~ HyperThink ~

Phonosemantics: “Buba” & “Kiki”

Which of these shapes above is “bouba” and which is “kiki”?

In 1929, German-American psychologist Wolfgang Köhler conducted a series of In psychological experiments, which showed forms similar to those shown above, and found a strong preference to pair the jagged shape with the word "takete" and the rounded shape with the word "baluba" ("maluma" in the 1947 version).

In  2001, Vilayanur S. Ramachandran and Edward Hubbard repeated Köhler experiment using the words "kiki" and "bouba" and asked large numbers of subjects "Which of these shapes is bouba and which is kiki?" In tests conducted with both English and Tamil speakers, 95% to 98% picked the curvy shape as bouba and the jagged one as kiki, suggesting that the human brain is somehow able to extract abstract properties from the shapes and sounds. Recent work by Daphne Maurer and colleagues has shown that even children as young as 2.5 (too young to read) show this effect.

Read about Sound Symbolism and Buba and Kiki.

Color Symbolism and Culture

Considerations when putting together the color pallet of your next global advertising campaign. Who is your audience? Who are you designing for? Asian, European, Latin, Indian, African, Americans, Eskimos?

According to Britannica (Britannica: "color"),

"the most important aspect of color in daily life is probably the one that is least defined and most variable. It involves aesthetic and psychological responses to color and influences art, fashion, commerce, and even physical and emotional sensations.

The first step is to note that colors are not universal to all humans in all cultures. Some languages don’t have specific words for green, blue, yellow or orange. In a related example, Eskimos use 17 words for white as applied to different snow conditions, where in the Northwest United States there are only 4 or 5.

Like color terminology, color harmony, color preferences, color symbolism, and other psychological aspects of color are culturally conditioned, and they vary considerably with both place and historical period. Another example of cultural difference could be the colors that are associated with mourning. In the United States, black is associated, but in other cultures around the world colors like white, purple, and gold are used during the mourning period."

Check out this pretty good Cultural Color Symbolism Chart here.

Take a your own color personality test developed by Max Luscher.

Hypnotism: The stage visuals of Etienne De Crecy & NIN

Fantastic use of perspective and stage design design:

TED - Ken Robinson: Do Schools Kill creativity?

Ken Robinson has a fantastic 20 minute speech on creativity and education:

"Sir Ken Robinson makes an entertaining (and profoundly moving) case for creating an education system that nurtures creativity, rather than undermining it. With ample anecdotes and witty asides, Robinson points out the many ways our schools fail to recognize -- much less cultivate -- the talents of many brilliant people. "We are educating people out of their creativity," Robinson says. The universality of his message is evidenced by its rampant popularity online. A typical review: "If you have not yet seen Sir Ken Robinson's TED talk, please stop whatever you're doing and watch it now."

You should have been a dancer...

Light Design: PikaPika

Mesmerizing digital stop motion animation movie.

the "making of" video is here:

enjoi.

The Creative Personality: Ten paradoxical traits of the creative personality.

A fantastic article by author Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi  in the archive files of Psychology Today discussing 10 characteristics that are the driving force of creative individuals. These 10 are:

1. Creative people have a great deal of physical energy, but they're also often quiet and at rest. They work long hours, with great concentration, while projecting an aura of freshness and enthusiasm.

2. Creative people tend to be smart yet naive at the same time.

3. Creative people combine playfulness and discipline, or responsibility and irresponsibility.

4. Creative people alternate between imagination and fantasy, and a rooted sense of reality.

5. Creative people trend to be both extroverted and introverted.

6. Creative people are humble and proud at the same time.

7. Creative people, to an extent, escape rigid gender role stereotyping.

8. Creative people are both rebellious and conservative.

9. Most creative people are very passionate about their work, yet they can be extremely objective about it as well.

10. Creative people's openness and sensitivity often exposes them to suffering and pain, yet also to a great deal of enjoyment.

You can read the rest of the article here. enjoi.