The walls between art and engineering exist only in our minds

September 30th, 2009

So says Theo Jansen And to watch his extraordinary structures move you understand this is a man that does not take a linear approach to life.

Yesterday, was quite an amazing day for me. Lunch with Livio and Lee @ Headshift was stimulating enough, discussions about the No Straight Line project, the implications of open source, networked automotive engineering – (here) and (here) and the wider implications of the networked society and economy on; how we work, and how SME’s could harness the true potential of the networked society to be truly successful.

Then back off home to have a round table discussion on the Cambridge Creative Economy Initiative. The discussion centered around bringing together a creative multi-disciplinary approach to stimulate economic regeneration. It was wide ranging and far reaching.

Anne Miller, who I enjoyed jamming with last night sent through a link to Theo Jansen’s work. Jansen’s work explores ideas through engineering. Jansen enables us to look at new possibilities, new solutions, new approaches to some of the issues we face. The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes but in looking upon the world with fresh eyes, said Marcel Proust.

These moving skeletal structures, poetic, startling, disconcerting, are without doubt – transfixing. This film made by BMW, provides a very eloquent description of Jansen’s view of the world. It won’t persuade me to buy a BMW – but I thank them for financing a wonderful insight onto one mans mind. I think I shall have this as a great example of non-linear thinking.

The walls between art and engineering exist only in our minds – for me this is a bigger, more powerful metaphor – as Lee and Livio and indeed Anne Miller agreed we have reached the end of the industrial society, that presents us with unique and equally challenging problems. The imperative to create economics a-fresh, and provide a new way of working is vitally important. In addition, the ability to adapt to a world that is both hyper-local and super-global at the same time – necessary.