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My Search for Inspiration

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About six o’clock every morning, I take my dog Millie (She’s still a baby) for a walk. I find this the best time for planning my day, thinking about what needs to be done, setting priorities, what’s important and what is not, details, intricacies, order, etc. I find walking with Millie the perfect way to get perspective, keep fit, de-stress and to find inspiration.

Our early morning walks really set me up for the day, I’m certain Millie likes them as well, as she’s normally eagerly waiting by the front door about that time.

However, shortly after I first published this page, one of my readers informed me that she lived in a big city and it wasn’t “easily possible to take a walk in the countryside, and hence draw on an inspirational comparison.” So, I put this series of photos together as a kind of ‘virtual walk’, so that in my own little way I could help anyone experience our early morning nature walk, and who knows even find some inspiration.

I really hope you enjoy ‘our walk’, and the rest of the article,

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I believe that for most people, easy sources of inspiration are generally one of those intangible, out of reach concepts. Speaking personally, inspiration never seems to materialise at the right moment and isn’t available on demand the moment I sit down in my studio or office. Inspiration seems to tap me on the shoulder at the most improbable moments - walking, driving, sleeping, dreaming, making the morning coffee, talking or thinking about something else. My mother once told me that if you lose something and really wish to find it, look for something else, and you’re bound to find what you were originally looking for. I believe inspiration is just like that! The real trick is how to grasp the inspiration: the essence, encompass it, wring out the details and don’t let it fall through ones fingers like sand on a beach.

Of course, the process of conceptualising, planning, designing is different for everyone, and in earlier times artists, architects, engineers, poets and composers didn’t have access to the vast resource library of the internet to draw upon as a source of knowledge, and hence inspiration.

In nature, a sunflower, the symmetry of a microorganism, the patterns in fur, a flock of birds, the ocean waves. These and thousands of other images are the kaleidoscope of patterns and forms that nature displays to us during the course of a lifetime. Nature has provided us all with inspiration since the beginning of time, the least we can do is to take the time to appreciate it.

To appreciate patterns in nature involves both art and science. Some of us just enjoy the art and put the science aside. Most people cannot take a walk in the woods or along the beach without taking in the simple beauty of the moment and then go on to search for new understanding about just why things happen as they do. Personally, I think beauty in nature is much like music; you do not have to understand musical theory or the underlying mathematical complexity to nonetheless still appreciate the beauty of the melodies.

Taking inspiration from nature isn’t a new idea. After all, nature has managed to create a complex self-sustaining system of life supporting millions of species over billions of years. There is a lot we can learn about design from natural systems, and many designers, engineers and thinkers over the last century have found inspiration in nature. From buildings and bridges to machines and medicine, examining the intricacies of the natural system in which we exist has aided in the development of improving almost every aspect of human life. Our relationship with nature’s patterns yields both an infinitely rich display of beautiful things and a manifestation of the underlying order in our world. Enough material for many lifetimes of contemplation and study.

When observed deeply, it becomes quite apparent that the Nature’s design follows certain mathematical aspects. To try and understand how Nature extrapolates its design, mathematics is and has been a great tool which designers and mathematicians like Fibonacci have used since times immemorial. Artists and architects have also used since ancient times many geometrical and mathematical properties : we could take some examples simply by observing the refined use of the proportions by architects from Ancient Egypt, Greece and Rome or other Renaissance artists like Michelangelo, Leonardo Da Vinci or Raphael.

The very fabric of Nature has always allured me and kept me swimming in the sea of astonishment. I often wondered how such patterns arose, but never found an explanation. Looking back, I think part of the difficulty was that people didn’t have the tools needed to explore the question. But today, we have highly sophisticated tools and devices which help us understand (to a certain extent) and appreciate the beauty and intricacy of nature.

In the past several decades, however, a rich convergence of insight has come from a wide range of scientific disciplines, including biology, chemistry, computer science, mathematics, and physics. Out of that mix the field of complex systems emerged.

I get most of my actual inspiration away from the computer. When working on a commission I usually have some kind of brief so generally I know where the edges are, and any limits that can constrain what I am able to do, and hence how I can work. But, the actual inspiration - the approach - for me doesn’t come by doodling or messing about for hours at my computer or notebook.

Personally, one of the most truly creative times of the day is very early morning when I am taking Millie for her walk.

The infinite beauty of nature

Observing nature firsthand is a wonderful way to recharge ones batteries, ease the mind, and come across fresh perspective on ideas, perspectives and design. An important part of getting inspiration from nature is not to just view it. The deeper you look, the more you will see. The patterns, structures, textures and colours of trees, leaves, earth, grass and water. By paying close attention to the environment around you can help you incorporate new elements into your designs. Getting close to nature is good for the body and mind, and the inspiration you will draw from nature is also a good check against taking too much inspiration from other sources.

There are many other sources to gain inspiration:

Travel

There is an abundance of culture, lifestyle and art to be discovered when you travel. The discoveries you encounter may not always be available to you where you live and can help you escape the rut of everyday work. These types of discoveries can be awe-inspiring in a way that is mentally stimulating. Don’t forget to take pictures of your journey to reflect upon later.

Architecture

At one time or another we all visit large cities anywhere through out the world. But, how many times do you take the time to marvel in such places and remember that nearly everything we see there; buildings, skyscrapers, parks, have all been in someones mind-eye’s at some stage. Studying the line, shape and form of these mostly beautiful buildings is a great way to fire up the imagination and derive inspiration. The shapes and patterns in modern architecture share the same principles as design elements on the web. There’s a awe-factor in the creativity of structural design that encompasses personality, variety and colour that is sure to inspire.

Photography

Photography is one of the best ways to capture human emotions and feelings. Photography often allows our minds to wander through various emotions and personal memories creating a new realm of inspiration.

Fashion

Fashion is very much artwork in itself. The colours, structure and textures used in fashion can be applied the same way in design. Specific styles and eras of fashion design can resonate with your personal style, making it easier to discover a new found source of inspiration.

Discovering, and taking inspiration from the world around you

Visit a museum, art gallery, music shop, coffee shop, vintage clothing store or take a slow walk around a park. Go to a foreign grocery store and study the packaging designs. View architecture and street art – nothing can be more stimulating than discovering the very area in and around where you live - your town, city and country, own city, especially areas you have never visited before. Many of these places have a wealth of undiscovered artwork that can be used as inspiration.

The unfathomable degree of complexity

There is no clear demarcation between nature and human centred design. One has to start developing an empathy with natural processes, rather than an arrogant conviction that one understands the whole of an objectified nature. It is about an attempt to observe without judgment and to feel with all of the senses.

In contemplation of patterns, we find more refined, profound, or subtle insights into good procedures. One of the ways in which we can learn from nature is through the understanding of patterns and forms.

The geometry of Fractals brings us a new understanding and appreciation for the natural world and the patterns we observe in it. The nautilus is one of the most famous examples of a fractal in nature. The perfect pattern is called a Fibonacci spiral. Also, approximate fractals are easily found in nature. These objects display self-similar structure over an extended, but finite scale range. Examples include clouds, river networks, fault lines, mountain ranges, craters, snow flakes, crystals, lightning, cauliflower, broccoli, and systems of blood vessels and pulmonary vessels, and even ocean waves. Coastlines may be loosely considered fractal in nature.

An understanding of the form of a fractal structure has many implications for design. It is worth asking what happens if you take these forms and push them, using them as an analogy for design, as opposed to drawing straight lines. The edge of a fractal allows a dense packing of space and a large surface area between systems.

Understanding Patterns

The word pattern can be a slippery one. It has a multiplicity of meanings, from a shape, to blueprint, to structure, thread of development or repetition, or a concept. This implies that there are simple patterns which are repeated in nature to more complex ones that manifest itself in the largest to the smallest organisms. Many different structures develop from these patterns due to different evolutions and conditions in place, however there is a deep underlying similarity between the forms produced .

This can be seen as analogous to the creation of fractals in chaos theory, where a simple equation is applied over and over and produces different, but self-similar patterns each time. A complex pattern is built up of the interaction of simple parts.

“Each pattern describes a problem which occurs over and over again and again in our environment, and then describes the core of the solution to that problem, in such a way that you can use this solution a million times over, without ever doing it the same way twice.” (Alexander, 1977)

Observation and the Process of Design

A creative process of design should involve an increasing depth of experience and perception. Patterns in nature should not be seen as a static blueprint for design. We should understand what to look at, then how to look and how to go about making changes. Careful observation and making small changes which allow regeneration to occur allows us to learn to follow a process of design and not a set of rules.

Pure design can emerge from making observations without judgment. We all need to open our senses to the vast array of the imagination to be able to create designs that resonate with nature, but are still practical. After all, nature has had millions of years to get it right. Design should still be a fluid process, as it is just about impossible to take all the factors into account the first time round.

I really hope this has been useful.