The Talking Walls

This is one of several sites I have come across during my research. It is full of links to all kinds of articles but more importantly the description of the term Creative Generalist is what caught my attention.

I have always considered myself to be a jack of all trades, and have been able to put my hand to most things. For example, I can carve wood, plaster walls, sew dresses, design and lay patios and help rebuild my Triumph Stag. I am able to train 5 - 6 pieces of software (Autodesk's Revit, 3DS Max, Combustion, ADT and AutoCAD and Maxon's Cinema 4D) and use them for various design jobs, but am I a master of any one?

They are all creative skills, but that is just it, it is a skill, one that gets better with use and experience. But in order to understand these skills and how to use them, I also need to know how they fit with other areas that will then make a whole - for instance a multimedia project. For example, if I was a Master in Photoshop, would that mean I knew this program inside and out? Would I then know how to use it for graphic design, print, web, textures for 3D or just for one or two of them, or even none, or would I just know what it could do?

In order to fulfil a role as a Web designer, I would also need to know several other areas, Photoshop would be only one of the many tools I would need to be successful in this role. This would be the same for a Graphic Designer or 3D artist.

Therefore, surely most that consider themselves as Masters, are probably jack of all trades as well? There is a need to understand each skill in relation to the whole - such as a jigsaw piece in a puzzle. It is also important to know how these work with each other to be able to create something new and explore new ideas.

I am not sure if this still happens in Industry, but there used to be a time when you started at the bottom and worked your way up through the company, so when or if you reached the top, you had a complete understanding of everything below, giving a thorough insight to the way the company worked, what was expected of each position and the people themselves. Having reached the top, your own experiences may have helped forge new ways / methods in doing things. You have a handle on everything - so are you a Master, or jack of all trades?

Another site, linked from Creative Generalist, is Mark McGuiness's Wishful Thinking which explores this further and pitches Steve Hardy's Creative Generalist theory against that of Scamp - Simon Veksner, a very interesting read.

Finally - there was also this one by Joyce Wycoff www.thinksmart.com. A good exercise if you feel like being creative. Have fun!