The Creation of Christmas: Two Thousand Years of Collective Creativity
Release Date: 12/01/2024
The Art of Motion: Capturing Life on Paper an Interview with Carol Fabricatore
The Science of Creativity
Based in New York City, Carol prefers to leave the studio and seek out the immediacy of city life, whether sidewalks, parks, boxing studios, or Coney Island. In this conversation, Carol Fabricatore shares her extensive experience as a professional illustrator and how she teaches advanced MFA students to advance on their creative journey. She talks about the mystery of capturing motion and energy in drawing, the role of fearlessness in artistic practice, and the transformative journey of students in MFA programs. She emphasizes the value of leaving the computer and drawing by hand, the...
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How AI Hinders Creativity in Education: Matt Worwood on The Convenience Trap
The Science of Creativity
Matthew Worwood is a full-time Digital Media Design faculty member at the University of Connecticut. He has research interests in Creativity, Design Thinking, and Co-Creativity using Generative AI tools and Digital Media. Outside of his research, Matthew is an experienced learning experience designer who works closely with K-12 educators on professional growth and teacher creativity. He is co-host of the Fueling Creativity in Education Podcast and has produced two low-budget documentary films that explore topics related to creativity in education. For further information: Teacher Roundtables: ...
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Art, Design, and the Creative Process with Lorne Buchman
The Science of Creativity
In this conversation, Lorne Buchman discusses his book . It’s based on interviews he did with creators in a range of fields. These interviews connect with the same themes in my book --powerful features of creativity like iteration, uncertainty, engaging with materials, and an improvisational dialogue with the unfolding work. He shares his personal journey in discovering creativity, emphasizing the importance of engaging with uncertainty and the role of improvisation in art and life. Buchman highlights how constraints can stimulate creativity, and the significance of fostering a...
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Kara Rooney: Finding Your Voice as an Artist
The Science of Creativity
Kara Rooney is a successful New York multidisciplinary artist who creates installation performances and videos, as well as sculpture, painting, and photography. She's had numerous solo and group shows and performances, with many in New York City but also in Mexico, Italy, and Czechoslovakia. She's a published critic with articles in the New York Times and catalog essays, and she's curated many exhibitions. In this conversation, we talk about the complexities of being an artist. Kara talks about the challenge of finding one's voice and the importance of discipline and studio time....
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Steve DeFrank: Unlocking Creativity in Art Education
The Science of Creativity
Steve DeFrank is a top New York painter with numerous one-person exhibitions and group exhibitions. His solo exhibitions include Clementine Gallery in New York, and the Clifford Smith Gallery in Boston. His group shows include the Smithsonian Institute’s National Portrait Gallery and The National Arts Club in New York, and many others. His work has been reviewed in The New York Times, in The New Yorker, and many others. He’s been a Visiting Artist at Cornell University, the Massachusetts College of Art, and he currently teaches at the School of Visual Arts in New York City, where he's...
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Scott Barry Kaufman: Inspiring Creativity
The Science of Creativity
Scott Barry Kaufman is an influential psychologist, creativity researcher, podcaster, and best-selling book author. In this episode, we explore themes such as the messy nature of creative minds, the importance of incubation, and the role of daydreaming. We discuss the brain's imagination network and the balance between conscious and unconscious processes in fostering creativity. Scott emphasizes the significance of psychological flexibility and the ability to embrace uncertainty, while also highlighting the value of sensitivity in the creative process. Our discussion culminates in practical...
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Kelly Leonard: Improv Comedy at The Second City
The Science of Creativity
Kelly Leonard has been involved with improv comedy for almost 40 years. He's worked with actors and comedians including Stephen Colbert, Tina Fey, Keegan Michael Key, Seth Meyers and Amy Poehler. He started working at the Second City Theater in Chicago in 1988, eventually becoming producer in 1992, and later, taking on roles and titles including Executive Director, Executive Vice President, and Creative Adviser. Since 2016, he’s been Vice President of Creative Strategy, Innovation, and Business Development. He’s produced hundreds of original revues. His 2015 book Yes, And received rave...
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Adam Green: The Neuroscience and Neurostimulation of Creativity
The Science of Creativity
Dr. Adam Green is an expert in brain research and neurostimulation of creativity. He also studies how the use of AI influences creativity in the user. Spoiler alert: Using AI often reduces creativity. He’s the Director of the , a founder and former president of , and Editor-In-Chief at the Creativity Research Journal. His main interest is in human creative intelligence and especially in understanding how neural processes constitute our best ideas. Adam’s work includes research into endogenous neural mechanisms and exogenous neurostimulation that support creative relational reasoning, as...
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Scott Thorp: Creative Thinking Strategies in Art and Design
The Science of Creativity
Scott Thorp is an artist, writer and educator specializing in creativity. He’s a professor at Augusta University, and is the Chair of the Department of Art and Design and the Associate Vice President for Interdisciplinary Research. Scott earned his MFA in multi-disciplinary art from the Maryland Institute College of Art. In addition to his artistic practice, he was a regular contributor to the international art magazine, , where he wrote about technology-based, contemporary artists. Before Augusta University, he was a professor at Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) from 2005 to 2015,...
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Zorana Ivcevic Pringle: The Creativity Choice
The Science of Creativity
Dr. Zorana Ivcevic Pringle is a Senior Research Scientist at the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence. Her work has been featured in the Harvard Business Review, US News, Science Daily, and others, and she is a regular contributor to Psychology Today and Creativity Post. Zorana studies many aspects of the creative process, including idea generation but also creative mindsets, creative self-efficacy, and the role of emotions in creativity. Her new book is called The Creativity Choice: The Science of Making Decisions to Turn Ideas into Action. She argues that creativity is a choice--not only...
info_outlineThe perfect podcast for the Christmas season! This is a special Christmas episode of The Science of Creativity. Many of the traditions that we love—gift-giving, Santa Claus, kissing under the mistletoe—were invented across the generations, and are always evolving. This special holiday episode gives you the creation story of the secular, non-religious traditions that we celebrate at Christmas. The collective creation of these Christmas traditions is what I call social innovation, a kind of collective creativity where everyone plays a role. Five hundred years ago, Christmas was a wild party, where young men got drunk and roamed in packs around town. Children didn’t start getting gifts until about 200 years ago. In the late 1800s, the Santa Claus myth was invented, along with the elves and the sleigh and the workshop at the North Pole. It started two thousand years ago, in Ancient Rome, it picked up steam in the 1800s, and we’re still creating new Christmas traditions today.
Chapters
0:00 Teaser
1:11 Introduction to the Special Episode
2:12 Tradition and Invention
5:28 Wassailing
12:23 Toys
16:06 Santa Claus
21:25 The War on Christmas
25:24 The Holiday for Everyone
27:54 Closer
28:44 Outro
Music by License from Soundstripe:
- “Blues for Oliver” by Cast of Characters
- “Silent Night” by Cast of Characters
- “O Christmas Tree” by O Christmas Tree Jazz Trio
- “Just Walkin’” by Ryan Saranich
- “Uptown Lovers” by AFTERNOONZ
Notes
Wikipedia entries: “The war on Christmas” and “Wassailing” and “Syncretism”
Copyright (c) 2024 Keith Sawyer