Thinkerbelle » inspiration

Make Yourself Comfortable

Thas — Sun, 25 Apr 2010 15:58:37 +0000

As we wander through the world, there are some spaces that just take you off guard. It’s not necessarily just those museums, bars, hotels, restaurants, design shops/advertising agencies, that can be striking and fun–unexpected places like libraries, even schools are finally places and spaces to be inspired. Many times it’s simple colors/images painted on the walls. Other times it’s the richness or inviting feeling of the space itself.

Image (Emily Forgot for Selfridges, London)

Image: Pentagram for Endeavor Middle School, Brooklyn NY

(Image: NYC Library, wifi hotspot)

We always say “it’s about creating experiences” yet still relatively unexplored is the idea of incorporating rich digital experiences into physical spaces/design. Not just a “well designed piece” of technology (the slick LCD screen or touch interface), but truly having digital experiences built (mindfully) into the design. Will be amazing to see how we can start to “paint” with digital.

Made to inspire.

Thas — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 04:13:09 +0000

How many of us have sat at our desk in a windowless world, searching for that next “big idea” (or a reasonable facsimile), only to think WHERE is this inspiration going to come from. Here are a couple places that I’ve been exploring:

Thinking Space: http://thinkingspace.economist.com/

In this shrinking voyaristic world, there’s something oddly intriguing about peering into another (creative!) person’s work space. Thinking Space does just that (in a beautiful seamless experience) offering up not only visuals, but descriptors of why the space is important, interesting links, and more information on the individual. The last (and possibly most critical inspiration!) is a playlist that the individual uses to inspire. And it’s not “just” the famously fabulous creative minds of our world. Anyone can submit their space. Look for me some day soon.

sputnik observatory: http://sptnk.org/

The Sputnik Observatory for Contemporary Culture is a New York not-for-profit educational organization dedicated to the study of contemporary culture. Their mission is to ” …by documenting, archiving, and disseminating ideas that are shaping modern thought by interviewing leading thinkers in the arts, sciences and technology from around the world” There is a fearlessness that fuels this immense collection of thought. This mind-boggling experience challenges you to think in ways you may never have thought before. As you go on the journey through this expansive experience, you can choose themes to explore, or people to “converse” with through these short video monologues.

Ideas are energy.
Your brain is a satellite.
Out there is your mind.

(Sputnik Observatory)

Be Inspired

Thas — Sun, 31 May 2009 15:14:00 +0000

Recent trip to the east coast brought me tons of inspiration. Traveling within the nation never really struck me as being incredibly inspirational, but this trip was certainly different. From meeting tea readers, to celebrity encounters (OK, so it was my favorite celebrity chef…good enough for me!!), to the grandiose and serene world that is Central Park, to the hallowed halls of Harvard-inspiration was everywhere. Just wanted to share some of my favorite pics.

Cakeshop a pastry shop/bar on the Lower East Side…Alphabet City. A guy read my tea habits. It was pretty epic. Super fun night. Music, booze and cupcakes. Mi alma.

Central Park. The lush greenscape and man-made lakes in the middle of the concrete jungle. Something about that is so surreal…

Harvard. Need I say more? It just feels smart. I loved sitting at the cafe and listening in on intense conversations on theories of kinetic force. I didn’t understand a word, but the passion that they brought to the conversation was intense. Awesome.

Grand Central Station. Every movie cliche is totally on. Whether you’re new to the city, or run through it everyday to get to work, it just feels like home. There’s an amazing energy about it.
Times Square. Advertising clusterf–. Thank goodness this is contained to a few city blocks of one city. It is a little funny though, we talk about communication clutter so much in our industry. And yet, this is still one of the most prized pieces of advertising spaces in the world. The most cluttered space in the world…