The Center for Graphic Facilitation

SXSW Visually Speaking

 

FULL DISCLOSURE: I was, indeed, in Texas during South by Southwest.  However, I was nowhere near Austin, and played with lots of fun nieces and nephews (all under the age of six) doing fun things like wrasslin', fishin', watching bronco ridin' and mutton bustin' at the Houston Rodeo. I didn't Tweet or Bleep all week. It was awesome.

Fortunately, there were enough Bloggers and Twitters and Visual Facilinators @sxsw to capture every angle. Check out these moleskin sketches by Austin Kleon (above) and Mike Rohde (video of live sketchnoting below).

20x2 Live Sketchnoting from Mike Rohde on Vimeo.

Lots of Twitter action, of course; of special interest--the panel titled Shift Happens: Moving from Words to Pictures with some of our favorite peeps as panelists:  Lee LeFever, Sunni Brown, Dave Gray, and Tom Crawford. See panelist Dan Roam's thoughts on his blog (oh, such a woefully passé and antiquated form of communication). 

Or, if you think it more hip to be square, then find <140 word reactions on Twitter: #shift

On the Road with Tony Blair

Graphic facilitator Sita Magnuson has been traveling the world, scribing as she goes.

She has scribed for groups in New Dehli, Bangkok. She has scribed for leaders such as Harmid Karzai in Kabul, and most recently, Tony Blair at the Economic World Forum collaborative workspace in Egypt--which made Time Magazine on-line!

Visit Sita's blog for more travel adventures.

clipped from www.time.com Illustrated Man During a seminar that Blair gave at the World Economic Forum in Sharm El Sheihk, his words (and those of other speakers at the event) were rendered on a white board as he spoke. The comment "You are crazy to try" was made to the former Prime Minister in regard to his effort to bring peace to Northern Ireland.

Older Brain Really May Be a Wiser Brain

In working with many diverse groups of people, coming together to solve complex problems, I am absolutely flummoxed by this paradox: young minds struggle with complex, inter-related problems, while "more mature" minds struggle to learn new concepts.

Rather than throw both brains out with the bathwater (what a badly mixed metaphor!) how best do we design collaborative projects and discussions that accommodate all brains, whether wily, worldly or wise?

clipped from www.nytimes.com illustration by Yarek Waszul When older people can no longer remember names at a cocktail party, they tend to think that their brainpower is declining. But a growing number of studies suggest that this assumption is often wrong. Instead, the research finds, the aging brain is simply taking in more data and trying to sift through a clutter of information, often to its long-term benefit. The studies are analyzed in a new edition of a neurology book, “Progress in Brain Research.” For example, in studies where subjects are asked to read passages that are interrupted with unexpected words or phrases, adults 60 and older work much more slowly than college students. Although the students plow through the texts at a consistent speed regardless of what the out-of-place words mean, older people slow down even more when the words are related to the topic at hand. That indicates that they are not just stumbling over the extra information, but  are taking it in and processing it.

Meeting on the Right Side of the Brain

We've been preaching it for years, but I guess it is now news:

Creative work environments improve creative thinking!

Congrats to Leslie Marquard and Catalyst Ranch on leading the piece. Thanks for bringing "right-brained thinking" to a "left-brained" world. (Actually, working in creative environments and using multiple learning modalities inspires whole-brain thinking.)

clipped from www.nytimes.com Steve Kagan for The New York Times By ELAINE GLUSAC | Published: April 30, 2008 WHEN Leslie Marquard, an executive coach, holds strategy sessions for consulting firms or university administrators, she ushers her buttoned-up clientele into rooms full of Pogo sticks, ethnic art, hammocks, vintage furniture and a pillow “harem.” “They are surprised and also endeared by it,” said Ms. Marquard, a co-founder of Marble Leadership Partners in Chicago. The “it” she referred to is Catalyst Ranch, an independent alternative meeting space in a former sausage factory near the Loop  in Chicago. “They’ll say, ‘That table looks just like one I grew up with.’ It subconsciously releases the mind.”

 

Australia 2020

Graphic facilitator Gavin Blake writes us of his exciting collaboration with other facilitators and scribes at a national summit in Australia's capital, Canberra.

The objective was for the 1000 participants to generate big ideas over a range of 10 topics including Governance, Productivity and Creativity in Australia. All of the ideas will make up our vision for Australia in 2020.

It was a blast meeting music god Peter Garrett, now Minister for the Arts (not sure if you guys know the band Midnight Oil, but I’m a huuuge fan) and Australia’s 100 foremost creative minds.

Yes, there were a few celebrities there (Hugh Jackman below) but, there was some serious intent and genuinely insightful ideas thrown around the room.

I’m very chuffed this video with our drawing of the journey of the day made it into the news. Stoked. Here are some more photos of us having a ball.

Biomapping Cities

Christian Nold thinks we should pay more attention to how our environment shapes our emotional and physiological states.

His work with Bio Mapping—which measures people’s responses to their environment and connects those feelings to their physical location—suggests that a map of emotional landscapes represents a powerful tool for analyzing the relationship between place and broader social issues.

Top 10 Tasks: Quick Start Your Neighborhood Disaster Recovery

"Top 10 Tasks - Quick Start Your Neighborhood Disaster Recovery" is a simple and proven approach to a do-it-yourself relief center. This is useful for anyone dealing with hurricane, fire, or other disaster recovery. (from Joe and Rita Sterling of Sterling Insights)

Joe Sterling is a facilitator, strategist, graphic recorder and community organizer in the San Diego area. In 2003, his community outside Alpine, California was devastated by wildfires.

IFVP 2007 Reflections: Leah Silverman

Leah Silverman has been supporting facilitated events that use graphic facilitation since 2003.

But it was not until Fall of '07 that she strapped on the markers herself and stepped out as a Graphic Recorder. These are her reflections on her first International Forum of Visual Practitioners Conference:

I had a wonderful time and felt welcomed into this generous community. I also had the great privilege of looking over the shoulders of some amazing graphic recorders. I primarily went to learn more about graphically documenting, and the Graphics 101 course led by Brandy Agerbeck and Lynn Carruthers was very helpful with the basics. I now have a good head start on this new phase of my work path. Next year I'd like to see a possible follow-up course with more emphasis on hands-on practice and more concentration on listening skills and clustering information.

(ABOVE: photo of Leah by Sunpanther. More photos and slideshow on Flickr, tag: IFVP2007 )

IFVP 2007 Conference

Thanks to Nancy White of Full Circle who did a fantastic job blogging the 2007 International Forum of Visual Practitioners Conference in Santa Fe, New Mexico.

... I have been immersed in a new tribe: the Visual Practitioners. People who listen with amazing depth and bring peoples words into a new life in images on the wall. Some are graphic recorders who focus on accurate capture of conversations. Some are graphic facilitators who use images as part of a group process. Some, like me, recognize and thirst for the ability to use image in our work - regardless of that work.

Read more of her reflections on the presenters and rich conversations on the Onfac Blog.

Visit Nancy's Flickr account where you can see photos and a slideshow of the talented participants and the mindmaps, illustrations and wall maps they created.

Graphic Facilitation Group in Facebook

Thanks to Kelvy Bird in Massachusetts for establishing the Graphic Facilitators Group in the ever popular social networking site, Facebook.

Kelvy writes:

Maybe a way to share what's up - insights.. etc? banal stuff. I know we have a ton of ways in place to already do this. i seem to be addicted to Facebook and already more engaged in uploading things here than I have to other places.

As of July 2007, Facebook had the largest number of registered users among college-focused sites with over 30 million members worldwide (also from non-collegiate networks). It is also the seventh most visited site in the United States. 

The group established by Bird is open to the public, so if you would like to join, register at http://facebook.com/ and search for the group "graphic facilitation".