"The cycle produces work that is technically beautiful yet emotionally flat, caught between safety and sameness" 🥲🤌🏾This piece hits the nail on the head and definitely speaks to what I've been feeling for quite some time now (especially every time I see the latest food inspired beauty drop). Unfortunately I think we've reached an exhausting stage now where most people can't even be bothered to search for the OG reference and are ok with just regurgitating the latest interpreted version of it from others. This was so good and I'll def be coming back to this piece again
thank you so much! I feel like everyone's been experiencing it, and it's getting more and more obvious as years evolve and the same references keep being recycled. I hope there can be some major shifts to the ways of working, at least I try where I can! <3
This is so fascinating to me, and is in large why I’ve started to create my own reference images in AI tools because I can take what’s in my head and create it without looking for a reference in a saturated source. It’s not foolproof and comes with its own issues but I’m also really loving diving into other areas for reference and ideas. You’re such a huge inspiration for that!
Thank you so much! I agree, it's sometimes so needed to make your own references whether it's collage or a generated image, but even that is coming from other references. I've been trying middle ways when presenting art direction to clients, a mixture of 'raw' images from culture or shot on iPhone by myself with a generated one and an existing reference. Sometimes I quite literally create a formula with this + this and this = campaign haha
Right! I recently had a project where the briefing was literally an image from another brand and they were like 'We want this but the version for our brand', then proceed with very little budget, and declining everything that isn't exactly that! It's very frustrating as a creative as well, because you want to create something new and not copy other people yet you have to work with client restraints and get it approved.
Damnnnnn girlll “And for creatives, the lesson is clear, stick close to the familiar, or risk losing the room. The unknown, once the most exciting part of image-making, is now seen as the most dangerous.”
As a young creative I've always struggled with the execution of original ideas. I found it discouraging even in design school when the most rewarded work is the prettiest copy of an existing work, with maybe some slight variations. We are sometimes told to even work backwards to make things look pretty first then back rationalize our concept and creative decisions. Working in the linear way from concepting to the actual visual execution is much harder, and have made me feel incompetent in this field as I've failed on the latter part again and again. A professor of mine even said that everything has already been done in design. It would have been nice to learn a real and useful creative process in uni but it feels like even the professors gatekeep that to themselves or they themselves also fall into this reference trap.
I really felt this comment! I often struggled with this as well in school. Teachers really rewarded those who had a 'clear' and 'easy to understand' idea, but it was clear because it was something that was seen before. Students get rewarded for this way of working, especially when it comes to visuals the process is indeed sometimes backwards when your insights and concept should inform your visual research that eventually leads to a moodboard with depth and exploration.
"The irony is that this fear stifles the very thing brands claim to want: differentiation. By leaning on references as proof, they limit themselves to echoes of what already exists. And for creatives, the lesson is clear, stick close to the familiar, or risk losing the room" i wanna frame this quote and put it on my wall
A great articulation of something I’ve been noticing for a while. It also feels like space for chance or happy accidents is being squeezed out of the creative process. Play and experimentation has been swapped for polish and perfection - like you said “beautiful but boring” is often the mantra. Would love to read a piece that explains in more granular detail how to create a concept/ reference without the usual reliance on Pinterest/ existing references.
Exactly! A lot of clients also get married to a reference and get such an error when the photographer plays around on set, but almost always the happy accidents are the best shots I love to push for! I actually have a post coming up on Thursday on turning a loose thought into a full concept and how to research it :)
I love this. I think the deeper issue (deeper than online vs offline references) is that you should start with an IDEA. You see that with Tim Walker. That's just one concept but it could be for a brand or a collection or whatever. The idea is not an image. It is a thought. Something you want to convey. Only when you are clear on that do you go hunting for images to convey it (or words, or choreography, or whatever your medium of communication is). The issue with online culture is that it's made it so easy to find images and shows something that LOOKS good that people just reach for those. And processes have sped up so much there isn't time to develop an idea, a world, a thought - and THEN figure out how to communicate it. It's such a shame and it makes for such hollow work. The brands that buck this trend stand out so clearly. Vacation Sunscreen, Rochambeau Club...
oh yes for sure! And an idea should also have a reason to exist, coming from an insight that sparks the idea. It is so important that there is depth and a feeling to a concept, instead of just aesthetics. I have a post coming up on Thursday on turning a thought into an idea and how to research it. 100% agree with everything you said about speed! I need to sit with my concept, think about it, go deeper, adjust it based on my findings etc etc
Love this article. Extremely poignant in the times we are living in creatively. Made me miss the times I was in college using tumblr and going down deep rabbit-holes of unfiltered blogs and inspiration. Unpopular opinion, get rid of Pinterest.
This was such a great read thank you for creating this. I recently saw a post somewhere that said “ what happened to creative directors actually being creative “ in reference to the latest visuals artists and fashion houses have been sharing online and I wondered what the post really meant . I figured it referred to the recycling of references you mentioned as a lot of campaigns really do feel and look super similar . The algorithm , and “ following the trends “ has really made people that enjoy art and visuals pretty bored. As a creative early in her career i am very inspired to build my own personal archive , i too would love to create things that feel more original instead of staying in the reference trap. Thank you again 💐
“When research is used as a provocation , it creates space for new aesthetics to emerge. The challenge and the opportunity is to shift research back into an engine of originality, one that informs the work without predetermining its outcome” looking at images and referencing and thinking how you can evoke the emotions it conveys without reproducing a copy should be what everyone is striving to do!!
"The cycle produces work that is technically beautiful yet emotionally flat, caught between safety and sameness" 🥲🤌🏾This piece hits the nail on the head and definitely speaks to what I've been feeling for quite some time now (especially every time I see the latest food inspired beauty drop). Unfortunately I think we've reached an exhausting stage now where most people can't even be bothered to search for the OG reference and are ok with just regurgitating the latest interpreted version of it from others. This was so good and I'll def be coming back to this piece again
thank you so much! I feel like everyone's been experiencing it, and it's getting more and more obvious as years evolve and the same references keep being recycled. I hope there can be some major shifts to the ways of working, at least I try where I can! <3
This is so fascinating to me, and is in large why I’ve started to create my own reference images in AI tools because I can take what’s in my head and create it without looking for a reference in a saturated source. It’s not foolproof and comes with its own issues but I’m also really loving diving into other areas for reference and ideas. You’re such a huge inspiration for that!
Thank you so much! I agree, it's sometimes so needed to make your own references whether it's collage or a generated image, but even that is coming from other references. I've been trying middle ways when presenting art direction to clients, a mixture of 'raw' images from culture or shot on iPhone by myself with a generated one and an existing reference. Sometimes I quite literally create a formula with this + this and this = campaign haha
love that as a method!! shot on iphone is a good idea as well tbh, i havent really done that before. something to throw into the pipeline! :)
so so so so so true. How many times do we head "I want something à la..."
As if creativity was a mere copy of a pseudo-inspo, as if we were so scared to plan beyond what's already there.
Thanks for reminding us that there's more than lookalikes and that moodboards are only made to go massive steps forward into the unknown.
Right! I recently had a project where the briefing was literally an image from another brand and they were like 'We want this but the version for our brand', then proceed with very little budget, and declining everything that isn't exactly that! It's very frustrating as a creative as well, because you want to create something new and not copy other people yet you have to work with client restraints and get it approved.
This was such a good article
thank you so much <3
Damnnnnn girlll “And for creatives, the lesson is clear, stick close to the familiar, or risk losing the room. The unknown, once the most exciting part of image-making, is now seen as the most dangerous.”
That is a really 🌟good ❤️ one ☝🏿
Merci🙏
Thank you! <3 And unfortunately it's true haha, so curious when things will shift for the better
So good. And applicable across multiple disciplines.
a 100%! Literally for any discipline!
As a young creative I've always struggled with the execution of original ideas. I found it discouraging even in design school when the most rewarded work is the prettiest copy of an existing work, with maybe some slight variations. We are sometimes told to even work backwards to make things look pretty first then back rationalize our concept and creative decisions. Working in the linear way from concepting to the actual visual execution is much harder, and have made me feel incompetent in this field as I've failed on the latter part again and again. A professor of mine even said that everything has already been done in design. It would have been nice to learn a real and useful creative process in uni but it feels like even the professors gatekeep that to themselves or they themselves also fall into this reference trap.
I really felt this comment! I often struggled with this as well in school. Teachers really rewarded those who had a 'clear' and 'easy to understand' idea, but it was clear because it was something that was seen before. Students get rewarded for this way of working, especially when it comes to visuals the process is indeed sometimes backwards when your insights and concept should inform your visual research that eventually leads to a moodboard with depth and exploration.
"The irony is that this fear stifles the very thing brands claim to want: differentiation. By leaning on references as proof, they limit themselves to echoes of what already exists. And for creatives, the lesson is clear, stick close to the familiar, or risk losing the room" i wanna frame this quote and put it on my wall
Hahah, like what part do brands not get?!
really well writen and absolutely true!
thank you! <3
A great articulation of something I’ve been noticing for a while. It also feels like space for chance or happy accidents is being squeezed out of the creative process. Play and experimentation has been swapped for polish and perfection - like you said “beautiful but boring” is often the mantra. Would love to read a piece that explains in more granular detail how to create a concept/ reference without the usual reliance on Pinterest/ existing references.
Exactly! A lot of clients also get married to a reference and get such an error when the photographer plays around on set, but almost always the happy accidents are the best shots I love to push for! I actually have a post coming up on Thursday on turning a loose thought into a full concept and how to research it :)
"If your archive begins with a search bar, your work begins with someone else’s bias." DEFINITELY RE-READING THIS TO TAKE SOME NOTES 📝
<3 <3
I love this. I think the deeper issue (deeper than online vs offline references) is that you should start with an IDEA. You see that with Tim Walker. That's just one concept but it could be for a brand or a collection or whatever. The idea is not an image. It is a thought. Something you want to convey. Only when you are clear on that do you go hunting for images to convey it (or words, or choreography, or whatever your medium of communication is). The issue with online culture is that it's made it so easy to find images and shows something that LOOKS good that people just reach for those. And processes have sped up so much there isn't time to develop an idea, a world, a thought - and THEN figure out how to communicate it. It's such a shame and it makes for such hollow work. The brands that buck this trend stand out so clearly. Vacation Sunscreen, Rochambeau Club...
oh yes for sure! And an idea should also have a reason to exist, coming from an insight that sparks the idea. It is so important that there is depth and a feeling to a concept, instead of just aesthetics. I have a post coming up on Thursday on turning a thought into an idea and how to research it. 100% agree with everything you said about speed! I need to sit with my concept, think about it, go deeper, adjust it based on my findings etc etc
Love this article. Extremely poignant in the times we are living in creatively. Made me miss the times I was in college using tumblr and going down deep rabbit-holes of unfiltered blogs and inspiration. Unpopular opinion, get rid of Pinterest.
This was such a great read thank you for creating this. I recently saw a post somewhere that said “ what happened to creative directors actually being creative “ in reference to the latest visuals artists and fashion houses have been sharing online and I wondered what the post really meant . I figured it referred to the recycling of references you mentioned as a lot of campaigns really do feel and look super similar . The algorithm , and “ following the trends “ has really made people that enjoy art and visuals pretty bored. As a creative early in her career i am very inspired to build my own personal archive , i too would love to create things that feel more original instead of staying in the reference trap. Thank you again 💐
“When research is used as a provocation , it creates space for new aesthetics to emerge. The challenge and the opportunity is to shift research back into an engine of originality, one that informs the work without predetermining its outcome” looking at images and referencing and thinking how you can evoke the emotions it conveys without reproducing a copy should be what everyone is striving to do!!
So good! Applies to architectura and interior design as well!! Thanksss