
I have submitted the following proposal to the DUBAI IDEATHON 2020: COVID-19 CRISIS. Tee idea is to make a contribution by responding to one of six themes. My chosen topic was as follows:
How can the creative community self-organise? And what kind of public-private collaborations can we explore to help support the cultural industries?
From the creation of talent pools, expertise directories and databases to skill-based collectives and collaborative businesses.
Isolation format does not support the creative community. People with imagination and exciting ideas strive in the environment of collaboration and bouncing ideas of each other. They need to be bombarded with stimulus to allow them to formulate a response. Therefore, the key to success is in bringing people together through online plenaries and lectures; TED talks and exhibitions. Therefore, there is a need to design a platform, which can be roughly based on the concept of Microsoft Teams. However, the format and its key features must be directed at presentation and exchange of visual material, including sound, moving image and video.
Current online galleries try to emulate the physical experience of walking through a building with art in it. An imitation of a holistic effect of simultaneous physical movement, observation, analysis and reflection is totally impossible to be achieved. Kinaesthetic learning cannot take place in front of a screen. Sitting down and looking at pictures is simply boring. Visitors tend to look at the first few pieces before switching off and leaving. Through brainstorming and a dynamic dialogue, there is a potential to develop tools and layouts to avoid this, or at least minimise its negative impact.
One of the most powerful public/ private collaborations is light projection. There are many artists using enlarged displays of text to promote their ideas, such as Jenny Holzer. Video mapping for advertising and the promotion of current issues is in its infancy. These techniques could be used as powerful tools to advertise art, performance and also increase public awareness. I am confident that government bodies would also like to elevate the significance of their messages and public appeals through this medium.
I hope that my propositions go far beyond 3D printing of protection equipment for hospitals and switching the profile of the fashion industry to sewing face masks.
HOW IT WORKS
Dubai IDEATHON is a three-phased project:
PHASE 1: OPEN CALL
Open call to receive proposals that respond to one (or many) of the listed challenges.
PHASE 2: IDEATHON
Six ideation sessions with the participants of the open call will be organised based on the common challenges, and facilitated by specialised design-thinking experts, concluding in well-defined proposals.
PHASE 3: IMPLEMENTATION
Proposed solutions will be put to industry experts to help devise implementation strategies.
TIMELINE
THURSDAY APRIL 2
8am: Dubai IDEATHON submissions open for receiving ideas
SATURDAY APRIL 4
12am: Submissions close at midnight
SUNDAY APRIL 5
10am – 2pm: Groups are assigned and participants are sent workshop links
TUESDAY APRIL 7
10am – 4pm: First set of ideation sessions
WEDNESDAY APRIL 8
10am – 4pm: Second set of ideation sessions
THURSDAY APRIL 9
Collating ideas and proposals into a final list