Critical vs. Creative Thinking
One of my issues that I have with the modern school system is that it teaches students to largely think like a critic. We are taught to dissect things, find the problem and the solution. Creativity doesn’t work like that. Often the questions are open-ended and the answers are subconscious. It is more nebulous.
Why does one song go viral and not another? Are all the artists who become famous necessarily the most technically proficient? Why does some art succeed and other art fail?
We are shifting toward a creative economy. Automation will replace repetitive tasks and AI will replace even non-repetitive tasks. Human work has been shifting from mostly physical to mental (and creative). Can we as individuals shift our thinking to this new way of being? Can creativity be taught? Should it be? How? By whom?
In How To Be An Artist by Jerry Saltz, he talks about how critics step back whereas artists look up close. Critics compare while artists create. Critics see short-term, visionaries see long-term. These are two very different ways of approaching the world. I want to be able to develop these skills within myself. Not necessarily one or the other, but the ability to move through both as needed.
Messy Bun Book Lover
(Originally posted on May 2, 2025)
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