Design Like Da Vinci Sxsw2013

7/29/2019 Design Like Da Vinci Sxsw2013

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“Beyond this place

there be dragons.”



In Instanbul (1502)…



A Strange Request is Made



Golden Horn Bridge Sketch



Da Vinci Details the Design



Da Vinci’s Bridge to Nowhere



In 1991, It’s Built in Norway



Why Da Vinci?



Brian Sullivan.

@BrianKSullivan@bigdesign

Hi, my name is

#davinci






http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/design-like-da-vinci-sxsw2013 13/131My Friends and I run the Big Design Conference.



Top 10 Thinkers of All-Time1. Leonardo Da Vinci2. William Shakespeare3. The Pyramid Builders

4. Johanne Wolfgang van Goethe5. Michelangelo6. Sir Isaac Newton7. Thomas Jefferson

8. Alexander the Great9. Phidias (the Architect of Rome)10. Albert Einstein

source: Tony Buzan’s Book of Genius (1994)





7 Steps to Everyday Genius

1. Be curious. You should be constantly learning.

2. Test knowledge. Learn from your mistakes.

3. Improve your own experience. Make it multi-sensory.

4. Embrace ambiguity, paradox, and uncertainty.

5. Whole-brain thinking (science/art, logic/emotion).

6. Know the physical world (grace, dexterity, fitness).

7. Use system-thinking. See interconnections.

Every designer should have these characteristics

(and every problem-solver).



• Content



UX Sketch Books Published



UX Sketch Paper Created

• A3 and A4 Sketching Paper

• Four Dots Per Inch A4 Paper

•

iPhone Wireframe Sheets• Android Application Sheets

• 4 Cell Storyboard Paper

• ZURB Sketch Sheets• 6-UP Sketch Sheets



Sketch Software Released

• Sketch Flow • Basalmiq



UX Sketching: Design Studio

• Participants produce several sketches.• Discuss and critique, then re-sketch.•

Merge ideas into one design concept.



Generate, Refine...Repeat

You use the creative and evaluate sides

of your brain in Design Studios.



Can Da Vinci Apply to UX?



Da Vinci’s

True Legacy



The Last Supper (1495-98)



Mona Lisa (1503-05)



Only 30 Finished Paintings



Sketches: Greatest Legacy



He Was a Prolific Sketcher

13,000pages



13,000 Pages Equates To…

Harry Potter Series

+ Chronicles of Narnia

+ Lord of the Rings Trilogy+ Hunger Games Trilogy

+ Game of Thrones Series

+ 9/11 Commission Report

+ NIV Bible

Total Pages

4,100

768

1,0111,155

4,197

1,181

585

12,997



6,000 Storyboards for Brave

Source: Mashable (2012)



Under a Painting is a Sketch



Lots of Sketches Per Page• Vitruvian Man = 2

• Shoulders = 7

• Flowers = 20

• Spike Ladder = 7

• Glider = 8

• Tank = 3

He is the most prolific

sketcher ever.



5 Sketching Secrets



Da Vinci’s Sketching Method

1. Sketch by hand on sheets of paper.

2. Do initial sketches alone.

3. Review with others, later.4. Use annotations, arrows, and labels.

5. Save and re-visit earlier sketches.



1. Use Separate Pages

Codex Atlanticus (over 1,000 individual sketches)



No iPad



No Field Notes/Moleskine

Bound pages are too constraining.



Separate Pages









Leonardo Lessons:

Sketch by Hand:

1. No constraints.

2. Quick and cheap.3. No special skills.

On Separate Pages:

1. Portable.

2. Re-organized.

3. Grouped.



2. Do Initial Sketches Alone

Da Vinci dissected 10 cadavers for his

over 750 sketches on human anatomy.



Da Vinci Sketched Alone

He would initially sketch alone. Then, a

doctor reviewed for technical accuracy.



“Cause of a Sweet Death”

Da Vinci asked an old man

if he could him dissect him

when he died. The oldman accepted.

Leonardo held the oldman when he died. He

started dissecting within a

few minutes.



Two Artists, Same Interest

Da Vinci and Michaelangelo dissected

human cadavers—socially repugnant.



Sketch Alone



Leonardo Lessons:Sketch Alone:

1. No distractions.

2. Generate faster.3. Incubate time.

4. Reflect, inspire.

5. Breathing room. 6. Avoid group

think.



3. Review with Others

Marcontonio della Torre reviewed the

human anatomy sketches for accuracy.



Reviewed by Generals

Da Vinci reviewed sketches of weapons

with generals and soldiers.



Review Together



Leonardo Lessons:Review Together:1. Need expertise.

2. Collaboration.

3. Validation.

4. Accuracy.

5. Consensus.



4. Annotate, Arrows, Labels

Da Vinci’s sketches were wireframes:

pictures with words, arrows, and labels.



Dissecting a Da Vinci Sketch

1. Picture in center.

2. Label on top.

3. Annotate on side.4. Arrows point to

key content.



Wireframe are the Same

1. Picture in center.

2. Label on top.

3. Annotate on side.4. Arrows point to

key content.

Yes, a picture is worth a 1,000 words.

Words with pictures equals clarity.



Leonardo Lessons:Sketches Need:

1. Picture

2. Description3. Arrows

4. Annotations

5. Labels



5. Save and Re-visit Later

Some scholars think Da Vinci used an

early form of the Cornell Method.



Da Vinci’s Shortcuts

Main

contentarea

Questions

andKeywords

Summary Information



Reorganized Sketches

Codex Atlanticus (over 1,000 individual sketches)



Grouped Weapon Sketches

Da Vinci drew these sketches at different

times, but they are grouped together.



Grouped Anatomy Sketches

Marcontonio della Torre wanted to publish

this work, but he died of the Black Death.



Technology Helps Us Group

Evernote Fireworks

Flickr Facebook



Revisit Later



Leonardo Lessons:Store & Re-visit:1. Don’t throw out.

2. Store for later.

3. Cluster together.

4. Make findable.

5. Revisit later.



Generating Ideas



1. Strive for Quantity2. Defer Judgment

3. Seek New Combinations

4. Use Your Imagination



1. Strive for Quantity

Vitruvian Man is an

iconic sketch of

human potential.

The Greek scholar,

Vitruvius, said a man’sbody could fit inside

a circle and a square.



750 Anatomy Sketches



Three Masterpieces

Innovation scholars predict that it takes

3,000 raw ideas for 1 successful idea.• 13,000 sketches = 3 Masterpieces

• 750 anatomy sketches = Vitruvian Man



Leonardo Lessons:1. Quantity Leads

to Quality.

2. 13,000 sketchesled to 3 classic

masterpieces.



2. Defer Judgment

“It is easier to resist in the beginning

than at the end.” - Da Vinci

Defer positive andnegative judgment.



Sketch of The Last Supper



Jesus and Judas Problems



Two Years Later…

R

SUPER

N T



KILLER

S P E

C T A C U

L A SUPER

AWESOME

E X C E L

L E N

NEAT

YES

COOLSWEET

WOWBEST

#1

D

REJECT

L



NIX IT!

D E N

I E D REJECT

IT SUCKS!!!

P

A I N F U

NOPE

NO

BLOWSWEAK

UGLYBAD

#2



Leonardo Lessons:1. Positive judgment

shuts you down.

2. Negative judgment

shuts you down.

3. Your own judgment

blocks you, too.4. Your sketch is a

draft to re-visit.

b



3. New Combinations

Da Vinci had a pet dragon.

d ’



Leonardo’s Pet Dragon

Da Vinci created a petdragon by gluing other

animal parts to a lizard.

• He added fish scales.

• He gave it a bat ears.

• He painted the lizard.• He added wings that

flapped when it walked.



Da Vinci always looked to put

things to another use

h i bil



The First Automobile

Using the existing toolsof his day, he made the/

the first automobile.

• Steering columns.

• Rack and pinions.

• Wheels.• Cranks.

• Springs.



Leonardo Lessons:1. New combinations

from existing parts.

2. Put old things to a

new uses.

3. Take an element

and make it biggeror smaller.

4 U Y I i i




“Why does the eyesee a thing more

clearly in dreams

than the imagination

when awake?”

- Da Vinci





Common Response Zone

D Vi i’ Fl i M hi



Da Vinci’s Flying Machines

S f l Glid T t



Successful Glider Test

In 2006, scientists flew a Da Vinci Glider,

using available material from his time.



Leonardo Lessons:1. Avoid the common

response zone.

2. More ideas force

you to use your

imagination.

3. Let ideas incubate.Re-visit with a new

perspective.



1. Strive for Quantity2. Defer Judgment





Refining Ideas



1. Use Positive Judgment2. Consider Novelty

3. Stay Focused

4. Redirect Yourself

1 U P iti J d t



1. Use Positive Judgment

“The greatestdeception men

suffer is from their

own opinions.”

- Da Vinci



65,000 thoughts per day.

65% are negative roughly 42 000

H St l d P ll



He Struggled Personally

D

REJECT

U L



NIX IT!

D E N

I E

IT SUCKS!!!

P

A I N

F U

NOPE

NO

BLOWSWEAK

UGLYBAD

#2

d



Leonardo Lessons:1. Use positive

judgment first.

2. Explore for value

and benefit.

3. Avoid the natural

tendency to thinkinitially negative.

2 Consider Novelty



2. Consider Novelty

“There are three

classes of people:

those who see, thosewho see when they

are shown, those

who do not see.”

- Da Vinci



The City of Venice called one of Da Vinci’s inventions “impractical”.

P L X B A i



Pope Leo X Bans AutopsiesDa Vinci’s dissections of cadavers was seen

as disgusting. It was

outlawed by the Pope.

Sultan Rejected His Bridge



Sultan Rejected His Bridge

“Swoop and poop!The executive

seagull maneuver.”

- Jared Spool

L d L



Leonardo Lesson:1. Don’t dismiss novel

ideas immediately.

2. Novel ideas might

lead to innovations.

3. Many of Leonardo’s

ideas were rejected.4. Your idea may be

ahead of its time.

3 Stay Focused



3. Stay Focused

“As every dividedkingdom falls, so

every mind divided

between many

studies confounds

and saps itself.”

- Da Vinci

Perfectionist & Procrastinator



Perfectionist & Procrastinator



You will lose focus from time to time.

Take a break. Go for a walk. Re-focus.

Break BreakLunch

The Da Vinci Dilemma



The Da Vinci Dilemma

Too many talents, not enough time.• Mathematician

• Scientist

• Anatomist

• Military Strategist

•

Civil Engineer• Artist

• Sketcher

A Death Bed Confession



“I have offended God

and mankind because

my work didn't reach

the quality it should

have.”

- Da Vinci

A Death Bed Confession

L d L



Leonardo Lessons:

1. Stay focused onwhat’s important.

2. Take breaks or

walks to re-focus.3. Focus on one thing

at a time.

4. Don’t procrastinate. 5. Perfectionism kills

productivity.

4 Redirect Yourself




Cesar Borgia Short Bio



Cesar Borgia, Short Bio•

Son of a Pope• Cardinal by age 17

• Killed his brother

•Dictator in his land

• Survived poisoning

• Killed many followers

•Died in war

• Patron of Da Vinci

for a short time

Machiavelli Short Bio



Machiavelli, Short Bio

• Politician for 14 years• Head of Florence militia

• Wrote The Prince

• “Ends justify the means.” • “Better to be feared

than loved.” • “Too much freedom can

lead to the soul's decay.”

Borgia: Machiavelli’s Prince



Borgia: Machiavelli s Prince

Da Vinci Caught in Middle



Da Vinci Caught in Middle



Suffered Severe Trauma



Suffered Severe Trauma

Da Vinci had "a profoundpsychological change . . .

as a result of his terrifying

experiences“ with Borgia.

source: Paul Strathern (2010)

Da Vinci Built Maps



Da Vinci Built Maps

Improved Borgia’s Fortress



Improved Borgia s Fortress

It had rounded walls to counter the

direct impact of a cannonball. Interior

walls led to fortified positions

Designed a Movable Bridge



Designed a Movable Bridge

Da Vinci’s “Grotesque Error”



Da Vinci s Grotesque Error

Imagine what Borgiawould done with:• Glider

•Crossbow

• Tank

• Cluster Bomb

• Machine Gun• Helicopter

• Hand-crank catapult

Da Vinci Redirects His Work




Da Vinci gives Borgiadefensive items:

• Map of Milan

• Map of Imola

• Hedometer

•

Movable Bridges• Improved Ladder

• Fortress Redesign





“I will not publish, nor divulge such things

because of the evil nature of men.”

- Da Vinci

Stores Them in a Codex



Stores Them in a Codex

Codex Atlanticus (most of his military sketches)



“I have wasted

my hours.” Final words of Da Vinci

Leonardo Lessons:



Leonardo Lessons:

1. You cannot avoidpolitics.

2. Maintain your own

values, to the end.

3. Design can be done

under duress.4. Re-direct yourself

to positive things.



Final Thoughts

5 Sketching Secrets



5 Sketching Secrets

1. Sketch by hand. Use sheets of paper.

2. Do initial sketches alone.

3. Review with others, later.4. Use annotations, arrows, and labels.

5. Save and re-visit earlier sketches.



• Content




2. Defer Judgment






2. Consider Novelty

3. Stay Focused





2. Defer Judgment3. Seek New Combinations



2. Consider Novelty3. Stay Focused




Design Like Da Vinci Sxsw2013

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