The Inner Studio - Riverside Architectural Press

PART TWO | THE CREATIVE INSTINCT
What is most important is to trust our heart’s desire to connect
us with the vibrant and rich source of images and creative instincts
that are needed in the built world. Spirit without matter leaves us
with ghostly places, while the unrelenting world of matter without
a higher purpose leaves us feeling alone in a banal environment.
The idea that launches a project has great importance to designers
and society. Our heart’s desire has the power to transform what
begins in the mind into something that can help and inspire
others.
In the beginning, you may experience confusion about what
constitutes your heart’s desire. Although the designer in you has
been moved, you still may be more focused on comparing yourself
to others or even devaluing your own experience. My experience is
that everyone has their own unique way of being creative. When a
number of people visit the same place there are always multiple
stories to tell. Someone may bring back a sketch, someone else may
bring back a stone. Another person may relate a memory that was
triggered. Someone may be amazed by the way the light struck a
branch. Any experience can form the seed that moves us.
Where does a creative instinct come from? No one knows
exactly, but we all know how to ask for help. And this capacity to
sincerely ask a question forms the starting point for design explorations.
We want to learn to trust our heart’s desire to give us the
strength to withstand what confronts designers at the start of every
project–the unknown.
EXERCISE: FINDING YOUR HEART’S DESIRE
In pairs, divide into a designer and a listener. The role of the designer is
to describe, declare, and speculate about every aspect of a current project,
without any interruption or comment, in as much detail as possible.
The emphasis is on the complete freedom of the designer to express his
or her sense of the design. The listener’s job is to take notes. What is
important is to really listen without judgment and be as patient as you
can. Give the designer all the attention!
When the designer is completely finished, the listener then reports
back to the designer the key ideas and images that have been stated. It’s
important to let the designer know what elements were repeated and
31