Creativity and the Problems of the World
In these difficult times, we have an opportunity to rethink the direction in which we are headed and the approach we have been taking.
The strength of the United States has always been in its flexiblity and creativity. At our best, we are an agile bunch. I think we need to approach our current problems with this trademark verve. Here are some ideas to get things going:
1. Clothing designers and fashion mavens create amazing clothes that do not require dry cleaning or hours of ironing. (Cleaners view pollution fines as an inevitable cost of doing business and ironing takes a lot of electricity. Is this really necessary? Ask a backpacker.)
2. Young architects building portfolios submit designs to competitions for local resource optimization. For example, in deserts, new large construction could be underground to save cooling costs with heating and cooling enhanced via geothermal technology. (The focus of most "green" construction is on large projects such as office buildings, schools, and government facilities--the fastest and largest benefit first.)
3. Sculptors create sun and wind parks in urban spaces that are beautiful and generate electricity.
4. Computer designers create elegant machines that take less power and exercise equipment manufacturers create under-desk cycles that make them go. (a two-birds-with -one-stone thing)
5. Railroads are used more extensively for both passenger and freight service. A single train can take hundreds of cars or trucks off our crowded highways. Most locomotives are diesel powered, but they can be powered by clean electricity. Designers can help by creating quieter passenger cars with more mobile device capability and more privacy. American companies no longer build most rail equipment. Why not?????
6. Most office workers answer calls and do computer tasks from home. Office buildings are smaller, and they turn off their lights at night. Executives conduct meetings from tele-conferencing facilities and no longer commute by air. (Many advantages here, especially for families.)
7. Children attend the schools closest to them and walk, when possible, or ride their bikes.
8. People vacation in resorts reachable by rail. Every community draws on local creative resources to develop an identity and a unique set of attractions. Agritourism and art studio tours are examples of this kind of creativity.
I'm sure many of these ideas are dumb, but, you know, that's the way I do my paintings. I cover the canvas and then revise, rework, and rethink. If you know some of this won't work, post something that will--anything except what we have now, because, hey, look around--that just isn't an option anymore.
The strength of the United States has always been in its flexiblity and creativity. At our best, we are an agile bunch. I think we need to approach our current problems with this trademark verve. Here are some ideas to get things going:
1. Clothing designers and fashion mavens create amazing clothes that do not require dry cleaning or hours of ironing. (Cleaners view pollution fines as an inevitable cost of doing business and ironing takes a lot of electricity. Is this really necessary? Ask a backpacker.)
2. Young architects building portfolios submit designs to competitions for local resource optimization. For example, in deserts, new large construction could be underground to save cooling costs with heating and cooling enhanced via geothermal technology. (The focus of most "green" construction is on large projects such as office buildings, schools, and government facilities--the fastest and largest benefit first.)
3. Sculptors create sun and wind parks in urban spaces that are beautiful and generate electricity.
4. Computer designers create elegant machines that take less power and exercise equipment manufacturers create under-desk cycles that make them go. (a two-birds-with -one-stone thing)
5. Railroads are used more extensively for both passenger and freight service. A single train can take hundreds of cars or trucks off our crowded highways. Most locomotives are diesel powered, but they can be powered by clean electricity. Designers can help by creating quieter passenger cars with more mobile device capability and more privacy. American companies no longer build most rail equipment. Why not?????
6. Most office workers answer calls and do computer tasks from home. Office buildings are smaller, and they turn off their lights at night. Executives conduct meetings from tele-conferencing facilities and no longer commute by air. (Many advantages here, especially for families.)
7. Children attend the schools closest to them and walk, when possible, or ride their bikes.
8. People vacation in resorts reachable by rail. Every community draws on local creative resources to develop an identity and a unique set of attractions. Agritourism and art studio tours are examples of this kind of creativity.
I'm sure many of these ideas are dumb, but, you know, that's the way I do my paintings. I cover the canvas and then revise, rework, and rethink. If you know some of this won't work, post something that will--anything except what we have now, because, hey, look around--that just isn't an option anymore.
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