Madison Odenborg Myray Reames Ben Wiley

HO

CONTENTS

CONTENTSIdea 01

Spark 08

Collaboration 55

Authors 57

Gratitude 59

1

IDEAAN IDEA

2

IDEA

Within the confi nes of these pages is a collection of different perspectives. These lend a

physical translation to the abstract process of problem solving. This collection provides a space for

observation: a space for you to connect the dots.

3

Individuals from a variety disciplines solved this problem:

4

5““Open to your interpretation. Anything goes.

Find your solution.

Hereʼs the problem: everything is disconnected.

6

CRE A TIV ITY

The

use

of

the

imag

inat

ion

or

ori

gin

al id

eas,

esp

. in

th

e

pro

du

ctio

n o

f an

arti

stic

wo

rk.

- N

ew O

xfo

rd

Am

eric

an

Dic

tio

nar

y

”no

un.

Creativity is far too big an idea for 140 characters yet it is also the ability to express it in 140 characters. -@adlandjones (David T. Jones, Chief Creative Offi cer Third Street, Chicago)

Crea

tivi

ty is

livi

ng li

fe fu

lly.

-@Ev

ilo

Evilo

art

(V

isu

al A

rt P

erfo

rmer

, Fr

ance

)

Can

it r

eally

be

defi n

ed?

#som

etar

ight

now

- @

72an

dSun

ny

(Ad

Age

ncy,

Los

Ang

eles

)

Draw

ing people from the

inside out vs the outside in ie Picasso v Rockw

ell-@

Frogism (S

traw

berryFro

g C

ultural

Movem

ent Agency, N

ew York)

Creativity implies original. And it also implies an original contribution to the culture that no one else has done before. -Dave Koranda (Professor of Advertising, University of Oregon)

Creatively illustrate how to bring it all together.

Tangible freedom.

Hereʼs the problem: everything is disconnected.

7

8

CAN CREATE A SPARKSPARKSPARK

9

10

“”

My fi rst thought was to make a picture out of these dots a world and a sun and something coming out of the world. But when I looked at the dots it didn’t quite fi t. So I did mountains. I almost always put mountains, I think it is my home base and grounding element in art, and it also represents my worldview. I had a mother and child at the bottom coming down from the mountains and that’s another grounding and basic element to me representing new generations. An individual response generally refl ects the humanity of the problem solver. I think people and the future are the basic themes that concern me.

I do think my approach fi ts with International Studies, in that this fi eld is so broad and only really narrows itself through the lens of one’s own perspectives and experiences. There are many huge, interconnected problems, many interpretations, and no clear right answers.

LAURAL WAY INTERNATIONAL STUDIES

11

12

ALEX MCDOUGALL

“”

PHOTOJOURNALISM

The goal was to bring everything together. I felt like there was too much openness--too many things in the way of each other--so I tore apart the borders and all the extra space that I saw. Then, I fi gured I could fold it somehow to make them all touch, but that didn’t work so I kept improvising. It continued to not work so I decided to fold them on top of each other instead.

It basically came down to making the problem as simple as I could. To me, it was eliminating the extra space or extra stuff I didn’t want to deal with. That’s how it is sometimes, it’s not going to look pretty, it won’t be your greatest picture of all time, but you solved the problem and brought it all together at the end.

13

14

“”

POLITICAL SCIENCE

I like effi ciency, so immediately I connected the dots right from the get-go with straight lines. Then I realized that was pretty boring and the easy way to go about solving the problem. I wanted to take it one step further. When I shoot photos, I like to shoot minimalist photos but with a sense of complexity. I guess the drawing suggests geometric lines but the curves and more ambiguous lines suggest a deeper complexity.

It’s easy with political problems, say in this past election, to see an opposing viewpoint and to have a real superfi cial immediate response. To every political problem, there is always another layer to it. A more complex basis as to why someone thinks the way they do. So with the drawing I had an initial response and I took it one step further.

SEAN DANAHER

15

Kim Sheehan Advertising

16

Katy Romley Economics

17

18

“I looked at the dots as disparate pieces of information that I’m going to pull together and make one conclusion--so the conclusion I made was a design. A colorful design. That colorful design connected the dots or information. And it’s the same thing that someone who is developing strategy in advertising has to do. How do we connect dots that would otherwise not be connected? And then what conclusion can we come to? The best planners in the world state the obvious that nobody else saw.

I try my best to see things in new ways that no one else has been able to.

DAVE KORANDA ADVERTISING

”

19

Rachael Matthews Mathmatics

20

Gabby Raglione Art History

21

22

“”

HALLE CHAPMAN POLITICAL SCIENCE

Thinking about fi lling space, how we connect and what connects us, I decided to draw the human fi gure. Everything that surrounds us, connects people, and is important to us was created by humans. Thus, it only seemed natural to draw a person to ‘reconnect’ the dots on the page.

As a spanish and political science major, my school completely revolves around ideas, language,institutions etc. created by humans so I guess it only seems natural that when thinking about ‘connecting the dots’ the most obvious visual representation of those relationships would be through the human form.

23

Claire Berger Psychology

24

Fabienne Moore French

25

26

”“

ALI SMALL

I’m kind of a literal person so when I saw [the prompt] I thought of the ‘connect the dots’ things when I was a child. So I got a ruler and just started connecting them.

I wouldn’t consider myself a creative person or a visual person. I’m really good at math and things that have one answer and [I’m] very numbers oriented. In some ways I like geometric shapes opposed to abstract images. It could be abstract, but I literally connected the dots, and that’s how I normally solve problems. I like having only one answer.

27

Sam Miller International Studies

28

Collin Golden Advertising

29

30”

WALTER KENNEDY

“I fought the urge to go at it immediately. I just kept looking at it and putting it away and looking at it again and imaginging what I might do. It occurred to me, about half-way through the fi rst time I actually tried to mark on the page, that I wanted to try something different. It became a kind of a three-dimensional object that had volume rather than something written on a page. So I kept looking for those connections too.

You know, when you’re choreographing movement in space you try to look at it from many different angles and you’re looking at it from different sensibilities and how to make it more full-bodied.

I think I solve problems like this normally. I have to. I try to look at things from different angles. I defi nitely do the ‘go away don’t look at it for a while come back to it’ thing because it always brings something new. That is a fail-safe for me.

31

Dan Morrison Photojournalism

32

Karen Emmerich Comparative Literature

33

34

“”

I thought the galaxy was a nice way to connect them all because the galaxy is all-encompassing. Everything is contained within the galaxy.

I can say within my life I tend to look at things with a global perspective--looking at it from the big picture, which I think is helpful for remaining rational. Psychology is all about how people respond to things and the ways in which people react to certain situations. This has to do with how you problem solve and how you look at issues, whether you get bogged down by really little individual things or if you have the ability to stand back and look at it in proportion to other matters.

35

Will Cuddy Advertising

36

Virginia Cartwright Architecture

37

38”“

PHOTOJOURNALISMSUNG PARK

A lot of people think, ‘what is the path of least resistance’, and my thought was, ‘how can I manipulate the situation to make it work,’ as opposed to just going with the fl ow. To go with the fl ow you could connect the dots with a line. That is the simplest way to do that but it’s the way everyone does it and I wanted to do something different. I decided to be more invasive and more forceful in this exercise. I decided to cut out every single dot and stick them together. There are times when I just want to do things because that’s the way I want it, and that’s the way I did it.

Typically I like to work through things and not be aggressive and forceful, but I felt like my idea would be effective, and it was more about me expressing the desire to do what I wanted to do, in the manner that I wanted to do it, regardless if I thought it was an effi cient and harmonious way. So I was exercising my right to be forceful, and not care what everyone else thinks.

39

Ehud Havazelet Creative Writing

40

Kalli Bean Public Relations

41

42”

JAKE VANDER VELDEN

“

BIOCHEMISTRY

I have been taking chemistry for fi ve years now. I have always had a fascination with it. Especially with drugs and the way they are put together--their molecules and their sequences. So when I saw a bunch of dots it reminded me a little bit of atoms. The atom itself is random but I found something that is composed of 19 different molecules and I found a way to draw it all so it worked out.

This was a creative assignment, which is not what I am usually doing so I had more freedom with it. The way I was thinking about the orientation of each atom related to the way I think about organic chemistry because it is very specifi c and can only be drawn one way.

It was creative in the sense that I got to add color to it. Chemistry is very black and white: it is A+B = C+D. In this, I was allowed to sit down and construct it the way I wanted to. It was fun and open-ended.

43

Ben Fitch-Fleischmann Economics

44

Mike Wehr Psychology

45

46

“”

I looked at it for a while and I thought about connecting the dots of course. I turned it at all different angles to see if I saw any interesting pictures. I decided that connecting them was maybe too constrained. Then it just occurred to me that I had the impression of snow when I looked at it. Except it’s black instead of white snow so I drew a negative image of a snow scene.

It’s not easy for me to draw direct connections between how I think about research and thepuzzle. I would say that certainly there is an element of creative brainstorming that is critical for science. You have to be able to sit around and say things that might not be good ideas, and not be afraid to make things up while determining where to go to look for evidence. A lot of our work is guided by past research, so it’s a fairly concrete implication. But the fun part is when you discover new ideas and that involves sitting around and thinking about new things.

EDWARD AWH COGNITIVE NUEROSCIENCE

47

Lindsay Parlee Human Physiology

48

Riley Metcalf International Studies

49

50

”“

When I fi rst looked at [the prompt], I never once thought ‘connect the dots’ that was just too straightforward and simple. I saw a bunch of pupils; I saw a bunch of weird little eyes looking at me, so I wanted to give character to them all. Everything is connected in one vision--one perspective, but all unique.

Anthropology is really just a bunch of different worldviews, of different ways to take things in, of different interpretations of the same thing. It’s all about putting yourself in the other person’s shoes, and taking in everything, being able to abandon your western perspective to take in other ways of life.

ANTHROPOLOGY

51

52

”“

I started with a really organic shape that connected all the dots. From there I decided I wanted to do something with death because everyone dies. I did skeletons because everyone is going to turn in to this white skull some day.

To solve a problem in architecture, you have to take an idea from the aesthetic you want. Then fi nd the words you need and what you want to come out in your design. You have to translate that into space.

WYATT INNINS

53

54

“

NADYA MATIYA ANTHROPOLOGY

”We are talking about biodiversity right now in my anthropology class, and so that’s ecology, and it’s like everything is connected. It’s not just one thing that connects to one thing but it’s everything is connected to everything. So I brought that in and then made it prettier with circles because I’m a dancer and I like movement. I was thinking ‘everything is connected, but how is it connected?’ It’s connected through circles, angles, and sharp corners.

55

THAT

FUELS

COLLABORATIONCOLLABORATIONCOLLABORATIONCOLLABORATION

56

ABORATION

Problem solving is an innate universal ability. You don’t have to be the smartest kid on the block or the paint-splattered and

sleep deprived artist. You just have to be you.

When connecting the dots, participant’s disciplines did not dictate their problem solving abilites. Everyone solved the problem accurately. But more importantly, everyone solved the problem differently. The possible answers were endless.

Now that you have observed these solutions imagine the brain power when these indiviudals combine.

Collaboration is essential to achieving the best ideas. It is the driving force that causes ideas to combine, churn, and evolve. This curating process develops a well-rounded remedy that incorporates numerous perspectives to obtain

the most innovative answer.

ABORATIONABORATIONABORATION

57

AUTHORS

58

I tend to think in circles. I imagine the big picture then I think of a solution by slowly becoming more specifi c. To connect the dots I thought of the world connected through snippets of time. I see the world in photographs: still moments.This is how I have to think as a photojournalist.

A spontanious fl ower of an idea grew from the circle. It is encompassed by text which represents the international connection of language. I usually solve problems this way: fi rst I lay out my base idea then it grows through research, improvisation, and intuition. I am very interested in social design and how everyone pieces together their own world. In the end we all have decisive moments and personal interactions that form our lives.

I connected the dots by giving them each the same goal: to move upwards. I illustrated this by thinking about my own thinking: ‘What are ideas? What are creative ideas?’ Ideas have the capacity to bring you upwards, like a hot air balloon. I wanted the environment to be the sky—which represents a sort of ‘limitless’ atmosphere. Ideas are limitless.

As an advertising student, my end goal is to breed ideas that provide solutions to issues. The industry is as much about failure as it is about success. With a confi dent mentality, a mentality that believes, ‘I’m moving upwards, without limits’, one can truly succeed in not only advertising, but also in all areas of life.

My typical problem solving weapon is a matte black Pilot G-2 bold gel pen, but I thought everyone was going to draw geometrics lines. Being linear is boring. I needed a new weapon. Something of higher caliber. Something that goes boom. So I made a warm pot of coffee and began my search. But as the bold fl avor and poisonous caffeine fl ooded my brain I begin to realize my other weapon was staring me in the face: coffee. The black gritty sludge is the fuel behind my ideas. It gives me constant motivation to solve problems. Coffee is my vice.

So I shared the wealth with these disconnected dots. I poured coffee all over them. Hopefully, they will fi nd the same motivation. Hopefully, the coffee will bring them all together.

Ben Wiley

Madison Odenborg

Myray Reames

59

GRATITUDE72andSunnyEdward AwhKalli BeanClaire BergerVirgina CartwrightHalle Chapman-TaylerWill CuddySean DanaherKaren EmmerichEviloArtBen Fitch-FleischmannCollin GoldenEhud HavazeletMelanie Howe Walter KennedyWyatt InninsDave KorandaDavid T. JonesNadia MatiyaRachel MatthewsAlex McDougallRiley MetcalfSam MillerFabienne MooreDan MorrisonSung ParkLinday ParleeGabby RaglioneKaty RomleyKim SheehanAli SmallLucy WayMike WehrMaddy WeissmanStrawberryFrog

Jake Vander Velden

6.45.46.

40.23.36.

21.22.35.

13.14.32.

6.43.28.39.

49.50.39.30.51.52.

6.17.18.6.

53.5419.

11.12.48.27.24.31.

37.38.47.20.16.15.

25.26.9.10.

44.33.34

6.41.42. Special Thanks To:

Deb Morrison + Erika Ciszek

Copyright 2012 Odenborg, Reames, Wiley

HO