Final Thoughts

The word that stands out to my team the most with regards to the written and literary community in Calgary is accessibility. Now, more than ever, we can see the impact that isolation and inaccessibility has on a community and on individuals. Today, all Calgarians are facing the reality of isolation as we practice social distancing and self-quarantine but, for many in our community, these were already ordinary experiences. This could be for many reasons, from chronic illness to mobility issues. Or, it could be those experiencing poverty that can’t afford to take part in the community in the same way as others. Further still, those who don’t speak English might feel isolated, even in our busiest community hubs.

That is why my team wanted to look at the written and literary community through a lens of accessibility. Were we providing people the opportunity to engage with the written and literary works in a way that was fun and not intimidating? Were we able to facilitate interaction in multiple languages? How might we engage those who have learning disabilities or who are visually impaired or those whose cultures value oral traditions over written?

While we might not have been able to answer all of these questions, I believe we were able to answer a few. While our basic premise was to read a letter from a stranger and write one ourselves, we prototyped boxes for some of the most commonly spoken languages in Calgary, as well as indigenous languages. If the event was to go through, we would have also had a few hours each day where we had a person monitoring the experiment, and providing space for those who want to tell their story orally, or who might need assistance writing their story down.

Since our lives have been drastically changed by the COVID-19 pandemic, let’s take some time to consider how we might change our communities and societies for the better based on this experience. For me, I’ll be thinking about accessibility.

Finals thoughts about VivacityYYC

It was unfortunate that we could no longer have the final showcase for our citizen experiment and have the public engage with it. However, despite the challenging time that we are facing, we would love to share our thoughts about the wonderful experiences we had learning, designing and networking in VivacityYYC.

Learning about Calgary’s visual arts industry taught us a great deal in the importance of being surrounded by the art here in Calgary, not only for its appeal but for the experience and for its ability to bring artists together to communicate what’s important to them and the city as a whole.

Being part of the visual arts team taught us a great deal about the creative process and developing creative confidence. From ideating, to building stuff and meeting enthusiastic creatives from around Calgary, the experience was both exciting and therapeutic.

In the end, our team came up with a brilliant idea that not only enables us to engage Calgarians in our experiment but also gives us a sense about the public’s general perception of the arts in Calgary.

P.S. The picture above is our final design mockup!

A Journey

(Unsplash, Eberhard Grossgasteiger)

The art cluster groups were formed early and by our second class the performing arts team was seated together, getting to know one another. The group is made up of a diverse set of students with different academic backgrounds and performing arts experiences. Each group member has a unique perspective about performing arts formed from personal experiences as an audience member, performer or production and crew. The mix of experiences, education and skills worked immensely well for us and allowed the group to hit the ground running. 

The class schedule was organized to take us through the design process and each week we applied another layer to our design idea. Some weeks the process was smooth and our group moved forward many steps on our design. Other weeks the group felt stuck or confused; Where is the design going or how does this all fit? These stuck moments were uncomfortable, but also necessary for the group to push through. Each time we hit a roadblock, and there were many, the group pulled together, pivoted and kept going. 

The support and guidance given to the groups by the artists, community members, professors and professionals that attended our class, was an integral component of the design process. The knowledge and experiences that were shared deepened our understanding of the cluster within Calgary and provided additional perspective. 

Civic Innovation and the citizen experiment has been a journey for our group. Each step of the process has helped to develop our skills and abilities. The knowledge gained will guide us forward to be more effective civic and social innovators.  

Collaboration

(Unsplash,  jo-szczepanska)

Nearing the end of our Citizen Experiment, our team began to brainstorm a list of words that encompassed our overall feelings and experience with our project. With words like discovery, journey, messy, experimenting, patience - the list goes on. However, one of the words that stood out to us in particular was: collaboration. While there are many ways of defining this word, to us, collaboration means more than simply "working together”. Collaboration often involves two or more groups which do not normally work together, bringing forward unique, yet applicable skills. Each of us brought expansive knowledge from various backgrounds, while still coming together on a mutual, core interest. 

Countless hours have gone into the preparation of our citizen engagement piece, and we were able to come to the conclusion that collaboration amongst the performance art niches would be beneficial for everyone. During our panel presentations, our team learned of many event calendars available online to inform on events in Calgary. However, not all calendars are well known, accessed, and comprehensive. The information is scattered. A possible solution exists in the co-creation of a universal calendar in which many organizations can advertise their events.  As well, the promotion and awareness of a universal calendar would be necessary.

Final Thoughts from the Music Cluster Team

Although it is disappointing our team did not end up installing our experiment, we wanted to dedicate this post to talk about how great our experience with this process was. Learning more about the local music industry in Calgary was eye-opening and brought all team members a sense of Calgary pride. As we look back, our time at the Civic Innovation YYC lab was one of our favorite memories and held major breakthroughs. We got to spend the afternoon with the lab team learning all about building and testing prototypes. It was when we constructed our prototype and set it up in the library that we were able to work out all the kinks, make improvements to our design and recognize the sharing opportunities our experiment gave fostered. Our team worked really well together through the difficult and uncertain parts of this process which resulted in a final design we are proud to call ours! 

Pictured above is the result of our prototyping and beside it is our mock-up to present to the community panel. 

Community Panel Feedback

Our group had an amazing experience presenting to members of the community panel. It was very rewarding being able to take in the constructive feedback from people holding prominent positions in varying sectors of the city. A particular message that we received was to incorporate actual sound into our exhibit. This would add to the experience as well as make it a more rounded experience. Another interesting idea proposed was that we build a three-dimensional structure that people could physically place their input on. Given the time restraints, money and library protocols; this was not feasible. Speaking one-on-one with several of the panelists was very enlightening. Our idea actually expanded upon an already proven successful systems map. Adding another level of data interpretation; through the use of geographical location of music experiences had never been done before. This gave our group alot of faith in our idea. Having the opportunity to meet some of the best in the industry, was exceptional and a once in a lifetime school experience. Thank you again for the constructive feedback. We appreciate it greatly.

Literary Arts Community Panel Feedback

I was anxious as my group got ready to present to the community panel. Our idea, of little mailboxes encouraging strangers to write letters to each other, was something that our team had worked tirelessly on for weeks. None of us knew what to expect from the community panel, fueling nerves in all of us.

That being said, however, as soon as we started presenting, I felt the fear wash away. We had worked hard on our design and our prototypes and now we had the opportunity to show our work. Plus, the panel provided great feedback and encouraged us to take our work even further. It made us rethink our use of prompts for the letter-writing and to see how we could make an online element central to our experiment.

The future of our experiments is precarious at the moment, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, but I am proud of my team for what we have created. I am also glad for the opportunity to share it with, at least a segment of, the community.

Performing Arts Panel Feedback

After much preparation and anticipation for the community panel’s feedback of our design, the day finally arrived - what were the judges going to say? Would they like our concept as much as we did? Would we have to restart from scratch? All these questions stirred within us as open ended possibilities.

We presented our design with the aim of trying to challenge the notions of “there is nothing to do in Calgary” and “all the action is at the core” with a calendar and map prototype to inform participants. We also focused on  bringing awareness to perceptions of the cost of performance arts, as cost presented itself as a self-identified barrier for people in not being able to attend performance arts. 

We felt discouraged as the feedback focus started to shift away from our concept and into areas we had previously explored, but deemed too challenging and complex to pursue. While the panel brought up great information, it also left us at a crossroads - What were we going to do next?

The feedback explored the possibilities of where our design could go if we addressed the barrier of “not having someone to attend with”. People are willing to take risks by spending on performance arts if they are informed, and have someone to go with. Simply, the price begins to matter less. We also received feedback directing us towards the engagement of local performing arts companies to be a part of our piece. This could include our team using their posters and promotional materials to cover one side of our structure. As well, we were encouraged to find out pricing promotions production companies have and even to include free events happening in Calgary. Overall, the feedback we received from the panel provided further insight, sparked creativity, and pushed our team to make the adjustments as necessary.

With the current Covid-19 outbreak, we have had to cancel our showcase, along with the exhibition of our display at the Central library. Much time, effort, and energy has been invested into this project, and it is disappointing to say the least, that our public engagement piece will not come to fruition in this course.

Post-panel thoughts from the Visual Arts team

Last Wednesday, all our class teams presented in front of a panel of people from various areas of Calgary’s arts, cultural and economic sectors. Though it can be a bit of a nerve-racking experience to present in front of such knowledgeable people, we are quite happy with the outcome of our presentation and the feedback we received.

Our presentation began with a background of our team members, two information design students, one computer information systems student and one business student. We found a lot of value in having a team composed of different academic disciplines. It was interesting to see the different ways we’re all trained to think and work through complexity.

We continued our presentation by giving background information on the size scope and impact of our arts cluster in Calgary and Alberta. Research in our topic determined that in 2016, the visual arts sector contributed 716 million dollars to Alberta’s GDP and employed just under 10,000 Albertans with 5,400 of those jobs employing Calgarians. We also learned that citizens who attend art galleries and museums are more likely to volunteer, attend community meetings and vote. All of this information helps to support how important the visual arts community is to our city.

We spent a while discussing our ideation and prototyping process. All of our initial ideas from the starting weeks in this class have changed so much especially as we have gathered more and more information. One of our first plans was to consider how we might foster more creative confidence in Calgarians, though we circled back to this idea many times we ultimately went in a new direction for our final project.

During our presentation, we talked a bit about the controversy of public art in Calgary and how this inspired the desired outcome of our experiment. Ultimately, we are interested in changing the perception of Calgary’s public art scene so that it is framed in a more positive and enthusiastic way. The question we wanted to ask the public was “What makes Calgary beautiful?”. This was a heavy source of feedback from the panel members and we received lots of insight from many perspectives. Ultimately we learned that there may be merit in asking what Calgarians value, though there may be a better way to frame the question as beauty is not always the most important feature of Calgary’s amenities. It was suggested to us that we instead ask “What makes Calgary interesting?”.  This is the piece of panel advice that we all discussed should be implemented in our final design, though we also considered all of our other feedback.

We were aiming to gather quantitative and qualitative data regarding Calgarians’ perception of what they value most in their city and encourage them to think positively about their environment and build a collective identity. This data could be used as a source of inspiration for visual artists to create visual art displays that represent the beauty of Calgary and the values its citizens hold. Our hope was that our experiment would foster inclusivity, community, and civic engagement. Thanks to the panel, we were able to fine-tune our experiment for a successful installation.

Though we now know that we are unable to install our final designs, as all Calgary Public Library locations have been closed due to COVID-19, we are still very proud of the idea we came up with and have enjoyed the whole design process.

Overall, this project has taught us so much through the course of the semester. We know how much value the arts and culture sectors add to Calgary’s vibrance as a city.

Prototyping Journey

Our Process 

Leading up to the building of our current prototype has been quite the journey. As depicted from our visualization above, we hit various roadblocks that changed our human-centered design concept - more than once! At the beginning of this project, we came to the idea that in order to address the problem, we had to actually find the problem. Our team first developed a basic survey focused on the performing arts that was sent out in hopes of receiving some insight from other students, friends, and family. We received 54 responses over the course of 6 days which created a rich and stimulating starting point to launch the scope of our project research. The questions within the survey asked about participation within the performing arts, what’s considered performing arts, and specifically what prevents the respondent from attending these kinds of events. The different reasons we came across from the results were: cost, no time, no one to go with, and location. 

With our initial survey data combined with each of our own experiences with the performing arts, we decided that we had only skimmed the surface of understanding the performing arts cluster in Calgary. We learned that this art form includes much more than originally expected, such as non-traditional performance arts including drag shows, attending an elementary school play, and even busking.

Our next step was meeting with coaches, subject-matter experts, and people within the local creative economy. From these, we came to the conclusion that the performing arts are segregated into silos and Calgarians are prone to being risk-averse - stepping outside of silos to experience diverse art forms. Along with our research, we came across certain stigmas that deemed the local arts “costly” and “inaccessible”. There was also the repeated “I didn’t hear about it” that individuals felt as though there wasn’t enough awareness about local events going on. The truth is that there are a multitude of local performing art events, and that many Calgarians are getting involved.  

After making several prototypes, testing, receiving feedback, redesigning, and retesting, we now have come to our current design. We have incorporated elements to inform participants of what's happening in the city and where. As well, we have included a price comparison between performance arts and other activities in Calgary to break down perceptions of performance arts as being too expensive.

The Music Scene in YYC

The objective of our experiment is to explore how live music contributes to community and sense of belonging in Calgary. We plan to help people find communities, or cross over to different communities, in the local music scene in the city. To achieve this we want to facilitate the sharing of experiences using an interactive visual display showcasing the local music scene through the eyes of the people who are experiencing it. 

We went into this project with a few noteworthy considerations that informed our decision making. Awareness of music was a major point; we know that music happens in Calgary, so why aren’t we a world-class music city? How can we share the wealth of available live music options in the city with Calgarians? We also recognized that there is a diversity of music genres with venues and “scenes” associated with them. Venue and genre accessibility is also important to include in the discussion. Finally, non-traditional music in the city happens outside formal concert venues and we wanted to capture this reality with our experiment.

The objective of our experiment is to help people find communities, or cross over to different communities, in the local music scene in Calgary. To achieve this, we want to facilitate the sharing of experiences with a visual display showcasing the local music scene through the eyes of the people who are experiencing it. 

The initial ideas that our team came up with after consultation with industry experts, collaborators, and instructors was the following: a cross-matrix would allow passerby to approach the display and “rate their musical experience” in the city. Sticky notes would be provided for individuals to write venues and musical experiences on, and they would place it on the board. This would allow individuals to express their experiences and compare them to other Calgarians.

Visual Arts Team Citizen Experiment

Like the rest of the world, we Calgarians have an interesting relationship with the arts. We either love it, hate it or are on the fence about it. Someone once said, fertilizers are to plants what community is to a creative economy. The more we nurture creativity with engagement, admiration and feedback, the more we build a stronger sense of community around it.

Reflecting back on the experiences we had partaking in different opportunities through VivacityYYC - from the Jane’s walk in Calgary to engaging with key influencers and figures in Calgary’s economic and arts development and learning a lot about creative economies from around the world through our coursework, we had much to ponder about Calgary’s public art and local talent.

From murals hidden in alleyways to beautiful sculptures dotted around Prince’s Island Park, we saw, and we experienced all the little hidden gems around Calgary with the excitement of little children trick-or-treating during Halloween. With different ideas and perspectives that we gathered and brainstormed, we reflected back on how Calgary’s artistic community plays a significant role in contributing to Calgary’s appeal as a creative city.

In retrospect, we ask ourselves how we can engage Calgarians to think differently about the city through the visual arts in order to shift the negative perceptions of art in Calgary.

Our design process started with brainstorming different ideas about how we can engage Calgary’s local community in dialogue not only through words but through visual keys that they may be able to relate to on a local level.

We brainstormed different designs for our project ranging from engaging the local community to build a sculpture through micro-contributions such as placing a block of wood in order to create a beautiful Masterpiece of a symbol of Calgary, to having people contribute their opinion on public art in Calgary and the role that they themselves play in contributing to Calgary’s creative economy.

In the end, our love for sticky notes and the Calgary Tower, not to forget the several iterations and a lot of juggling of ideas, lead us to design an experiment that would not only allow us to collect people’s opinions about what makes Calgary beautiful to them but also allows them to contribute to a beautiful art piece.

This experiment will enable us to get a general sense of people’s opinions as to they would like to see more of in terms of art and creativity. With the data that we gather, we would be able to connect the local artists to the local community and encourage the artists to create more of what people would like to see around Calgary that would make them feel a sense of belonging in the city.

Our Design

The design we came up with will encompass a collaborative engagement piece depicting an outline of the Calgary Tower asking, “What Makes Calgary Beautiful?”. Visitors will be invited to use different colored markers to colour in a small section of the Calgary Tower according to their opinion as outlined by a variety of categories in response to the question (murals, nature, sculptures, etc.). This will collect data while creating a colourful representation of Calgarians’ feelings through the collaborative completion of the Calgary Tower piece. Users will also be able to provide extended qualitative feedback through sticky notes placed on the board underneath the question.

This will inform the development of new public and visual arts in order to enhance people’s connection to their city. The goal of this experiment is to inform the creation of new art in Calgary that reflects the identity and feelings of Calgarians.

Belfast

Belfast City Hall (Photo: Shania Kelly, 2017)

When I wandered around Belfast, it was easy to see the marks of the past. Murals on street corners depicted those lost in the 30 year conflict known as “The Troubles,” a civil war between Irish Catholic Nationalists and British Protestant Loyalists. Plaques, barely perceptible and placed above door frames, marked the location where a person was gunned down.

And, while it was hard to escape, and possibly irresponsible to try to, these memories of the brutal history of the city, there is much more to Belfast. As a young person in Belfast, 20 years after the official end of the conflict, art and culture was easy to find. I could easily watch a show at the Grand Opera House, a 100 year old theatre designed to look like an Indian palace, or at least, a British man’s interpretation of one. I could walk up the streets of Queen’s Quarter, the university district, with my friends and duck into any pub to listen to live music. One night it was blues, another Irish trad.

When Belfast’s art did speak of the Troubles, there was space to do so with healing voices of reconciliation. This was especially true in Belfast City Hall, where space was carved out to share the voices of locals and survivors of the conflict. It was a space for reflection, where one could honour the past while dreaming of a shared future. This was a different Belfast than 20 years before and who knows what the city will see in 20 more years. Hopefully, Belfast’s arts community will continue to provide spaces to dream.

Bilbao: The Largest City of Euskadi (Basque country)

Source: https://www.flickr.com/photos/132084522@N05/17242473422

Bilbao’s main attraction, the Guggenheim Museum was built by Canadian artist, Frank Gehry, was built with the city’s past as its inspiration. Shapes inside reference fish scales and the outside looks like an iron ship docked on the port. The museum is home to many art collections including Basque artist Eduardo Chillida’s, “How Profound is the Air.” The material used for his sculpture, Alabaster, was used as a representation of the Basque country’s concealed beauty.

The Basque are Spain’s most ancient native cultures who were oppressed throughout most of Spain’s history. Surprisingly, the Basque have shown resilience and have, despite the odds, kept knowledge of their language and many cultural traditions. The Guggenheim was one of the Basques strategies to improve Bilbao’s struggling economy.

Today, Bilbao maintains their efforts to engage its citizens and visitors by offering more than 1000 free activities in its neighborhoods’ outdoor spaces through cooperation with the city’s cultural associations.

Malmö - The Art & Design Scene

Pasaric, A. (Photographer). (2018, September 3). Aerial photography of city [digital image]. Retrieved from https://www.pexels.com/photo/aerial-photography-of-city-1388030/

Malmö is Sweden’s third-largest city and is known for its water, art, history, and architecture. It was originally known for being the physical representation of a post-industrial decline and is now a thriving, youthful and diverse city with lots of energy. While under Danish regulation, it further developed as a key commercial port for Europe (Anderson, T. 2014). With the installation of the Øresund bridge, Sweden and Denmark became connected, providing easy access for employment and residential opportunities (Anderson, T. 2014, para. 1). Measuring 16 kilometers long, this structure can be broken down into three sections: the bridge, an artificial island, and a tunnel (Oresund Bron, n.d.).

I found it interesting when I came across this statistic: the age range that makes up 48% of the city are under the age of 35 years old (Elephant, 2018, para. 1). This emphasizes the youthful feel of the Malmö city. Listerborn (2017) reports that the city is currently undergoing urban renewal strategies (pg. 1) with an attempt to refurbish the old perception if it being a shipyard city (pg. 4) One of the main reasons it is part of my exemplar cities list, is that it is known for its biking culture. I believe that having an effective means of transportation that is innovative and sustainable, puts this city one step closer to achieving an exemplary ranking. Malmö Konsthall is one of Europe’s largest contemporary-art spaces that has frequent exhibitions of artwork for the public to enjoy.

Baguio City’s Artisans Need a Permanent Creative Space

Source: https://i.pinimg.com/originals/17/9e/16/179e161304fd380a55e08f73f300064e.jpg

Baguio City was known for its crafts and folk art and is one of the exemplar cities that I’ve researched that has stood out to me. As a Filipino who immigrated at a young age, I knew nothing about the creative culture of the Philippines. This assignment was a great opportunity for me to know more about how different cities share their culture by being creative.

It’s crazy to find out that the people of Baguio pushed hard for the city’s selection to be the country’s first creative city as a way to challenge the government into providing better support for its artisans. The lack of a permanent space that artisans can call their home to make their art and share their art shows how undervalued they are. I think it's a shame that it took this long for the government to see the value the artisans have to Baguio’s creative economy and I hope that they will soon have a space to call home to make and share their art. 

Graz - Design is Everywhere

Graz is a vibrant city that sits nestled in the foothills of the alps in the Austrian province of Styria.  It is the second largest city in Austria, yet despite its size, it maintains the feeling of a historic small town, with a thriving creative economy woven seamlessly into the fabric of the city and exerting influence on its other core industries.

Last Winter, I spent a semester studying at FH JOANNEUM (FHJ) in the Information Design program as part of an exchange from February to June and I can attest to the importance and visibility of good design and the creative economy as a whole in Graz.

Karl Stocker, my professor, and the Head of the Institute of Design & Communication at FH JOANNEUM (FHJ) Design & Kommunikation, writes that Graz is, “characterized by a unique juxtaposition of old and new, tradition and innovation, handicraft and high-tech” (Stocker, 2013). 

During my exchange Graz hosted a festival called “Designmonth”. The festival features various pop-up exhibitions, lectures, installations and showcase cross-disciplinary design and makes it accessible and visible to all. Stocker and the organizers of the “Designmonth” festival see the importance in making design and the creative economy and its contributions to the community known and inclusive for all.

New Orleans “Post Katrina”

Giclees Archive. (Osborne, T.)

After researching five different exemplar cities that best demonstrate the creative arts at a communal level, I have decided to go with New Orleans. In August 2005 the city was devasted by flooding, creating a state of utter despair. Not knowing who or what to turn to, the creative community opened their arms and let the city in. Initially beginning with simple gallery nights showcasing local art, the word began to spread. Giving the community space to come together, is the pinnacle of solidarity, creating unity throughout the city. Very quickly, New Orleans gained national attention for what they were doing. Artists from around the country were flocking to the city to help contribute in any way. Not only did this accomplish an economic rebound within the city, but it also created a bond with the citizens like nothing seen before. In my mind, this is a city’s creative economy functioning at its peak potential.

Winnipeg

Winnipeg skyline. (n.d.). Retrieved from https://theculturetrip.com/north-america/canada/winnipeg/art/

I think that Winnipeg is the best city for the arts in all of Canada, despite what the statistics say. I think that the ideas that the city present allow for the greatest amount of creative freedom an artist could want. By having a lot of events throughout the year Winnipeg gives their citizens a breath of fresh air every month. Local artists and events allow for the city to remain vibrant. I know of at least five events that happen, and I can always tell that they are happening when I visit because everyone talks about them. If that isn't a good promotion, I don't know what is. I feel that the development of Saint Boniface really helped them in the long run, because if the city would have tried to suppress it, they would not be as great as they are today. 

Taman Bima Microlibrary

Recycled ice cream tubs cover walls of Microlibrary by Shau. (Griffiths, 2016)

Located in the neighborhood of Taman Bima in the city of Bandung, Indonesia, the microlibrary is a low-cost 1,700 square feet library that is built over an existing stage with 2,000 recycled ice cream containers used as its facade.(“Library made from ice-cream containers”, 2016) The library is built with the purpose of combating Indonesia's low literacy rates and to provide the neighborhood's local citizens a place to get together and socialize. The library also provides local schools with access to a shared library and a diverse catalog of educational resources, books and access to the internet for free. 

The Taman Bima Microlibrary is a work of art that serves an educational purpose as well as a social purpose that brings people together to learn, socialize and engage in productive dialogue around issues in their neighborhood and their city. Moreover, the micro library serves as an inspirational structure for creatives and people from all across the world and reminds them of the importance of being resourceful and using their existing resources to solve challenges that they may be facing in their lives and communities.