#interdiciplinaryproject

Being a part of the group develop my skills and as part of a team it will help me develop my interpersonal skills such as speaking and listening as well as team working skills such as leadership, and working with and motivating others. Being part of a study group allows me to observe different types of study methods. My own study methods might be good, but I am also able to sharpen my skills by adding new methods that my group study members are using. Using Tuckman’s five stage of group formation we as a group has learnt in whole that working with 2 brains is easy than working individually.  

This image shows the theory of Tuckman’s stages of group development

Forming to Storming

To establish clear objectives for the group at this first stage, we created team members to set personal goals so that we can see how our work will fit with the bigger picture. We also got to know one another.

Storming to Norming

Storming can make or break a team, so it's essential that we establish processes to track the progress and success of tasks. We started our concepts to flow in each other where we derived many different ideas we could implement on.

Norming to Performing

These social connections on zoom were especially important, as more of us work from home. So, we kept them up through the norming period and beyond. We decided on a particular concept and started developing that.

Performing to Adjourning

When the team settled into the performing stage, we focused on other goals and new areas to benefit our group. Since our group members are from each different course of study, we as a group had 5 different areas of focus of our minds. We explored gaming, animation, graphic designing and interior architecture designs where each of us worked on each other’s illustration to have a best of we can.

Adjourning

We are having positive experiences now after working in a group and this will make it easier if us, I believe to work with some of the same people again in the future.

It is important to remember that every team – regardless of what the team is working on – will follow these stages of team development. It is the job of the team leader to help see the team through these stages; to bring them to the point where they are working as effectively as possible toward a common goal.

As a part of the group, my team has helped me achieve the best I feel, each member of the team has given good efforts out of which I feel Berty has always kept things on track and flow with our lectures and lessons we learnt. All members Humal, Chengming and Hardik also equally contributed. Humal is really confident in talking out and suggesting new options to the team and Chengming and Hardik have really good creative skills which formed a great team. Each one of us from different courses like graphic design, animation, gaming and interior architecture broadens our learning style and skill set of creativity. Implications of work on each other’s art made our artefact more attractive and creative.

- Niddhi Soneji

References:

Five Stages of Team or Group Development. (n.d.). [online] . Available at: https://static1.squarespace.com/static/52ae6cd8e4b09af7f3cb0e53/t/55cab4dce4b06fab5e0c92ed/1439347932764/CA+TakeAway+Stages+of+Team+Development.pdf.

This article is written by Stevan Harnad. In this article, he starts of with different questions about creativity. What are different notions of creativity and how they are stated? Whether creativity is a trait, a state or it is defined by its products. He discusses about Pasteur’s dictum “…le hasard favorise l’esprit prepare” (“chance favours the prepared mind”).

He then discusses how it is interpreted and how creativity is related to the traits of the person or the state where the person is being creative. After that, he even discusses what is not creativity. In which all the soft skills are involved which supports the person to be creative but it is not counted as creativity in the person.

In the other segment of the article, he talks about whether the IQ is a trait of the person or it’s a state of the person in which he is more knowledgeable. This was a good example for stating that the study of creativity is complex.

In the later phase of the article, he talks about the underlying mechanisms and where he explains that there are four different mechanisms such as method, memory, magic, mutation. Where he defines different types of concepts and which concept is of which mechanism. “Creativity: Method or Magic” forces one to think about the makeup of creativity. Harnad maps out four theories (along with subcategories) that classify the underlying mechanisms of creativity: (1) method, (2) memory, (3) magic, and (4) mutation. These theories variously emphasize the role of an unconscious mind, innate constraints, analogy, aesthetics, anomalies, formal constraints, serendipity, mental analogs, heuristic strategies, improvisatory performance, and cumulative collaboration.

Harnad concludes that creativity is a phenomenon that concerns the historical state of the problem domain, the role of the unpredictable (chance), and how prepared and favored a mind is. Harnad bases such conclusion heavily on Pasteur’s dictum: “chance favors the prepared mind” and proposes that the best strategy to undertake to result in creativity is to maximize preparation (whether it be prepared to encounter a creative outcome or prepared to move on).

Reading Harnad’s article in advance of executing the interdisciplinary group project is useful in many ways, however, I would say especially in understanding that for purposes of this project copying may render itself useful in forming originality. Within this first week, we as a group have taken a look at many things which in some way that appeals to the audience. Further, we are still brainstorming our own ideas and concepts on how we may be able to extend to contribute to our works that have already been done.

- Niddhi Soneji

Reference:

Pichwai (pichvai) is a style of painting that originated over 400 years ago, in the town of Nathdwara near Udaipur in Rajasthan, India. Intricate and visually stunning, pichwai paintings, made on cloth, depict tales from Lord Krishna's life. Creating a pichwai can take several months, and requires immense skill, as the smallest details need to be painted with precision. Lord Krishna is often depicted as Shrinathji in Pichwais, which is the deity manifest as a seven-year-old child. Other common subjects found in pichwai paintings are Radha, gopis, cows and lotuses. Festivals and celebrations such as Sharad Purnima, Raas Leela, Annakoot or Govardhan Puja, Janmashtami, Gopashtami, Nand Mahotsav, Diwali and Holi are frequently depicted in Pichwais.

The word Pichwai comes from 'pichh' meaning back, and 'wai', meaning textile hanging. They are made by members of the Pushti Marg sect, founded by Shri Vallabhacharya in the 16th Century. Originally, pichwai paintings were used to decorate the temple of Shrinathji (Shrinathji ki Haveli) in Nathdwara, hung behind the deity to celebrate different seasons, festivals and events in Lord Krishna's life. Over time, pichwais also found a place in the homes of art connoisseurs, owing to their visual appeal. Like several other traditional Indian art forms, the art of Pichwai is also dying, and requires recognition and revival.

The art of Picchwai originated as wall hangings behind the main deity in Krishna temples in Nathdwara. They narrate stories related to Lord Krishna. Gradually with commercialisation secular themes are also incorporated in the Picchwai style of painting. Picchwais are colourful and intricate works of art with concealed symbolism in the artistic motifs. This distinct devotional art practice has passed from one generation to another and a fine example of spirituality in art for more than 400 years.

- Niddhi Soneji

References:

Artisera. (2020). Pichwai: Pichwai Paintings, Shrinathji Paintings, Krishna Art, Rajasthani Art, Pichwai Paintings Online, Pichwai Paintings for Sale. [online] Available at: https://www.artisera.com/collections/pichwai.

ArtZolo.com. (n.d.). Pichwai : The Folk Art of Nathdwara. [online] Available at: https://www.artzolo.com/blog/pichwai-folk-art-nathdwara [Accessed 15 Feb. 2021].