Principle 1 : Draw. Work by hand.
This is the first principle I want to concentrate my attention to, as it is the basis for the subsequent principles that follow. Greater emphasis should be placed on drawing by hand as it helps us to visually illustrate our thoughts on paper. Helping us to break down relatively complex problems and analysing its different components it results in a simpler understanding of what is before us.
Drawing gives us a broader view of the task at hand, therefore making it much easier and faster for one to draw conclusions from it. Apart from simplifying a problem, drawing also helps in showing one’s entire work process. Analysing work becomes immensely easier when you have an easily understandable and well maintained record of your work. Drawing also helps us to look at different approaches to a given problem, thus giving rise to unique and different ideas. Drawing as an activity can also include illustration through different materials that can be used to better describe an idea. It isn’t limited in any sense, leaving your imagination as the only barrier in its path.
As seen in the two sketches above, the first one is a great example of thinking by drawing as the artist has drawn the house from different angles and has also supported his sketch with a few annotations to help further understand his illustration. The next image shows the different elements of a sketch of two people, but apart from being just a drawing the annotations help to further understand the picture and the story.
Principle 2 : Utilise Your Creative Brain
The second principle I would like to emphasise on is utilising one’s creative brain. The creative class of people would find that utilising their brain to overcome problems could be the deadliest weapon in their arsenal.
The brain essentially is divided into two parts, the left brain and the right brain. The right brain symbolises the mind of a child at play, i.e. the creative side. It allows you to experiment and explore the creative recesses of the mind, letting you fully develop your ideas on paper. The left brain symbolises the mind of a businessman or analyst, that interrogates and comes to rational conclusions. The left brain allows you to fully assess your work, seeing whether it meets the required standards. For a creative person, the ability to consciously switch between the two brain modes would help immensely with their work.
For example, we can use the right brain to experiment with our ideas till we come up with something substantial and then use the left brain to critically analyse it, to see if it fits its intended purpose and to also check if we can improve it. It must be kept in mind that while experimenting with the right brain, we do so around a particular theme to prevent us from straying from the topic.
The first picture is a is a painting by Denton Loomis that shows us the working of the right brain as he shows us his description of love through this painting. The second picture is an art piece done by Mathew James Taylor, that shows us the use of both left and right hemispheres of the brain to bring out an artistic watercolour illustration of his friend, Sai.
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Zeke Purushotham 