𝙻̲𝚎̲𝚊̲𝚛̲𝚗̲𝚒̲𝚗̲𝚐̲ ̲#̲𝟼̲:̲ ̲𝚃̲𝚑̲𝚎̲ ̲𝚆̲𝚊̲𝚛̲ ̲𝙰̲𝚐̲𝚊̲𝚒̲𝚗̲𝚜̲𝚝̲ ̲𝙿̲𝚛̲𝚘̲𝚌̲𝚎̲𝚜̲𝚜̲𝚎̲𝚜̲
I came to Paradiso with questions about the process I built for OUTERCRAFT.
My user-centric method delivers strong results, but I started sensing its limits and was curious about how others manage their creative process.
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What hit me first—and made me question everything—was the panel talk between Jessica Hische, Timothy Goodman, and Ben Tallon.
“𝘗𝘳𝘰𝘤𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘴 𝘤𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘨𝘺,” Jessica said.
She also explained that she needs full creative control over a project, as it's her way of expressing style—driven by behavior, personality, and a focus on making interesting work.
Later, during a conversation with Guillermo Flores Pacheco, Pablo Honey shared that processes are often just excuses to avoid trusting our intuition. They create certainty, which he sees as anti-creative.
I was relieved when Stefan Sagmeister brought a more balanced view—and especially when he brought the client back into the picture.
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Here’s what I took from these conversations:
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𝗧̲𝗵̲𝗲̲ ̲𝗰̲𝗼̲𝗿̲𝗲̲ ̲𝗶̲𝘀̲ ̲𝗵̲𝗮̲𝘃̲𝗶̲𝗻̲𝗴̲ ̲𝗰̲𝗼̲𝗻̲𝘁̲𝗿̲𝗼̲𝗹̲ ̲𝗼̲𝘃̲𝗲̲𝗿̲ ̲𝘆̲𝗼̲𝘂̲𝗿̲ ̲𝗰̲𝗿̲𝗲̲𝗮̲𝘁̲𝗶̲𝘃̲𝗲̲ ̲𝗱̲𝗲̲𝗰̲𝗶̲𝘀̲𝗶̲𝗼̲𝗻̲𝘀̲ ̲𝗮̲𝗻̲𝗱̲ ̲𝗶̲𝗻̲𝘃̲𝗲̲𝘀̲𝘁̲𝗶̲𝗻̲𝗴̲ ̲𝗶̲𝗻̲ ̲𝘄̲𝗵̲𝗮̲𝘁̲ ̲𝘁̲𝗿̲𝘂̲𝗹̲𝘆̲ ̲𝗿̲𝗲̲𝘀̲𝗼̲𝗻̲𝗮̲𝘁̲𝗲̲𝘀̲ ̲𝘄̲𝗶̲𝘁̲𝗵̲ ̲𝘆̲𝗼̲𝘂̲.̲
But, as several experienced designers reminded us:
We are always in relationship—with clients, partners, audiences.
And 𝙸̲ ̲𝚍̲𝚘̲𝚗̲’̲𝚝̲ ̲𝚋̲𝚎̲𝚕̲𝚒̲𝚎̲𝚟̲𝚎̲ ̲𝚒̲𝚗̲ ̲𝚝̲𝚑̲𝚎̲ ̲𝚖̲𝚢̲𝚝̲𝚑̲ ̲𝚘̲𝚏̲ ̲𝚝̲𝚑̲𝚎̲ ̲𝚞̲𝚗̲𝚝̲𝚘̲𝚞̲𝚌̲𝚑̲𝚊̲𝚋̲𝚕̲𝚎̲ ̲𝚐̲𝚎̲𝚗̲𝚒̲𝚞̲𝚜̲ ̲𝚠̲𝚑̲𝚘̲𝚜̲𝚎̲ ̲𝚏̲𝚎̲𝚎̲𝚕̲𝚒̲𝚗̲𝚐̲𝚜̲ ̲𝚊̲𝚛̲𝚎̲ ̲𝚋̲𝚎̲𝚢̲𝚘̲𝚗̲𝚍̲ ̲𝚚̲𝚞̲𝚎̲𝚜̲𝚝̲𝚒̲𝚘̲𝚗̲. Collaboration requires communication and reassurance.
So, here’s where I stand now:
▪️ ℙ𝕣𝕠𝕔𝕖𝕤𝕤𝕖𝕤 𝕒𝕣𝕖 𝕘𝕣𝕖𝕒𝕥 𝕚𝕗 𝕥𝕙𝕖𝕪 𝕤𝕖𝕣𝕧𝕖 𝕒𝕤 𝕒 𝕗𝕝𝕖𝕩𝕚𝕓𝕝𝕖 𝕗𝕣𝕒𝕞𝕖𝕨𝕠𝕣𝕜—something you choose to navigate in, to provide clarity and build trust.
They can also act as chosen constraints—challenges that push the work further.
▪️ 𝔹𝕦𝕥 𝕡𝕣𝕠𝕔𝕖𝕤𝕤𝕖𝕤 𝕓𝕖𝕔𝕠𝕞𝕖 𝕝𝕚𝕞𝕚𝕥𝕚𝕟𝕘 𝕨𝕙𝕖𝕟 𝕥𝕙𝕖𝕪 𝕥𝕣𝕪 𝕥𝕠 𝕥𝕦𝕣𝕟 𝕔𝕣𝕖𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕧𝕚𝕥𝕪 𝕚𝕟𝕥𝕠 𝕒 𝕞𝕒𝕔𝕙𝕚𝕟𝕖, or when they leave no space for randomness, experimentation, and the unexpected.
What’s your experience with creative processes?
Do they serve you—or box you in?
#design #creativity #innovation Marko Pfann Elise Auger
📸 in Uxmal
