visualisation in design Archives

I had two imaginary friends growing up – Little Mimi & Big Arka. I have no idea why I chose those names. Little Mimi was forever in the hospital with a broken arm & Big Arka was always ‘making me’ ask my parents for ice-cream. I guess those first two years (before my sister came along) must have been pretty lonely.

As children we have such active imaginations, but as we ‘grow up’ our imagination becomes overwritten with reality and thoughts imposed on us by a means of socialisation. Our imaginations are spoiled by the knowledge of what is actually possible.

I have always had a very active imagination. One of my favourite ‘games’ as a child was pretending my wardrobe was an elevator. I would stick numbers on the inside of the doors and would ‘exit’ into different ‘worlds’ – Disneyland, Fern Gully’s forest and with mermaids under the sea (yes, I would do breast-stroke across my carpet and get carpet burn)….

I believe that without our imagination, there would be no reality. Where would the human race be? Would we even exist? Everything new…every invention…every idea…every improvement in our life has been connected to the imagination. Our imagination is an elusive, non-material ‘thing’.….but it exists. Our imagination is uncontrollable, infinite and has no boundaries. Our imaginations can’t be owned by anyone else. It allows us to actualise what reality can’t provide.

Many adults feel no need to use their imagination. It is easy to carry out day-to-day lives without tapping into our imagination. But I argue, that if we do keep our imagination alive we can lead a much richer, fuller and satisfying existence.

I also truly believe that everyone is capable of being ‘creative’. The amount of times I have heard friends and family say; “Oh, I am not the creative type”. Not true. I believe that we are born with a ‘creative muscle’. It is a muscle that needs to be properly nourished and exercised. Otherwise it lies dormant.

In the industry of design – imagination is key. Imagination and creativity go hand-in-hand. The ability to visualise. The ability to translate an abstract concept, idea or belief into a creative form.

My imagination is still very active…I know I am going to some like a complete freak…BUT…

I often imagine that when I exit a room the pieces of furniture talk to one another. They have their own dialogue. Everything from the chairs way they are positioned

I know it sounds weird. I know it probably sounds like I’ve eaten some mushrooms (not the shittake variety). I haven’t.

(Mum if you are reading this – I haven’t lost my marbles – please do not book me into see the doc.)

Imagination aligns itself with the ability to visualise. When it comes to interior design – visualisation is key. When we are selecting a new piece of furniture, deciding which colour to paint a wall or even just rearranging furniture, we need to ‘imagine’ what the end result will be. It is this process of visualisation that taps into the imagination.

Interior designers must be able to see beyond the current environment and actually visualise what they hope to accomplish as an end result.

Listen to this amazing TED talk –

http://www.ted.com/conversations/6200/how_can_imagination_lead_to_in.html

An increasing trend, which I believe aligns to my imaginative journey is mismatched chairs. For some crazy reason, when I see mismatched chairs it seems like they each have their own unique personality and are ‘talking’ to each other like old friends.

Ok, I am sounding crazier my the minute – see the images below and maybe…just maybe…you might ‘get’ what I mean….or maybe you will just think I am nuts.