In December of 2011, an invitation was circulated to artists
from around the world, inviting them to participate in a virtual fiber art
collective focused on exploring alternative sources of inspiration. The goal was to bring together artists
from different backgrounds, cultures, and age groups, at different stages in
their fiber art journey and have them share their response to new challenges. The ideas for the new challenges were
originally borrowed from what Harvard psychologist, Howard Gardner, proposed as
“The Theory of Multiple Intelligences” back in the 80’s. Nine intelligences were
described as (with possible challenges in parentheses):
•
Visual: Good with art and design (a photo of a cityscape)
•
Linguistic: Good with words (the word “line”)
•
Logical: Good with numbers and math (the number “7”)
•
Bodily: Good at action, movement and sports
•
Musical: Good with music, tone and rhythm (The Beatles “Abbey
Road”)
•
Interpersonal: Good at communicating with others (a job
interview)
•
Intrapersonal: Good at self-reflection (your adolescence)
•
Naturalistic: Good at appreciating the world and nature (walking
in the rain)
•
Existential: Good at thinking and questioning ultimate realities
(the meaning of life)
The theory has helped us acknowledge different learning styles
and educators to consider different ways to teach. So, if there are many different learning styles, why wouldn’t
there be as many styles that inspire us, some more than others?
Beautiful works of art have been created from a single word
or color. Literal and abstract
translations have sprung from images of all variety of subject matter. When we challenge each other to create
as a group, these are often our sources of inspiration. Yet they largely fall only in the first
2 categories, Visual and Linguistic.
But what if we consider the other “intelligences” and beyond? Where would they lead us? And that is what we set out to explore……
Please join the blog and the journey and return next week to
meet the artists! And always, your
discussion and feedback is welcome.
Just for fun,
check out what your Multiple Intelligences are at:
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