Unit 7, Blog Entry 1: How Do You Design?

Posted on February 18, 2013 by Reshonda Perryman

Hi Readers,

My creative process is always in a transitioning state. I choose what process correlates best with the design problem. As it stands today, my creative process is:

Brainstorming	I gather all of my thoughts. Some times I write them down so I can remember, if I am not in a position to further develop immediately or I just lock them away in my mind until the time to utilize them comes along.
Talk to Someone/Collaborate	For the most part, I always talk to someone about my idea, whether it is my mother, a friend or a colleague. I find that it helps me solidify my ideas better when I actually hear myself say them and hear someone else’s opinion of them. I try hard not to rely solely on my own opinion, so that my own biases do not get in the way of the success of the design solution.
Research	I conduct quite a bit of research. This includes subject matters, type studies, color theories, the “how” component of the design, reviewing my source books, etc., either through internet sources, interviews and whatever other means I have at my disposal. If time allows, I do this for as long as I need to feel comfortable with competently moving forward with my concept.
Develop Concepts	Once research has helped me solidify my ideas, I begin plotting out my concept. I may write this down in the form of a design narrative or if it is not the time or the place to develop a narrative, I make notes in my phone or tuck them away in my mind.
Maybe Sketch/ Maybe Not	Sketching is always a good idea, but I would be lying if I said I always do it. Many times, I am so excited about my idea, that after I have developed the concept, I just want to dive in headfirst.Then there are other times when I would much rather pace myself to get it just right. Although I do sketch, ironically, I have never completed a design that looked like my sketch. I almost always change my mind, but this type of test-it-out system is also a large part of my design process.
Develop Composites	I develop my ideas and research into an actual design composite.
Poll my Audience/Poll a Friend	I always test the reaction of members of my target audience or get someone else’s opinion. What I think is a complete success may easily be a total waste to someone else. I find that the more I collaborate throughout my design process, the more likely other people will successfully receive it.

according to american psychologist graham wallas’ four-step model for the creative process, The steps should be: preparation, incubation, illumination and verification.

My process relates to Wallas’ in the following ways:

preparation: relates to my research stage, in which I gain a deeper understanding of a particular design need.
incubation: relates to my brainstorming process.
illumination: relates to my concept development and sketching process.
verification: Relates to my composite development, audience polling and collaboration stage

although the order of my stages, in comparison to wallas’ proposed stages, are totally different, the concepts are the mostly the same. I do think that I could stand to expand my stages a lot more though. For example, I would like to include more areas of wallas’ incubation stage in my process, like juxtaposing, blending, and imaging. I would also like to expand my verification process. i already explore style and technique, but i would like to conduct a more in-depth exploration. i feel that my process is sometimes a little lacking in those areas.

for the most part, my process correlates well with wallas’. However, i could use some refining. i am adding that to my to-do list. as always, thanks for reading!

shonda,

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