Challenge 2-pi

When Martha first came up with the concept behind this challenge group, and we took the online quiz to see what our strengths and weaknesses were, I realized my least inspirational field was math.  Never liked it since the answers were either right or wrong, black or white.

but.......pi.

It's an invaluable mathematical constant, a ratio that has been known and used since the time of Archimedes, but it can't be precisely expressed through mere numbers.

So a symbol had to be invented for it.

So, my challenge to you is to think of a situation that needs to have a symbol to represent it-

and invent that symbol!

Orientation: landscape

Looking forward to the second virtual gallery on 26 June.

Grappling with a Challenge

I am feeling Sue Dennis' use of the word "grapple" rather than Kate's word "enlightened"in their previous posts in exploring this newest challenge.  I honed in upon the idea of something that couldn't be described easily in words, rather than numbers and I have ricocheted all over.  I trailed "road hogs"  for a nano-second, discarding road signs...probably there are enough of them.  Besides, knowing the composite of the group, I thought I should try to pick my game up a bit and go for something more profound.

Then a recent magazine cover (and I won't disclose which at this point) produced yammering talking-heads on TV and radio...the cover image was also a bit disquieting to me, but not for the same reasons the media jumped on it.  And, it coincided with another book and article I had recently read describing the challenges of being a mother.  Okay, there is a big hint.

Having already, without knowing it, informed myself and developed an opinion, actually creating the piece came very quickly.  It's done.

What's interesting about this challenge for me is that, having created this piece, I now realize how passionate I am about the cause.  I don't think that would have sunk in to my conscious without my having thought it through and then gone the extra mile in creating the concept visually.  And, now that I'm finished, when I look at it .... it does symbolize my concept that takes WAY too many words to explain.  Mission accomplished, at least for me.

I can hardly wait until D (disclose) -Day and see what tack others in the group have taken.  Sometimes there is commonality, but this time, I have a feeling the group is going to show its diversity.

A Simple Strategy

Challenge 2 is proving to be quite fun and enlightening.  An idea came to me as I listened to NPR.  The guest was talking about unintended consequences - how sometimes the most well intentioned short term decisions can add up to disaster in the long term.  Human beings are great at creating strategies to reach short term goals.  From making a casserole to running a marathon, experienced experts have developed some pretty accurate formulas.  There are steps to follow and criteria to judge your success.

But how do we create a formula for those things that take decades to see results? For example, what is the strategy for raising smart/kind/healthy/self-reliant children? Despite the number of people who have been parents from the dawn of humanity, no one has come up with a step by step guide to success. It’s very hard to tell how you are progressing or at what point the goal has been accomplished. No one gets to “Win” at parenthood.

Faced with this dilemma, it’s not surprising that most people focus their energy where they can measure accomplishments and track their progress (like in their jobs) rather than the big-picture goals that can’t be tracked or measured in the short term and offer only a vague possibility of reward at some undetermined point in the future (like raising children).

Hypothetical example: The boss wants you to work late vs. your family wants you to be home for dinner: Working late is one step toward a clear reward, a paycheck. And failing to work late could result in immediate cost, like losing one’s job. Kids need food and a roof over their heads so there is an immediate benefit related to working late and bringing home a paycheck.  What are the benefits to being home for dinner? Quality time with kids, conversation, family bonding… things that are not quantifiable and cannot be directly linked to our children’s success in adulthood. In this single instance it makes sense to make work the priority over family.

But take that same balance of priorities and multiply by hundreds of missed dinners, missed conversations, lack of attention, over the course of 20 years. It’s like the “Butterfly Effect”. At what point did the deficit of time and attention to family tip toward neglect?  At what point does this start hurting the relationships?
It takes thousands of short term decisions over many years to create the overall pattern in one’s life.

I started thinking about this, and noticing short term decisions I made during the day that counteracted my long term priorities. And how I am (by example) teaching my kids about priorities, risks and rewards, and creating strategies for achieving goals.
I also thought about the decisions I make as an individual can affect the environment in which other people make decisions.  People take their life experiences with them into adulthood and influence other people – in the jury room, the classroom or even the Oval Office.  The balance of their decisions can have a huge effect on the next generation.

In the spirit of this challenge, I think I’ve found an idea that cannot be accurately expressed through numbers or formula. Or even words - I'm not sure what to call this idea. Something like "interconnected life strategies" maybe.  Okay, I have a name for it.  Now all I have to do is create a symbol to represent it. 

What could be more simple?

Grappling with a new symbol

Just as Martha, Mary, Lisa-Marie and Misik are, I too have been grappling with inventing a new symbol. At first I thought the new  Pi challenge set by Betty would be easy, but on careful pondering it was anything but! My head was spinning and I had to get back to Keep It Simple Susan- KISS. This Thames and Hudson book 'Signs, Symbols and Ciphers- Decoding the Message' has been in my library for a long time and it was now about to shed light on my dilemma.

I came to realise that symbols are so ingrained in our psyche that we can read them automatically and we are surrounded by them each and every day.

The size of the challenge quilts- 18" x 24" in either landscape or portrait orientation allows me to play with techniques or products I've wanted to try. Out came the Decolorant Plus, black fabric, stamps, paint brushes and outside where it is well ventilated I had a great time playing. You will have to wait for the reveal on June 26 to see the final outcome.

Misik's Response to the pi-Challenge

Unfamiliar with these things for me, but it is clear that it's interesting.
When I read Betty's challenge. what is it?
This is Pi. a mathematical symbol.
When I saw it first time, I realize it is kind of the character.
It was reminiscent of the character of our country.
This is not as a mathematical symbol to me.



It gave me the motivation to think.
To express this feeling in my mind is not easy.
But many things are already were drawing in my mind.
It is my challenge to express them in my work.

ㄱ   ㄴ ㄷ ㄹ  ㅂ   ㅅ  ㅇ  ㅈ  ㅊ  ㅋ

ㄱ   ㄴ ㄷ ㄹ  ㅂ   ㅅ  ㅇ  ㅈ  ㅊ  ㅋ

ㄱ   ㄴ ㄷ ㄹ  ㅂ   ㅅ  ㅇ  ㅈ  ㅊ  ㅋ

Lisa-Marie's Pi Panic

When I first read Betty’s challenge, I was excited. I have always loved the elegant simplicity of symbols, rich with meaning yet clear and concise. The challenge to create a symbol of my own was daunting but exhilarating.

I had several ideas of situations that needed symbols: 

•   Murphy’s Law (If anything can go wrong it will, and at the worst possible moment)
•   The pain of the mundane (the endless stream of meaningless obligations)
•   The odd experience when, after re-tying a shoe that has come untied, the other shoe suddenly feels too loose.

Unfortunately, my enthusiasm quickly gave way to panic: what in the world will I create? It’s one thing to conceive of situations, but how will I depict them? I got tripped up thinking my symbol had to be linear, like an Asian character, but then I started noticing logos and how figures and words are also used. I noticed that symbols aren’t necessarily completely unique, they are often just an innovative way of rendering existing shapes.

Lost and Found

AT&T

Phew! That helps alleviate some of the pressure. I am not limited to line, I can use letters or figures or combinations of these to create something new. 

Though I see a broader range of possibilities, I confess, I’m not making much progress. 

I have, however, noticed my challenge experience follows a familiar path: 

1. Excitement
2. Panic
3. Procrastination
4. Design
5. Deadline
6. Reality
7. Relief
8. Repeat

Looks like I’m right on target.  Maybe I need to develop a symbol for that.

Mary's Take on Challenge 2

Well, this is a Challenge group, indeed! This whole experience has been quite an eye-opener for me because I am so unaccustomed to being assigned a subject when making my artwork - I come up with my concept and I proceed to make the vision a reality.  So this group is definitely pulling me out of my very comfortable little rut and making me think in all kinds of new ways. Which is the point, right?

The last challenge had me cogitating on how to depict something auditory in visual terms.  That was tough enough! Now I have a two-fold assignment: design a symbol to represent something that doesn't have one, and then depict it in an aesthetically pleasing way.

Like Martha, my mind turned first to the symbols we see around us all the time - to warn us about dangers: ...

to tell us what we should do  ...                                                                               

                                                                           ... or should not do ....



I can see it might be easy to have a lot of fun with this challenge.  Martha's post title was "Too Much Pi" and I imagined designing a symbol for that!

But I was flummoxed enough to write to Betty and make sure I grasped what she was envisioning.  (Is that cheating?)  :)

Aha! Emoticons! :D  Wonderful little symbols for expressing tone of voice so emails don't get misinterpreted!

:-O   Gasp           0:-)  Angel                :-{{  Angry face           >:-(      Annoyed  

@:-}     Just back from hairdresser

:-(O=    Too much pie

So in the interests of sharing my newfound knowledge with my struggling colleagues, here are Betty's hints:

Think of something that takes many words to approximate (like pi can take many numbers) and then make a symbol for it. 
like- that feeling in the morning when you get an idea when you're half asleep and then spend the next couple of hours trying to remember it ... or- what happens when you're listening to someone drone on and on and really want to be someplace else


Okay, that helps.  It's coming to me.  I think I will work on designing a symbol for that feeling you get when you are facing an insurmountable challenge! 


!
o A

Too much pi: Martha Weighs In

Universal Choking Sign

The second challenge, served up by Betty, is a profound one.  What immediately sprung to mind were two pictograms - the Universal Choking Sign (which, admittedly, could have been a reaction to the challenge) and remember when Prince became "The Artist Formerly Known as Prince" back in the 90's? It got me started on what has turned into a really challenging process......to think of a situations that needs to have a symbol to represent it and create it.

Prince's Love Logo

No Sausage in the Freiburg Münster 

We are utterly surrounded by signs, symbols, logos, trademarks, emoticons, and more. We don't even notice the difference between a word and a symbol in many cases. We know what they mean....

Some tell us not to do things.

No Man's Best Friend

!, indeed @ Giessbach Falls 

 

Some warn us to "Look Out!"

Some are just universal product recognition.

.......now I start to think deeper, product recognition means different things to different people....ie, great quick meal vs poor diet choice.....unlike pi that has only one meaning.....

Apple Store @ the Louvre

In fact, some symbols even polarize us.

 

Equal Rights Campaign

So, I think I need to create a symbol that represents some universal truth, something non-subjective, something that can only mean one thing.  It gets more difficult.  Things that come to mind now....hiccups?  I start to realize how few things in my experience mean the same thing to everybody else.  Even scientific data can be interpreted in different ways.  Maybe it will *have* to be something mathematical...