On a cold and icy January night, architects were invited to the fashionable furniture house Paustian in the northern harbour of Copenhagen, to hear the head of the National Film School of Denmark, Poul Nesgaard, talking about: HOW TO GET THE GOOD IDEA?
Poul Nesgaard speaking at the furniture house Paustian, built by Jørn Utzon.
Brought up in the time of the 60’s revolution, Poul Nesgaard started his rebellious ways early, dropping out of grammar school and following his interest for journalism, film and television. Helped by his family connections and his charm, he quickly became a remarkable host on Danish television, due to his provocative and direct way of interviewing people.
The world of film is an unknown field for him, and it is a brutal wake-up for him to enter this area of creation. These confrontations and their conflicts, are the foundation for his ideas. He learns, that ideas come when you are lost, and that ideas are a necessity in life. It is by getting ideas, that you make progress in life.
Poul Nesgaard, head of the National Film School of Denmark, speaking at Paustian
With his nerdy and charming appearance he always produces a sort of provocative, inquisitive form of television. Often, leading questions, where he turns the normal opinion of how things should be, completely upside-down. In his early career, he always arrived at his ideas, by breaking the rules. As a real anarchist, he loves to question and push the borders of the common sense.
In Denmark, he is especially known for his Advent Calendar on television in the 1980′s. It was expected to be a Christmas story, but there was hardly any trace of Christmas, among the 24 daily episodes in December 1980.
Poul Nesgaard with the spherical camera, which when covered up, made a sort of psychedelic television, December 1980
The big shift in how he gets ideas, happens when he becomes the head of the National Film School of Denmark, in 1992. Suddenly, he can’t just break the rules, now he has to create the rules, to educate the young generation. He realises, that constructive creativity needs rules and restrictions to grow healthy.
So first he breaks the rules, and later, he appreciate them as a gift.
Spending the night at Paustian afterwards, I had the time to make a tour. Especially the wall clocks and the Marshmallow sofa caught my attention, designed by Irving Harper, while in the office of George Nelson.
Wall clocks at Paustian, designed by Irving Harper at the George Nelson office.
Talking about how to get the good ideas, the next night, a coincidence of ideas takes place.
Since the beginning of this year, my friend Lise Jessen wanted to show me the idea of making an article for the blog, with the amazing paper work of a designer and artist, she met and visited this Christmas in New York. The night after Paustian I visited Lise, and I finally had the chance to see her 100 photos from this person’s private home in New York, a home filled with an incredible collection of paper sculptures, which he made through out his entire life.
Here is the coincidence, this turns out to be Irving Harper! Who could know, from the clocks and sofas at Paustian, that this man, in his spare time, made an incredible amount of paper sculptures?
Paper sculptures at Irving Harper’s home, New York
At Irving Harper’s home, New York
So just to say, one idea can also flow or lead to the next idea. There are many ways of generating ideas, when we pay attention to them. Ideas are out there, ready to be developed.
SOURCES :
Unless otherwise stated, all material is sourced under the Creative Commons 3.0 license, and/or from Wikimedia Commons, and/or generated internally.
TEXT SOURCE :
- Birgitte Katborg Laursen
IMAGE SOURCES :
- 1 – http://kpn.dk/article2563251.ece?page=1
- 2 – http://surfstation.com/editorial/page92
- 3 – http://www.flickr.com/photos/matteart/2203311416/in/photostream/
- 4 – http://www.bonluxat.com/a/George_Nelson_Marshmallow_Sofa.html
- 5 – Aya Skafte-Holm
- 6 – Birgitte Katborg Laursen
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