Bruce’s architectural and urban design work has been recognized globally (because he’s a big deal), particularly for the Governor General’s and World Architecture Festival winning design of the Nk’Mip Desert Cultural Centre in Osoyoos (because it’s awesome). He has extensive experience in institutional, social services, residential, retail and First Nations projects (we’re okay with a little bragging) with work ranging widely from wastewater treatment plants (yuk) to cafes (yum).

FYI – Next week we’ll start talkin’ up our exhibitors so stay tuned! And if you dig the fact that we’re promoting the conference without the use of posters or printing of any kind… please help us spread the word by emailing your friends and co-workers (or “like” and “tweet” us) – thanks!

- Corwin Hiebert
Co-Producer, CREATIVEMIX

CREATIVEMIX is proud to present its 2011 speaker roster. This year’s invited speakers are an amazing blend of successful and talented creative professionals who can deliver the goods. They’re an accomplished bunch and we’re confident that you’ll be inspired and challenged by these Vancouver-based artists, leaders, and entrepreneurs:

• Hiro Kanagawa (TV/Film/Theatre)
  His IMDB page is longer than… well, it’s really long! X-Files! Smallville! And don’t even get us started on his stage work.
• TJ Galda (Digital Arts)
  His work at Electronic Arts doesn’t even begin to convey his skills and passions; he’s got his fingers in a whole bunch of pies.
• Ian Grais (Marketing and Advertising)
  Ranked the number one art director and the number one co-creative director in the country for the past decade. Geesh.
• Graeme Berglund (Art and Design)
  Talented, renowned, and the dude that we all know and love from The Cheaper Show. He’s infected with collaboration-itus.
• Mara Gottler (Costume Design and Fashion)
  The consummate pro. Designed “The Tempest” with Robert Lepage. Has her own clothing line. Coolio!
• Dave Delnea (Commercial Photography)
  One creative SOB! An advertising photographer and creative collaboration advocate who lands the coolest gigs.
• Ben Kadel (Social Psychology)
  Our secret weapon. He helps creatives do important work (AKA find their sweet spot) and avoid being misunderstood or a martyr.
• Animal (Muppet and Musician)
  Just kidding, we’ll announce the eighth presenter shortly.

These keynote speakers will share their thoughts on creativity and collaboration. They’ll provide tangible insights into how you can grow your creative potential. This is not a show-n-tell event, they’ve been charged with the mandate of helping you in your effort to be creative and productive within the context of community.

This one-day conference is a professional development event that focuses exclusively on creativity, collaboration, and community. It’s industry agnostic and it’s the most exciting conference in Vancouver for emerging and established professionals, artists, and small businesses that embrace the task of doing creative work.

Conference Update

We’ll be announcing a few more things over the next few weeks (eighth keynote presentation, live music line-up, featured exhibitors, and more). Online registration is available and due to the fact that we’re expecting a sell-out you’ll want to purchase your tickets sooner than later (seriously).

Eileen Rothe getting the back story from Drew Young

We took in the IDEA Grad Show last night and all I can say is WOW! Each and every time we connect with that crazy group from the North Shore I’m inspired and amazed; they’re likeminded folks for sure.

The depth of creativity that IDEA graduates bring to the table is exceptional and the diversity amoung the group is really something special. What stood out to us this year was how eloquent the new grads were. They spoke about their lives, their work, and most importantly their process and they left us with a deeper impression of who they are and what they offer the market far more than any promotional effort could ever pull off.

That’s where the rubber hits the road as far as I’m concerned: talk about the process I always say (well, I’m saying it now anyway).

When artists and creatives want to market themselves they often make the fatal error of either 1. hiding in a closet (believing their work will speak for itself) or 2. they talk about the end result and how awesome it is (a noisy and desperate plea). The “true” artist and the shameless self-promoter are not all that effective at trying to elicit curiosity in their work or generate demand for their creative skills. Both of those approaches fail to create genuine interest.

In a market full of other talented souls the battle to garner attention is hard. From my perspective, what is, in fact, interesting about creative work, is the process. HOW they arrived at the final result is what makes me pay attention.

“Story” is always a good way to approach a marketing effort but I’ve been increasingly intrigued by raw guts of the creative process and I’m attracted to creatives who can expose themselves and their methods (or chaos) in order to share their creative spirit.

Take Drew Young for example. Sean Carter (Hangar 18 Creative Group) pointed him out to us and so we buzzed over to his display. Within seconds he was telling us about how he went about creating a collaborative illustration project that wasn’t even featured on his wall! Brilliant!

My advice? Be like Drew.

If you don’t know much about the IDEA program then here’s a snapshot: IDEA is a career-based three-year advanced diploma program offering instruction in both communication design and applied illustration. This dual curriculum sets IDEA apart from other post-secondary design programs and gives graduates a lifelong edge in the job market. In this demanding, full-time cohort program, students gain a strong theoretical foundation and learn how to develop and apply concepts, manage complex projects and meet current industry expectations, both creatively and technologically. To find out more about the IDEA program and its graduates visit capilanou.ca/idea.

So, a shout out to the IDEA grads for all their hard work – we wish you continued success; to the faculty… you’re doing important work, thank you for your leadership – the quality of the Grad Show is a reflection of your dedication to excellence and community.

Speaking of process, if you’re working on a creative project or entrepreneurial endeavour and you need help taking it to the next level… you’ll want to check out the Connect, Learn, Grow workshop series by Emotus Operandi. It’s happening Saturday, April 30th on Granville Island and you can register here.

Posted by: Corwin Hiebert

Out of the shadows we come! It’s been a few months since the November conference and though we’re not quite ready to announce the details regarding the 2011 conference we are able to pass along a GREAT opportunity for you to check-out.

CREATIVEMIX is proud to sponsor Connect, Learn, Grow - an inspiring and invaluable day of action oriented workshops hosted by Emotus Operandi.

We are sponsoring this event, in part, because you asked for it! After all the praise and love and gush-gush from last year’s conference died down we were able to gather some precious feedback regarding the needs of local creatives. What we heard was: you want more ideas on how to move a creative project forward (personal or business), you want to build collaborations and put some concrete tools in place so your project(s) can thrive. So we’re doing just that.

This interactive day of workshops will be on April 30th and we think you’ll want to be there. The day is all about you and your project, but to make this work we need to hear from you! What will make the day most useful for you? Please take a moment to fill in this quick, informal survey by clicking the “Choose Your Own Adventure” button below. This survey will give you a chance to help create the workshop program and make darn sure the day delivers the goods for YOU. Check it out!

We heard about Natalie Purschwitz a few months ago but during a CREATIVEMIX meeting earlier today her name, and her MakeShift project, came up in conversation yet again as a great example of creative people doing creative things right in our own backyard. Seeing how she’s fresh on the mind I’d better pass this along quick before I get distracted again. Check it out! -Corwin Hiebert

MakeShift is an art and research project that examines the relationships between ‘making’, ‘clothing’ and ‘living’. The basic premise for the project is that for a period of one year starting on September 1st, 2009, Natalie wears only things that she’s made herself. That’s right – she’s working diligently to make all of her  clothes, socks, shoes, underwear, coats, jackets, hats, bathing suits, accessories and anything else she might need to protect her body from the elements while trying to lead a fulfilling life.

Why is she doing this you ask? She’s hoping to gain some understanding of the limitations of clothing and how they affect the development of ideology. Wow. We thought this was a craft project, guess not. Natalie is striving to examine the role of clothing as a form of cultural production.

She’s also got a great online store for those who want to save themselves the hassle of sewing, gluing, weaving, stitching, and molding their own wardrobe – it’s called Hunt & Gather.

Visit her blog and visit her store.

]]> http://creativemix.ca/makeshift/feed/ 0 http://creativemix.ca/ongray/ http://creativemix.ca/ongray/#comments Fri, 07 May 2010 07:19:41 +0000 Corwin http://creativemix.ca/?p=1779

“OnGray was a project that developed simply from the desire to do something random and creative with friends.” – Dave Delnea

Creative collaboration is a huge part of Delnea’s work. As a photographer and creative director he’s one of those true creatives, a real artist that loves playing and working hard at his craft. I’ve known Dave for about a year now and I can honestly say he’s brilliant, a real creative visionary. What stands out to me is that he doesn’t create in isolation – he’s always looking around to find collaborators.

The original concept behind OnGray was that Dave would get a few friends together and shoot a few pictures in front of a gray backdrop. It turns out a little vision goes a long way. As the idea developed it started to take on a bit of a vintage feel and soon involved stills, motion and a cast/crew of about 14 people. Dave’s posted the images in his Project Portfolio and there’s a fun behind the scenes video below too. I was involved at a production level – I’m the dork int he blue stripped sweater.

What I love about being around Dave is that he craves creative experiences in community. He’s passionate about getting to hang out with fun and brilliant creative people, being inspired by people with skill sets completely different from his own, and to be part of creating something that’s beyond what he ever could have come up with himself. If that doesn’t deserve a CREATIVEMIX shout-out I don’t know what does. You might remember Dave from last year’s CREATIVEMIX – he hosted the Photographer’s Den in the Exhibition. If you weren’t there then you have no idea what I’m talking about – but don’t feel bad. Nudge-nudge, wink-wink, know what I mean, eh? eh?.

Posted by: Corwin Hiebert

Posted by: Corwin Hiebert

We were honoured to have the IDEA crew at CREATIVEMIX this past Fall and getting to meet a bunch of them was an absolute thrill. They love what they do! They’re so freakin’ passionate about design, art, and creativity that I can’t help but want to be around them (maybe it will rub off). When it comes to creative marketing I thought their “Win Free Ideas” contest – see video below – was awesome! What a killer way to get industry experience and promote the program.

IDEA is a career-based three-year diploma program offering instruction in both communication design and applied illustration. This dual curriculum sets IDEA apart from other post-secondary design programs and gives graduates a lifelong edge in the job market. In this demanding, full-time cohort program, students are given a strong theoretical foundation and learn how to develop and apply concepts, manage complex projects and meet current industry expectations, both creatively and technologically.

The grad show is a chance for graduates to exhibit what hard work and sleepless nights can produce! We support sleepless creatives! The Capilano University IDEA Program Grad Show 2010 is happening next Monday; I hope to see you there.

Posted by: Corwin Hiebert

BLIM is truly one of these great spots that we can’t do without. What stands out to me is that it’s not just a funky store – it’s a place to gather and learn – check out their amazing workshop schedule. Now, I wouldn’t go as far as to call myself crafty, so you won’t see me in a knitting class anytime soon, but screen-printing and button making? Oh yeah – I could rock those!

Here’s a little more about BLIM: it’s been in the heart of Vancouver’s DIY Main Street district for five years (yeah, that’s right, a DIY district – how cool are we)? BLIM is a non-funded arts facility run by and for artists and community. It is made possible because of the hard working Yuriko Iga, Noel Macul, and all their awesome volunteers. BLIM also raises funds by collaborating with various organizations both in the arts, media, and community field such as Powell Street Festival, Public Dreams, Langara Institute, Emily Carr, New Music Vancouver, and VIVO.

Here’s a few of the accolades BLIM has received:

“Best Low Profile Event Space” – Vancouver Magazine

“Best Innovative Arts Space” – Terminal City

“Best Place to Whip up some Art” – Georgia Straight

So… what are we waiting for? Let’s go BLIM!

Posted by Corwin Hiebert

It’s here! Tomorrow is the big day! And unless you’re one of the luck 100 people allowed to attend you’ll have to watch from the outside. But don’t dismay. Keeping an eye on the real-time tweets, blogging, and webcast videos via the TEDxVancouver website should satisfy your TED cravings, at least to some degree.

And in case you missed it – did you see the speaker lineup?

• Neill Blomkamp, Film Director
• Kevin Carroll, Author, Speaker, Agent for Social Change
• Cheryl Cran, Leadership and Generations Consultant
• Guy Dauncey, Speaker, Author, Organizer
• Alden E. Habacon, Author, Speaker, Television
• Henry LaBounta, Director of Art, Academy Award Nominee
• Terry McBride, Music Entrepreneur
• Nicholas Molnar, Web Strategist
• Patrick Moore, Co-Founder Greenpeace, Environmentalist
• Bryan Slusarchuk, Environmental Venture Capitalist
• Marc Stoiber, Founder, Change Advertising

And they’ve got performances by Cris Derksen, Cellist, and Shamik, Beatboxer too! Cool.

There’s also a TEDxWhistler happening in the Whistler Village Feburary 18th (during the 2010 Games) – how great is that! We’ve be TEDized.