uncomfortable. However, I realized that this discomfort was an opportunity for growth. I made a conscious effort to think laterally and break free from my usual patterns of thinking. In this way, the assignment pushed me to expand my creative boundaries and approach the theme from unconventional angles. Finally, I also enjoyed discussing our creations in class. Hearing the different perspectives and approaches people took was an opportunity for communal growth, and I appreciated that. I only wish we’d done it more often.

As a business student and someone who has never explored art before, some aspects of the class visits and trips focused on the arts were initially challenging for me to relate to. However, I appreciated the diversity in artistic fields we explored and the passion exhibited by the artists we encountered. Robert Seidel captivated my attention with his extraordinary work, particularly his mesmerizing piece ‘Folds.’ I am singling him out because seeing his work triggered reflections on the limited artistic mediums back home in Ethiopia, where art is limited to music, paint, sculpture, and theater. I’m not sure what I will or even can do with this realization, but I feel it was important.

One of the most valuable lessons I gained from the course was the practical application of techniques from the book ‘Lateral Thinking’ during our brainstorming sessions. Putting theory into practice was a transformative experience. The ‘Why?’ technique, in particular, was my favorite, as it encouraged me to question my own thinking process. I’ve always been someone who questions their own thoughts but never formally while keeping track of my answers. It was a very different experience to do it in this way.

Lastly, I must talk about my favorite and most insightful class reading: the chapter ‘Fears About Yourself’ in the book ‘Art & Fear.’ One quote that resonated with me was, ‘To require perfection is to invite paralysis.’ This line is deeply connected with my struggles in writing and starting projects. Every time I sit down to write an essay, I freeze up, paralyzed by the fear of falling short of perfection. Hours would pass with a blank document and a blinking cursor as my only accomplishments (I wrote about this in my reading response as well!). Through this reading, I understood that my expectation of perfection was what held me back. The fear of creating something that contradicted my vision of perfection paralyzed me. It was a revelation that shed light on my self-imposed barriers. I hope this realization will be the start of a new creative approach for me.

Overall, this class has been transformative, opening my mind to new possibilities and approaches to creativity. From the daily assignments to the meditations and class visits, each aspect has contributed to my growth. I have learned the value of lateral thinking, embracing imperfections, and questioning my own thoughts. In conclusion, I’m glad it wasn’t a painting and pottery class, and I’m even more glad it was taught by the head of the IM program.

Ming Poon

  • Very different medium(?) from what we’ve explored so far
  • “Slow dance with me”
  • Audience interaction
  • “Using art to submerge the system to tell a totally different story”
  • The audience is the protagonist
  • Privilege
  • “You don’t do it. I’ll do it for you because you are not in the position to do it. I can get out.”
  • Not put himself in the center too much

Art and Fear reading response 3(??)

In this chapter, I found it intriguing how an artist’s fears of acceptance and approval can have a significant impact on their trust in their own abilities and work. Surprisingly, this phenomenon goes beyond the art world and is something that (I think) all of us experience in society. It seems to be part of our human nature to seek validation from others.

One point discussed in this chapter resonated with me—the idea that an artist’s creations may initially go unnoticed, only to gain widespread recognition many years later. This made me think about the bandwagon effect. However, in this case, it’s the audience who seeks acceptance and approval, not for their own work, but for their interpretations of the artist’s creations (approval from one another). However, I believe that this delayed acceptance and appreciation of art can’t be solely attributed to the bandwagon effect. Personally, I think that some people may not fully grasp the depth and meaning of art when it is first presented to them. It is only over time, with increased exposure and familiarity, that they begin to find personal significance and meaning in the artwork. This could be another reason why art often captures public attention years after its initial introduction.

Mechanism & Key

My two words for this assignment were mechanism and key. The first thought that popped into my head when I initially thought of the word key was the lock and key type of key, but that felt too basic so I decided to go with a map or translation key type of key. For mechanism, I used a definition straight from the dictionary: “a system of parts working together in a machine”.

It has now been two weeks since I came to Berlin, and I still don’t understand how to read the subway map. It’s a “key” to the subway “mechanism”, but to me it’s a puzzle I can’t seem to solve. Inspired by this, I made a puzzle. Pictured below is an 9×8 scrambled puzzle (picture) of the Berlin subway system.

Ephemeral Tomorrow

  • Lasers, constellations from satellites orbiting earth
  • Keep changing the satellites because of increasing number
  • Lots of science and data
  • Epiphytes(??)
  • Show how the natural world (Trees) communicate with one another
  • Shows how trees are alive (“living” organisms)
  • Not very interactive
  • Medium = electricity(??)
  • Sound and light centered art