“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
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Top 10 Thinkers of All-Time 1. Leonardo Da Vinci 2. William Shakespeare 3. The Pyramid Builders 4. Johanne Wolfgang van Goethe 5. Michelangelo 6. Sir Isaac Newton 7. Thomas Jefferson 8. Alexander the Great 9. 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
13,000 pages
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
1,011 1,155 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 old man accepted.
Leonardo held the old
man 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. Description 3. 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 content
area
Questions and
Keywords
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 Quantity 2. 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’s body 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 sketches
led to 3 classic masterpieces.
2. Defer Judgment “It is easier to resist
in the beginning than at the end.” - Da Vinci
Defer positive and
negative judgment.
Sketch of The Last Supper
Jesus and Judas Problems
Two Years Later…
KILLER
SPEC
TAC
ULA
R
SUPER
AWESOME
EXC
ELLE
NT
NEAT
YES
COOL SWEET
WOW BEST
#1
NIX IT!
DEN
IED
REJECT
IT SUCKS!!!
PAIN
FUL
NOPE
NO
BLOWS WEAK
UGLY BAD
#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.
3. New Combinations
Da Vinci had a pet dragon.
Leonardo’s Pet Dragon
•
Da Vinci created a pet dragon 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.
The First Automobile
•
Using the existing tools of 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 bigger or smaller.
4. Use Your Imagination “Why does the eye
see a thing more clearly in dreams than the imagination when awake?” - Da Vinci
Common Response Zone
Da Vinci’s Flying Machines
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 Quantity 2. Defer Judgment 3. Seek New Combinations 4. Use Your Imagination
Refining Ideas
1. Use Positive Judgment 2. Consider Novelty 3. Stay Focused 4. Redirect Yourself
1. Use Positive Judgment “The greatest
deception men suffer is from their own opinions.” - Da Vinci
65,000 thoughts per day. 65% are negative, roughly 42,000.
He Struggled Personally
NIX IT!
DEN
IED
REJECT
IT SUCKS!!! PA
INFU
L
NOPE
NO
BLOWS WEAK
UGLY BAD
#2
Leonardo Lessons: 1. Use positive
judgment first. 2. Explore for value
and benefit. 3. Avoid the natural
tendency to think initially negative.
2. Consider Novelty “There are three
classes of people: those who see, those who see when they are shown, those who do not see.” - Da Vinci
The City of Venice called one of
Da Vinci’s inventions “impractical”.
Pope Leo X Bans Autopsies Da Vinci’s dissections of cadavers was seen as disgusting. It was outlawed by the Pope.
Sultan Rejected His Bridge “Swoop and poop!
The executive seagull maneuver.” - Jared Spool
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 “As every divided
kingdom falls, so every mind divided between many studies confounds and saps itself.” - Da Vinci
Perfectionist & Procrastinator
You will lose focus from time to time. Take a break. Go for a walk. Re-focus.
Break Break Lunch
The Da Vinci Dilemma Too many talents, not enough time. • Mathematician • Scientist • Anatomist • Military Strategist • Civil Engineer • Artist • Sketcher
“I have offended God and mankind because my work didn't reach the quality it should have.”
- Da Vinci
A Death Bed Confession
Leonardo Lessons: 1. Stay focused on
what’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 • 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 • 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
Da Vinci Caught in Middle
Suffered Severe Trauma Da Vinci had "a profound
psychological change . . . as a result of his terrifying experiences“ with Borgia.
source: Paul Strathern (2010)
Da Vinci Built Maps
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
Da Vinci’s “Grotesque Error” Imagine what Borgia
would done with: • Glider • Crossbow • Tank • Cluster Bomb • Machine Gun • Helicopter • Hand-crank catapult
Da Vinci Redirects His Work Da Vinci gives Borgia
defensive items: • Map of Milan • Map of Imola • Hedometer • Movable Bridges • Improved Ladder • Fortress Redesign
Da Vinci Redirects His Work
“I will not publish, nor divulge such things because of the evil nature of men.”
- Da Vinci
Stores Them in a Codex
Codex Atlanticus (most of his military sketches)
“I have wasted my hours.”
Final words of Da Vinci
Leonardo Lessons: 1. You cannot avoid
politics. 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
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
1. Strive for Quantity 2. Defer Judgment 3. Seek New Combinations 4. Use Your Imagination
1. Use Positive Judgment 2. Consider Novelty 3. Stay Focused 4. Redirect Yourself
1. Strive for Quantity 2. Defer Judgment 3. Seek New Combinations 4. Use Your Imagination
1. Use Positive Judgment 2. Consider Novelty 3. Stay Focused 4. Redirect Yourself