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Collaboration in Design
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Design briefs have become increasingly complex. As a result, collaboration in design has never been more important (Deakin, n.d). Collaborative designers need to practice humility, must learn to trust others, and see the value of different perspectives. While this may seem like a lot of soul-baring and -searching, it’s worthwhile to remember that collaboration produces better results: solutions that won’t exist without the help of others.
Here are three types of collaboration that designers could engage in.
Collaborate with different creative disciplines
Steven Johnson’s video explains this well as the collision of “half ideas” from others to create something greater than disparate “slow hunches” (Johnson, 2010). As he justifies, this is historically “… why the coffee houses in the Age of Enlightenment, or the Parisian salons of Modernism were such engines of creativity, because they created a space where ideas could mingle and swop.” (Johnson, 2010). Perhaps we should take a page from history and dedicate more time talking about design practice over flat whites (who needs convincing?).
Beyond coffee shops, the Internet has become a tool for virtual collaboration. Hit Record is a great example of this. The organization, founded by actor/director Joseph Gordon Levitt, connects creative through briefs designed for co-creation through collaboration. These briefs could be seen as “passion projects” for when industry becomes a bore. But Hit Record showcases stories of the value for collaborating in this way – bringing together the “half ideas” to create something greater than the sum of its parts.
Collaborate with peers