Jessica Dallywater

This Tumblr is an exploration for #cofa1001 and #cofa1002 2015 assignments, class exercises, research, etc... I am a first year Design student looking to explore what area to pursue in second and third years.

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This is our group Tumblr for the assessment 3 publication. We will all be converging our ideas and progress here. 

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IN ACTION

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MAJOR PROJECT - ZINE BOOKLET

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MAJOR PROJECT - GUIDE

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Concept Statement - Major Project

Collaboration is a difficult topic even within the creative world despite its necessity and abundance, especially at this present stage within the university world. You continue and learn new patterns and behaviours that you will draw upon for the rest of your career. You learn about past methods that may not work as effectively anymore and new methods that need to be adopted. Understanding that we work together and collaborate without even realising is the first step to ensuring we can have an element of control over what we do and how we do it. Collaboration happens on all levels in our lives, socially, professionally, personally. Taking this in mind, we can be aware of how we work, what works best and how to adapt that to different situations that will arise over the years.

I don’t want to spend the next four or more years wasting time trying to figure out how to be effective when two or more people come together on an idea. I want to know now, and I want others with whom I’ll work to know the importance of good collaboration. This may seem selfish, but you don’t just pick anyone to be a lover and you don’t just let any person become a close friend. Therefore why not be selective about collaborating and help the process, and when it can’t be helped through choice have a formula that works?

What I have discovered in the process of collaboration and in discussion about it, is the amount of intuitive or natural knowledge that goes in to the process. We act without realising. We like to think we are in control of everything we do from beginning to end, but there are so many more factors influencing the process.  Awareness of what these things are and how we take them on board is crucial to understanding, working through and finding solutions. As a result the strength and success of our ambitions will come down to our ability to interact and take on board what our peers have to offer.

Backgrounds, interests, passions, skills, ideas, emotions, friends , family, health, wealth, all these things and more play a part in determining what we do and with whom we do it. I have this desire to be involved in my current environment and as a result I need to be aware of how others all come from different and varied backgrounds as well. This has enabled me to hopefully assess the formal parameters needed when making something with someone and then convert them into accessible tools for the process.  That said there are countless cases of where things have gone sour and plenty of cases where things have also gone right.

Creating the guide became a solution to the desire to be engaged and make something that may be applicable and useable by both myself and my peers. As the ideas became clearer on what is important it became easier to see the necessary steps to a successful outcome. First hand observations taken from the actual creation of the past project started the process along. The addition of thoughts from my peers and the way in which they were given strengthened the idea that collaboration is viewed as difficult but we all know some things we want from  collaboration even if we can’t express them. Which I have refined into the following:

What is the purpose of collaborating?

Who do you collaborate with?

What interests do those involved have in the success or failure of the collaboration?

What backgrounds do the collaborators come from?

Where does collaboration take place?

How do you communicate in collaboration?

How do you generate ideas?

How do you give honest positive or negative feedback?

How will technology, both positive and negative affect the process?

How will it affect your well-being and/or career?

How will it influence and affect you community and society in general?

What do you do after collaboration?

What are the benefits of collaborating?

As I intend this to be accessible a mini printed booklet as well as a page version for internet download and viewing are the most suitable options.

BIBLIOGRAPHY:

Bourriaud, N. (2002). Relational aesthetics. France]: Les presses du réel.

Cousins, C. (2014, September 9). Freelancing 101: How to Collaborate When You Work Alone. Retrieved September 8, 2015, from http://designshack.net/freelancing-101/freelancing-101-how-to-collaborate-when-you-work-alone/

Definition of collaboration in English: Collaboration. (n.d.). Retrieved September 11, 2015, from http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/collaboration

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Page Drafts

Ideas on how to do the actual pages. It’ll be like a mini zine. 

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Draft Guide

To be refined in the making. 

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Brainstorming Contents of Guide

Not that i have a wealth of information, time to convert into steps. 

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Dissecting Collaboration

What is Collaboration?

Who do you Collaborate with?

How do you pick those people?

Who affects the collaboration (externally)?

What interests do those involved have in the success/failure of the collaboration?

What value will the collaboration provide?

How will roles be defined?

How are skills shared?

What happens when skills clash?

How do you comminucate?

What channels of interaction (socially, technology) are suitable?

How much interaction is desired?

How can collaboration happen unexpectedly?

What if something unavoidable comes up during the process?

How do you deal with creative blocks?

How do you generate ideas?

How do you organise and sort through ideas?

How are discussions organised and run?

How are these discussions recorded and acted upon?

How do you get past the niceness?

How do you create a safe environment?

How do people share ideas?

How do you honestly give feedback?

How do you give critical or negative feedback?

How is feedback received?

What happens when there are disagreements?

What happens when you can’t reach a consensus?

How do you decline collaboration?

Where does collaboration take place?

Is there someone in charge?

Does money or monetary value affect the process?

Does profit affect the process?

IS there a formula to make it work?

Does time affect the process?

Does availability affect the process?

How can contribution occur?

What backgrounds do the collaborators come from?

How will technology (successes and failures) affect the process?

How will it enhance your community?

How will it affect your wellbeing?

How does it influence society in general?

What do you do after collaboration?

Are results and information free for use by collaborators after?

Are there copyright issues?

Are you employed by someone (company)?

What is the purpose of the collaboration?

How do you get past the obvious?

How do you inspire variety?

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Let’s Ask Some More

Even though i feel i have a wealth of information of the perception and ideas surrounding collaboration i reached out to my FB friends for some more ideas, just in-case. I was pleasantly surprised. I imagine that even over the years as i progress as i designer i will still discover new things about collaboration as i go.

I like that the idea of everyone giving equal energy and the property right of ideas as ours and not mine. And perhaps a catch-phase of Stop. Collaborate. And Listen should be changed to Stop. And Listen. Collaborate. 

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Observations of Class Answers

There seems to be an undercurrent of negativity that comes with collaboration, which i think is probably just from the uncertainty at what it is and what it can do for you. This makes me realise that i need to make it sound appealing, even if it may at times be difficult and take time, engagement and trust. But also be honest about the commitment required. Passion is definitely one of the driving factors as a response to the negativity. 

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The action of working with someone to produce something:. Meaning, pronunciation and example sentences, English to English reference content.

Action + Someone = Product

(also can mean traitorously working with an enemy)

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Class Ideas

So i asked around what everyone thought of in relation to collaboration, and surprisingly, it became a difficult question. I think this is due to the nature of collaboration being something that often just happens without really thinking about how that is the case. 

I love that there are response that go from don’t do it to having talking mentioned three times. We clearly all have varied perceptions about collaboration. What it is. How to do it. What the benefits are.

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Brainstorming a Guide

I like the idea of quantifying and expanding upon the process that occurred during project one. Actually figuring out the procedural aspects of collaboration and why, and the benefits of collaborating appeal for both present and long-term use.  As it’ll be  a written process it will invariably come across as a more formal way to collaborate, but the ideas presented will hopefully if not (some) new concepts, will still be taken on board and seen as useful - especially if it were step-by-step.

But who will it be for?

It’s great that i read and apply it to myself, but it would be better to share and give these insights to others, and even better would be to get their insights as well. So time to ask the class for their views and ideas on collaboration. We’ve got the next three years where we will be working alongside each other and with each other and then even after we graduate in our professional lives , i am sure their will be countless collaborations that occur. This also brings it closer to home for me a more direct involvement with those i am working with at present and in future. 

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Going Back and Assessing

Going back to the poster, it became easier to asses it in terms of process and whether or not it was a successful method and what could be changed or deciphered into applicable concepts and ideas. 

Other things also noticed are:

It takes time for people to process their ideas and give input

It then takes times to go over everyone contributions

The above two repeat throughout. 

Wildly different ideas/concepts/theories/etc... are not a bad thing

The further away two ideas may seem the longer it can take to bring them into something new

Post collaborating is a weird space that often gets overlooked

You learn what people are passionate about

It’s good to do lots of talking, discussion and idea generation, but then you need to make it. 

The level of involvement and commitment from contributing members will affect their desire for success of the project

It’s good to work with a variety of people from all different backgrounds (not just creative)

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Reading an article entitled Freelancing 101: How to Collaborate When You Work Alone on Design Shack.

This was a good find.

Some good points that came up were the idea of scheduling, finding spaces to work in and having a referral list for when you are busy so your clients can still get their needs met. 

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Back to the Question

Even though this course is about practice-led research which i have been attempting, it’s not producing the results i envisaged. So i revised and broke down the question into parts and what each of these parts could be about. Which has led me back to the ideas and did have and one in particular that i think could be quite useful and combines what i have learnt on collaboration thus far with the questions raised. 

We are always working in teams and collaborating to varying degrees in many aspects of life, both successfully and unsuccessfully. So what if it were to be noted and written down as something that could be distributed and shared when individuals engage together.