Creativity as problem-solving
Christen Cornell and Peter Kelly
The project’s Action Research Industry Group (ARIG) comprises stakeholders from various arts-based organisations working with young people, and from across a range of education, training and industry sectors.
Our first VideoAsk question for the ARIG was deliberately open, allowing people to bring their varied perspectives to the project.
Question: The word ‘creativity’ is used a lot in contemporary work contexts, not least of all in discussions about young people and 21st century skills.
Without seeking agreement or consensus, we are interested in what comes to your mind when the topic of creativity, 21st century skills and young people employment pathways is raised.
Speaking from your background and experience, what does the word ‘creativity’ mean when it comes to young people and training for future work?
The responses were diverse and intriguing, and fell into what we’ve identified as two early themes. In this blog we are interested in briefly highlighting:
Theme 1: Creativity as problem-solving, and what this means for future societies and the world of work.
We can see this in responses from:
Zoe Scrogings (Corrugated Iron Youth Arts) and Hannah James (AIME), who focus particularly on problem-solving as it might be required in response to social disruptions and/or general development of a person.
Shane Duggan (Accenture Song), Kevin Robbie (Think Impact) and Iain Lockie (RMIT – Lifelong Learning) who speak about the need to develop new systems to respond to and organise a changing world (in professional contexts in particular).
Jacqueline Twillie (AIME) who suggested that creativity ‘means being able to problem-solve, think outside of the box and look for solutions that are not obvious’.
In his response, Fraser Corfield (ATYP) critiqued the way in which the word ‘creativity’ has become a buzzword of government and industry that rarely describes the work of the arts. In its popular industry form, Fraser says, ‘creativity’ generally refers to IT or engineering, and the creative engine of the arts sector is often ignored:
“But it's been my experience over the years that when government or industry wants to talk about creativity they don't look to the Arts for creativity, they look for industries like architecture and IT and Engineering, is where they refer to creativity. So I think it's become like the notion of innovation, it’s become a buzzword that has very little meaning.”
Fraser then offers his own definition of creativity, which includes many of the features described by other ARIG members: an ability to respond to a difficult situation with nuance, flexibility and intelligence, formulating original ideas when required:
“I think one of the things that's clear is that we need to create young people who can problem solve, who can work collaboratively and who can adapt to change, and I think young people who have those skills as a general rule, tend to be creative. People that can't work as collaboratively or can't problem-solve, often are not as skilled in my experience in creativity.”
It's worth noting that Fraser’s observation also echoes a common critique of Richard Florida’s The Rise of the Creative Class, which is that it ignored and even sidelined artists and arts and cultural workers. The consequences of this were felt strongly after ‘the creative class’ discourse became a key part of early 21st century gentrification and urban displacement (which hit young artists hard!).
This dissonance between what we in the ARIG understand ‘creativity’ to mean, and the ways in which the word has been used in marketing and policy contexts, suggests a possibly productive tension within the project. This tension is deepened by the fact that policy is also referring to ‘problem-solving’ and ‘flexibility’ when it invokes the term. Perhaps it is just a question of who is seen to hold these skills, who is seen to be a legitimate part of ‘industry’, or which industries have been favoured by the ‘creativity’ discourse thus far?
Check out all the video and audio responses in the YouTube playlist below: