Lessons from the Playa – How Art Might Change Business

22 Sep 2010 – Jennifer Biringer

“There is nothing in the intellect which was not first in the senses.” –Aristotle

I have been pondering this quote, a favorite, while reading Art & Physics by Leonard Shlain. The idea that art is a precursor to scientific understanding is a curious assertion, yet Shlain maps a convincing argument based on examples such as the invention of the alphabet as the first form of abstract art, which helped humanity conceive of core scientific concepts like space and time. Likewise, Manet, Monet and Cezanne’s paintings intuited an understanding of space, time and light 40 years before Einstein developed his theory of relativity. Significantly, a major decline in the use of visualization tools and the rational system of thought developed by Aristotle and others occurred around 400 A.D. This corresponded with a decline in literacy, intellectualism and creativity until the period of enlightenment when revolutionary forms of art took hold once again.

I recently experienced what revolutionary art might teach us about overcoming societal challenges in the middle of nowhere, Nevada at Burning Man. Taking place in the barren Black Rock Desert, Burning Man has grown from a fringe counter-culture gathering to a substantial (capped at 50,000 participants) annual affair. The experience promotes creativity in myriad forms, and showcases futuristic art and freedom of expression as antidotes to what the founder, Larry Harvey, calls an “overmediated society”. It’s a place where a new sense of what’s possible, in terms of how society functions, hoves into view for a week each year. Removed from most life as we know it (as is so extremely the case on the waterless, remote playa), everything appears more stark. In this place of ultimate retreat, reawakening and new points of view are the norm.

And what happens? Evidence that breakthroughs emerge from creative, imaginative places and situations, and that art can inspire new pathways. This is true in museums, and amidst the radical creativity found at Burning Man.

But your organization’s employees, be they private sector, government, or civil society, can’t all go to Burning Man – and may not even visit local galleries. So how can we infuse such creativity on a daily basis, at work?

For business, this might mean using more of what Bob Horn of Stanford calls visual language, which he says helps us ‘think bigger thoughts’ and ‘connect the smudges’ of intractable problems. He has used visual argumentation mapping in his “Mapping Great Debates” series which have appeared in Nature and has used visual cognitive maps to provide break-through thinking on science and security policy issues. These approaches show promise for unleashing more creative thinking for companies, something I would like to explore further by testing how business might incorporate more visual (and other creative) tools in their efforts to inspire, describe, and help deliver a better future.