16 What is creativity? If we define it, do we lose it?

Convener: Jan

Participants: Jan, Debbie, Phelim, Marcella, Matilda


Summary of discussion, conclusions and/or recommendations:

Grow a building
• Converse with it
• Let it be warm
• Let us see the sky and the landscape
• Let us be cold
• Let people come in and out of it as they wish.

We can’t pre-empt the outcome or product of creativity.
Imposing a structure (imperialistic model) may not be the most effective model of nurturing creativity.

Are we talking about creativity as a product for an industry i.e. a piece of art?

Formal education and teaching plays its part
We operate in a culture of vocational learning, where the true meaning has been lost or forgotten.
We could embrace skills (doing), meta-skills (feeling) and foster a culture of learning how to learn.
No one fails.

The concept of creativity is currently perceived as a subject (art) in schools, rather than seeing it as a fundamental human element and will be with us in all our learning and understanding of the world.

Managing creativity
As people responsible for artists and creative work - we could look at how we manage processes/products that hold the values of Open Space.

Some questions
• Do the people or building come first?
• How do we challenge the dominant cultural models that are output & evidence-based; especially when our funding relies upon us playing that game?
• Can we together say ‘no’ to funders and challenge their perception of creativity and allow it to be organic?