Obliquely Strategic

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Pictured, my current work in progress: a personal variant on Eno's Oblique Strategies: the creative block unstopper created by him and the artist Peter Schmidt in the mid-late 1970's, and which is still around in many forms to this day; either the original, very rare card sets, the current edition of the that physical set, or various software and online variations on the idea for hardware platforms various. Me being me, of course, I've come up with my own minor twist on the thing, grouping the 100 deliberately obtuse and terse instructions into four differently-coloured, ring-bound sets of record cards, to add one extra dimension to the idea. A random decision in itself, with the grouping of four sets of twenty-five dictated simply by the fact that my supply of record cards only comes in the usual four colours of green, blue, yellow and pink. The colours and groupings have no intrinsic significance, but serve only to introduce a further layer to the 'random' process of choosing a card whose content is to be followed - or not - in the context of whatever dilemma the user is currently facing vis à vis their particular creative workflow. I've yet to decide on the methodology for choosing the colour of the card-set to pick a card from, but I kind of like the idea of a tetrahedral die, with four differently-coloured sides, to make the initial choice. I also chose to use telegram-style paper printouts glued to the cards in a suitably retro fashion, as is my wont. Keep you posted on progress...


Comments

  1. Phil.15 October 2024 at 21:02

    I came across these several times when I was at work or studying. Just looked and currently the cheapest set is £150.00 on eBay! Trust all well.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. sideways15 October 2024 at 21:38

      I know - you can buy the current, retail set at £50 from Eno's site, but mine will be a one-off version that one particular person will be the recipient of ;0) I'll then make a different variant for my own use...

      Delete
    2. Anonymous16 October 2024 at 14:18

      We've all seen them but are they any use?? We ALL think differently and this outfit are capitalizing on making money out of teaching us to NOT think in our own uneque way.
      Who was it who said: "Sorry - forgot what day it was…"
      ATB
      Joe

      Delete
    3. sideways16 October 2024 at 18:13

      It's like anything else used as a method to unlock a creative process that's otherwise stuck: it's a diversionary tactic to flick the mind to another place for long enough for whatever's trapped in the depths of the subconscious to free itself. This can, and often has been in my case over the years, be as simple as going for a walk and leaving the problem behind for an hour or so, to return with the solution or idea that you didn't know was inside of you all the time. And to be frank, this is not 'an outfit': the ideas are open source and the originators were artists who developed the tool for their own use. As for forgetting what day it was; that's one of the joys and positives of being retired...

      Delete
  2. Phil.16 October 2024 at 19:04

    All truly great thoughts are conceived by walking - Nietzsche.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. sideways16 October 2024 at 22:18

      Can't disagree with that one, mon frère: the distraction of perambulation...

      Delete

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