Arterior Motives: home of Mariah Howard Visual Facilitation

Mapping Movement!

2012-01-09T18:25:00.000-08:00

Here's a new game: it's called 'Find the Mapper!" It's kind of like 'Where's Waldo' but instead of looking for cartoon guy with a striped shirt, you're looking for someone mapping.

Here's a clue:

"That was kind of fun" you might say but then ask, "But, why were you mapping while a room of people stretched?" Excellent question!

Besides proving the point that you can take mapping ANYWHERE, I was mapping a class called, "The Joy and Flow of Kicking Ass" taught by Alex Iglecia in order to help participants remember what they learned and share their new practices with others. Alex guided a packed house through a mix of yoga, Uzuazu, and other techniques for taking exercise to the level of self-empowerment. Once everyone saw my mapping techniques, they were blown away and looked like this:

Here's one of the maps I created during the class:

The Strongheart Fellowship Program and Grace's story

2012-01-09T13:51:00.000-08:00

This map was created after I heard a beautiful and compelling talk given by Grace, a Strongheart Fellow and the founder of Strongheart, Zoe Adams. Grace shared her amazing life story with a group of leaders, focusing on how we all have to develop courage and wisdom to attain our goals. Zoe explained the mission of Strongheart and how their work with young people is changing the world. Please visit the Strongheart site here.

Live mapping: A leadership journey

2011-11-23T15:37:00.000-08:00

This map was created while a small leadership team responded to the question, "What if the last three days could unleash the potential of 50,000 people and their families?". Each executive in the room responded to the question while I captured their words and added related images. The acorn in the center of the map was a metaphor used through out the three days to help participants imagine what their work could become in the future.

Samuel Merritt University: World Cafe mapping

2011-10-26T22:54:00.000-07:00

These maps were created during a World Cafe dialog among staff and faculty members of Samuel Merritt University. I helped to develop the questions used in the Cafe, and was happy to listen to the lively discussions and capture the output from the three rounds of conversation. Click on the image to see a larger version.

Driving Towards Solutions: Louisiana Department of Education

2011-10-19T15:07:00.000-07:00

Here's a map I created in partnership with the Louisiana Department of Education and their Non-Tested Grades and Subjects (NTGS) group. The image portrays the NTGS journey towards developing ways to track student and teacher success in subjects that don't use traditional metrics such as Career and Technical Education. Members of the various NTGS Workgroups signed the road map to show their support of this vision of student achievement.

SINGLE CLICK ON THE IMAGE TO SEE A LARGER VIEW.

Style Testing

2011-09-02T14:14:00.000-07:00

One part of the process of creating a whiteboard animation is called style testing. The artist shares initial sketches based on the content of the animation as a way to explore how the client envisions the work they'll create together. This process can take place even before a script is written; you already have a concept of what you want to explore or explain through animation - in other words, you have WORDS and ideas.

The next step is to bring in PICTURES.

With style testing you find out if the way I visualize hunger is similar to how you 'see' hunger. We'll learn pretty quickly if we're on the same page...or not! Bottom line is, style testing helps us co-create a look for the animation long before we get in the studio to shoot the video - and that saves time, money and a lot of creative energy!

Here's a sample of my style testing images for an upcoming whiteboard animation. Thanks to Mitch Butler who is a teacher and collaborator on this project.

PLEASE CLICK ON THE IMAGE TO SEE A LARGER VERSION

Sustainably Harvesting Questions

2011-07-31T23:30:00.000-07:00

Here's a way to visually record the questions that emerge after a World Cafe dialog.

CLICK on the map to see a larger version.

Hartnell College Advanced Technology Center

2011-07-05T13:18:00.000-07:00

Check out this W hiteboard Animation I co-created for The Advanced Technology Center at Harntell College.

Episode 1: How to Build a Business Case for Social Customer Service

2011-06-08T11:00:00.002-07:00

I'm very proud to share this series of videos I co-created with Salesforce.com!These three videos are aimed at helping businesses and organizations utilize Social Media as a tool for their Customer Service departments; customers are communicating using Social Media everyday - so companies need to be using those tools as well!

After a series of meetings, I created small storyboard images based on each script. Then we shot for two full days at Pixel Corp studios in San Francisco; I created 55 large scale drawings on camera...all in ink...no pencil outlines for me! Once we shot the videos, the amazing Jennifer Stern took over and worked on editing.

I hear from a little Twitter bird that the videos are getting a good reception; I hope they will serve to help people communicate more effectively.

Episode 2: How to Calculate the ROI of Social Customer Service

2011-06-08T11:00:00.001-07:00

Episode 3: How Social Customer Service Benefits the Entire Company

2011-06-08T11:00:00.000-07:00

Here's the final installment in the three whiteboard animations I created with Salesforce.

Breakout Session at Craigslist Bootcamp!

2011-06-08T08:43:00.000-07:00

A wonderful breakout session occurred at Craigslist Bootcamp 2011 where over 70 people engaged in the practice of Conversational Leadership. It began as participants were welcomed into an intentionally designed room with small tables set for four; each table was adorned with unique centerpieces (shells, rocks, figurines, small baskets) to be used as 'talking sticks'.

Also on each table was a handout that listed the gifts and practices of Conversational leaders. Once in the room, people were asked to place their bags, purses and cell phones away so they could move freely and focus on the conversation. After these items were safely stowed away, they sat at tables with people they didn't know. They were encouraged to introduce themselves to one another in a brief way - welcoming one another into the room.

After a brief hello and a quick after lunch stretch break - co-host Deborah Goldblatt and I introduced one another. Deborah is a dear friend who is the Director of Resource Development for The World Cafe. She is also a long time volunteer, and all out dynamic champion for Multi-Generational Collaboration. After introductions, Deborah and I shared the design of the day: using The World Cafe process, and Conversational Leadership as a model to encourage participants to engage in conversation with one another. We wanted to make space for authentic sharing and deep listening around questions that we felt would matter to attendees.

Deborah and I were delighted to watch as Bootcamp participants fully engaged in all three rounds of conversation: the room was buzzing with good talk and listening, people were focused on the speakers at their tables and when it was time to stop each round of conversation people didn't feel ready - all good signs!

Participants also experienced two wonderful 'Harvests' of their conversations: the whole group explored what was emerging in their respective conversations - looking in particular for themes and places of commonality. We saw a lot of heads nodding in appreciation as each person spoke. The second and final round of Harvest was a rich time of reflection where participants expressed their gratitude for the safe space we created. They found that many people in the room have a deep desire for authentic conversation at a time when technology is so ever-present.

We ended in the session in gratitude for their fully engaged conversation throughout the hour - and we recognized them for their practicing of conversational leadership. It was an honor to co-host the experience and I so look forward to the next round of conversation!

Visuals with Audio = Interactive Maps!

2011-05-30T14:49:00.000-07:00

Interactive Maps are another way to engage your audience with visuals. After you've found a fantastic Visual Facilitator to co-create an image with you, we collaborate with a web designer who adds hotspots to our digital image.

The Interactive Maps below were created in collaboration with the stellar Shilpa Jain and sponsored by Global Collaborative. Shilpa and I dreamed up a way to highlight the work of young women whose efforts are going to make the world a better place. We decided to use Interactive Maps to tell their stories.

Click here to read more about the project and each woman. DOUBLE CLICK ON EACH WOMAN'S NAME to listen to the audio embedded in each Interactive Map. Roll over various images and listen to segments of their interview.

RUMBI KATEDZA

VALENTINE GIRAUD

AYSEGUL GUZEL

Oldies But Goodies

2011-01-23T21:23:00.001-08:00

Check out these very simple but effective maps. You can use them as handout templates or create large versions that groups add to with 'Post-It-Notes' or write on directly. Nothing wrong with simple, clear mind maps! They're a great way for groups to see timelines, action steps, or reflect on a recent event or project.

Synthesis Mapping

2011-01-23T20:58:00.000-08:00

An assortment of maps created using a new synthesis process I developed. Once a meeting is underway, I work with facilitators and conveners to distill the key ideas and insights that we feel will be most helpful for participants to remember. Then we choose a visual metaphor and away I go, creating a synthesis map while the meeting continues on around me. My clients and I have found this process to be very effective as a way to ensure that the most important ideas and actions are captured.

Chautauqua 2010 Evoking Through Art

2010-10-22T16:53:00.000-07:00

A short video that explores the relationship between dialog, art making, and community building. This conversation took place at this year's Chautauqua gathering where we explored the Learning Journey in three days: the call, the journey, and the return. Enjoy!

A Poster for Sustainability

2010-10-07T12:57:00.000-07:00

This poster was designed in collaboration with Toni McMurphy, Organizational Development Consultant with Infinite Impact, and Jim Stueber, Director of Facilities Engineering at Washington University School of Medicine. Toni and Jim will share this image to support a talk they're giving called 'Sustainability as a catalyst for individual and institutional transformation.' They're doing amazing work building bridges and providing opportunities for people to live and work more sustainably.

Participatory Mural: What is the Nature of Art?

2010-10-04T12:14:00.000-07:00

Here's the Visual Thinking mural I set up at the first annual 'Art In Nature/The Nature of Art Festival'. Over 100 artists volunteered to bring their craft to this new festival. In the Visual Thinking area participants of all ages were encouraged to explore the question, "What is the nature of art?" using markers, chalk, pastels, and collage. Special thanks to Nancy Margulies for her help and unending creativity.

Festival Map

2010-10-04T11:48:00.000-07:00

In collaboration with the festival directors, I created this map to help guide participants through a multi-disciplinary art festival yesterday in Redwood Park in Oakland CA. It was a treat to see the map wandering around through out the day.

Making a pitch at this year's SOCAP10: Visual Thinking for the win

2010-10-02T10:13:00.000-07:00

I met very cool and inspiring young entrepreneur at the Hub SOMA yesterday - turns out that she was in a bit of a fix. She needed to make a sold pitch to potential investors as she networked like mad at SOCAP10 - and she need to memorize the pitch by the next day. Visual Thinking to the rescue! I offered to talk with her for a few minutes, drawing and listening while she explained what was at the heart of her work. I was able to help by drawing a simple image that conveyed the gist of her business and what it offers. She could show the image as she made her pitch, or she could simply visualize it and feel confident that she wasn't forgetting anything important. I got this lovely email from her the following day:

Hey Mariah,

Just wanted to let you know I have been up since seven wrestling with the various forms of my pitch, and your drawings have been a GODSEND. I am just so impressed at your ability to take my stream of consciousness and turn it into something tangible, clear and right on target, and in a visual format no less! So cool.

Thank you!!

Lindsey

It's Not About Right Brain Vs. Left Brain

2010-09-10T13:48:00.000-07:00

We use both hemispheres of our brain all the time, but for a moment, let's just be frank and say:

Isn't the RIGHT BRAIN cool?

* Holistic

* Appreciates the Random * Utilizes Intuition

* Gets the Systems Perspective

* Understands Context * Connects with Emotion

* Registers Expression

Our friend Daniel Pink says in a Wired article:

"Until recently, the abilities that led to success in school, work, and business were characteristic of the left hemisphere. They were the sorts of linear, logical, analytical talents measured by SATs and deployed by CPAs. Today, those capabilities are still necessary. But they're no longer sufficient. In a world upended by outsourcing, deluged with data, and choked with choices, the abilities that matter most are now closer in spirit to the specialties of the right hemisphere - artistry, empathy, seeing the big picture, and pursuing the transcendent."

Peter Block on the role of art

2010-07-29T23:27:00.000-07:00

“Reform can’t happen without art”

"Art presents a vision of the world that’s always ambiguous. Ok? If its clear its not art. It’s just imitation. If it’s clear, you may see art with enormous skill and it doesn’t touch you because it’s all clear. So the purpose of art is to document the nuance of experience. And what’s radical in this construction is instead of having people who are good at us drawing for us...maybe the community needs to create the graphic display and the people who have expertise in art are guides, the messengers. And I think its wonderful. Reform can’t happen without art."

-Peter Blcok

Collaborative Chautauqua Map

2010-07-14T11:52:00.000-07:00

Click on the map to see a larger version of the image created by Avril Orloff, Mary Corrigan and myself at this year's Chautauqua gathering. Lots more information in the following post...

Chautauqua 2010

2010-07-14T11:03:00.000-07:00

I just returned from a magical 3 day gathering called 'Chautauqua' held at the Mount Madonna School in Watsonville CA. "What is a Chautauqua?" you might logically ask. The amazing Ward Mailliard is the ring leader and progenitor of the gatherings, so I'll let him explain. The Chautauqua is an "engagement of people who care about learning...and they center around the essential question, of 'What are the conversations that I want to have that will support my own transformation in the learning process?' and, 'How can I engage in conversations that will support the work that I care most about?'" Over seventy people attended this year to explore their individual and our collective learning journeys.

I was fortunate to be a part of an initial conversation that led to the use of art as a central method for exploring learning and transformation at Chautauqua. Here's Ward again:

"I just had an interesting and thought provoking conversation with Mariah Howard who most of you know a gifted visual note taker and, well so much more as a thinker of creative engagement. We were talking about the Chautauqua 2010 (July 6-8) and how we might deepen, extend and connect the trail blazing that happens there" by engaging "the gifts of music, art and technology to create new frameworks of participation at the event and even beyond."

This year was unique in that there were three Visual Recorders present: Mary Corrigan, Avril Orloff and myself. The three of us found a way to encouraging people to make their own visual records, collages, and group drawings while the 'professionals' collaborated on a large Visual Record of the event which you can see in an earlier post. The other stellar facilitators were Peter Block, Barbara McAfee, Vivian Wright and Michael Jones...a dream team of conveners.

It was a fantastic opportunity to experience the power of art as it relates to creating community, deepening our ways of learning, and transforming our individual narratives about the journey we're on.

Visual Record: Trust

2010-04-30T17:19:00.000-07:00

A map I created after listening to the reflections from a World Cafe gathering, where several groups dialoged about the nature of trust.

Resume Map

2010-04-21T16:48:00.000-07:00

Here's a whole new way to present your resumes to potential clients and employers: it's the Resume Map! In this Map the job seeker hopes to become an Executive Assistant to the Executive Team of The Engage Network. The Resume Map matches each of the various roles/functions required for the position with her requisite skills and experience. This Map will certainly help her stand out from the crowd.

Mount Madonna School School Project: Values in World Thought

2010-04-03T16:11:00.000-07:00

On Friday April 2nd I had the pleasure of spending a few hours with the Junior and Senior class of Mount Madonna High School. The students are about to embark on an amazing trip to Washington DC through through their 'Values in World Thought' program. Their teacher and my inspiring friend Ward Millard shares their whirl-wind tour as students interview members of Congress and other important leaders. Ward handed the class over to me on Friday after we collaborated on a design for the day that would support students investigating their concerns, goals, questions, and commitments in support of the trip. To learn more about previous trips to DC and hear interviews conducted by the students, click here.

C4C Map With Embedded Videos!

2009-11-09T16:22:00.000-08:00

Click on the link below and then CLICK AGAIN on the lightbulb next to the title of the map, lower right hand side, just to the right of 'The Return" to see a video of both yours truly and Avril Orloff discussing Visual Recording at Connecting For Change. Enjoy!

http://www.mappingtheedges.com/proto/3.connecting-for-change/index.html

Connecting For Change Murals

2009-11-09T16:06:00.001-08:00

These murals were co-created with Avril Orloff during the anual Connecting for Change event in Vancouver BC. Please follow this link to learn more about the event and our Visual Recording.

AAA Template: Ideal Team

2009-11-09T15:53:00.000-08:00

This is a template I co-created for David Underwood, a Performance Management Executive for AAA in Walnut Creek. David and I had a visually supported meeting about his goals, and a week later I recorded a day long meeting he facilitated where participants filled out the template and shared their ideas. I wanted to share the template along with his glowing review of our work together:

Mariah,

I want to thank you again for your hard work, support, creativity, ideas and guidance on our meeting yesterday. I feel blessed that our paths have crossed. You added tremendous value to the dialogue, and I believe your work will be invaluable to us going forward. I had a lot of fun, and learned a lot from you. For this I am truly grateful. I will now be looking for opportunities to use you in the future and will heartily recommend you to all my colleagues.

Leadership Training Images for the Veteran's Administration

2009-09-03T15:21:00.000-07:00

The maps below were used as part of a leadership training series offered to employees of the Atlanta Veteran's Administration. Enjoy!

Workshop Series at CIIS: Becoming Your Own Professional Coach

2009-08-04T10:24:00.000-07:00

Please click http://ciis.edu/publicprograms/fall09/professional-development.html to check out the Professional Development series of workshops that Monica Broecker and I will offer at California Institute of Integral Studies this fall. Beginning on October 11th Monica and will co-facilitate a unique exploration of how to cultivate happiness through our work or search for work. We'll ask questions like: What rituals can we create that will support and enliven our current work? What paradigms and resources do we have internally and in the room that are currently untapped? In this series we'll utilize Improvisational theater techniques, practices from Solution Focused Brief Therapy and Neuroscience, and live Visual Recording in a holistic process that explores the challenges and stressors of work and life in new ways. Please join us this Fall.

Visualizing Sustainability at this year's Maker Faire

2009-07-06T07:21:00.000-07:00

Julie Gieseke and I created this fun video as a way to explore our ideas about Visualizing Sustainability. We took a handfull of dry-erase markers, small white boards and the question, "What does sustainability look like?" to this year's Maker Faire where we knew there would be folks willing to share their vision of a sustainable world. Julie did the sweet editing and added in a fantastic original soundtrack by my very talented brother Evan Howard. Please share your impressions and email me your image(s) of sustainability if you'd like - we're going to continue to collect these visuals and then, we'll find out what wants to happen next.

Visualizing Leadership

2009-06-23T16:36:00.000-07:00

People I'm Lucky to Work With this Week

2009-06-22T18:43:00.000-07:00

YES! Global Collaborative Day of Engagement

2009-06-17T16:25:00.000-07:00

I just had a great conversation with Julie Pennington of YES! about how we can bring Visual Recording to YES!'s Global Collaborative Day of Engagement on June 28th in Berkeley. I took some initial notes about how I might be of service, and then I turned my ideas into the Visual Record you see above (click on the image to see a larger view). Julie will be presenting this map to her co-workers as a way to communicate how Visual Recording can contribute to the conversations being generated by participants of the Day of Engagement - which is going to be a great event, and is free of charge. Click here to learn more about YES!

Terra Verde Visual Facilitation Session

2009-06-15T15:48:00.000-07:00

Last week I co-created this image in a Visual Facilitation session with the very talented and altruistic David Hodgson at a cafe in San Francisco. He is beginning a new business endeavour called Terra Verde, and he felt it would be helpful to create a Visual Record of the structure of this business as it currently exists. I tailored some questions for David to consider before our meeting, an initial process that he found helpful and clarifying. At our face-to-face meeting we discussed his responses and I began to draw what emerged in our conversation. Here's what David said about the Visual Facilitation session:

"You helped me reach a much clearer understanding of the complex ideas I was working with. By being able to translate these concepts into visual form, with images that spoke to the richness of the ideas, it really helped them come alive, and allowed me to understand much more clearly how the different parts interrelate with one another in an organic way. I find your ability to intuitively help draw out and enrich the separate pieces and then help weave them into a coherent artistic whole to be absolutely invaluable. I keep the image created next to me on my desk as a I work so as to continually be inspired in what I am doing, and to help me maintain my focus on what I am creating. I also use it to help communicate the idea much more clearly + quickly to others. For me, collaborating with Mariah greatly accelerates the process of manifesting new ideas in the world - and I wish I could work with her more frequently."

When I ASK questions and DRAW your ideas so you can literally SEE what you mean, you'll have greater clarity about your vision and your next steps. Not only will your vision be elucidated, you'll also know more about which areas of your project are unclear or uncertain, so you can have a more defined sense of where to explore further and focus your attention. All this content in one unique image that you can share with people who want to contribute to your project or plan. Please get in touch with your current or emerging projects and we can create a Visual Facilitation session to catered to your needs.

A Record of a Story

2009-05-29T13:29:00.000-07:00

Click on the image to get a better view.

This map was created live in Austin Texas and it signifies new and exciting way of Recording for me: instead of capturing each word or idea, I only record the STORIES that the speaker shares. The woman who spoke at this particular event is a master storyteller, so the job of Recording her was easy and joyful. Regardless of the expertise of the teller, I believe that our stories contain the essence of our hopes and ideas, so, in focusing in on a story, we connect with the core of what we want to share or communicate. I'd love to keep Visually Recording in this way because we all love to hear a good story!

Childhood Obesity: Mapping the System

2009-05-27T21:05:00.000-07:00

I am so happy to be working with the very talented Linda Booth Sweeney again - and this time - we're collaborating to develop what Linda calls 'system maps' that will visually describe and further a childhood obesity prevention program. Below are two images I created that depict the influences and that contribute to the alarming rates of obesity in American children. I am so grateful to work on this project, as Linda's work is so critical, and the system maps we create together have the potential to help people shift their thinking about how we can prevent obesity in future generations. Here's a excerpt from Linda's website where she describes systems thinking: "When we look closely, we see living systems on all scales, from the smallest plankton, to our own body, to the planet as a whole. When we understand what constitutes a living system, we also see that our watersheds, families, communities, organizations, and nations are all living systems." Check out Linda's informative and beautiful website to learn more: http://www.lindaboothsweeney.net/

2009-04-27T16:18:00.000-07:00

I'm very happy to report that the Visual Records Nancy White and I created in response to the Inaugural National Symposium on Food Systems and Sustainability on March 24 and the follow-up Policy Round table on the March 25th, are featured on the current home page of the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences at UC Davis: http://www.caes.ucdavis.edu/

Envisioning Sustainability

2009-04-23T14:14:00.001-07:00

Since my work at UC Davis, I've become very interested in exploring the intersection between the field of Sustainability and my work in Visual Recording/Visual Thinking. I'm curious about how we as individuals, communities, families, and organizations might envision Sustainability: What does Sustainability look like? How can it be mapped and charted? What needs do people have when they try to run their businesses and homes in more Sustainable ways? Said another way, are there visuals that could assist people as they strive to integrate the principles and practices of Sustainability into their lives and work? It's my belief that co-creating Visual Records, icons, maps and templates could serve as another tool to help Visual Thinkers align with the very complex and urgent need for action on the behalf of the environment. Visual Records can help people see both the practical day-to-day steps we can take as individuals, and see how to shift to or adopt a Systems Thinking view of Sustainability. I've started my exploration of envisioning Sustainability, so I wanted to share my first few images above. If you have ideas about how to visualize Sustainability, or know of books on this subject, or better yet, if you know people I could talk with about the alignment between Visuals & Sustainability, please get in touch!

Visual Recording at UC Davis

2009-03-22T12:48:00.000-07:00

Here are the Visual Records Nancy White and I created during the Inaugural National Symposium on Food Systems & Sustainability: http://www.asi.ucdavis.edu/conferences/fss2009/graphic_recordings/

A New Way To Present Meeting Agendas

2009-03-15T12:03:00.000-07:00

The Visual Records below were created as a way to share the 3 day agenda of Serve Wisconsin's North Central Cluster Meetings, affiliated with the wonderful AmeriCorps volunteer programs.

World Cafe Community Article: Youth Dialog Project at NCDD

2009-02-07T09:21:00.000-08:00

Please take the time to read this article on The World Cafe Community Blog, written by Deborah Goldblatt and co-authored by yours truly. The article chronicals the Youth Dialog Project sessions that took place at last years NCDD conference (National Colition for Dilaog and Deliberation) in Austin, Texas. We learned a great deal about intergenerational work and how to create a space where voices can be heard.

Visual Recording on a Big and Small Scale

2009-01-26T17:25:00.000-08:00

In my Visual Recording work I get to listen to and graphically capture a variety of events, conferences, and meetings. Not only is the content unique to each event, the scale of the conversations taking place also varies from job to job. Sometimes I record conversations between teams of people within a large organizations and other times I'm charting the ideas of hundreds of people at a national conference. When the number of participants in a conversation is small, I can record on paper while sitting at a table and blend in pretty seamlessly with the group. When meetings take place in conference centers, I'm Visually Recording in front of hundreds of people, capturing the content in large murals that are projected onto screens so the whole audience can watch the murals taking shape. While the size and scale of the conversation changes, the practice of listening to the core ideas and visually depicting the key points always remains the same.
Most recently, I had the opportunity to work on a very large scale with a fellow Visual Recorder, the lovely and extremely talented Michelle Boos Stone. Michelle and I worked together to capture the conversations of a manufacturing company interested in taking a new and empowered stance in their business. We created fifteen 4x8 murals while working on a stage in front of the audience of almost 750 people, seen below.

2008-12-01T17:40:00.000-08:00

Here's a template I created that provides a space for
people to write in their visionary ideas and thoughts.
Instead of providing a linear document with
blank _____ spaces for clients to fill in, why not use a
template where they can write and draw in a drawing?

Mandalas

2008-11-17T20:39:00.000-08:00

For many years now I've enjoyed drawing mandalas, as they portray relationships in a unique way; all the symbols, curves and lines are interconnected just as humans connected to one another and to nature. Creating mandalas is an organic process that develops as the conversation or my own thoughts emerge, most often using symbols and shapes instead of written words. I begin by making a small dot near the center of page, then I slowly draw other dots in a circular pattern that relates to the first dot. I continute to draw without a design in mind or the aid of a ruler. This drawing style came to me early one morning when I was visiting the holy city of Safed, Israel. While wandering around with my sketch book, I noticed a unusually artistic light fixture. I did my best to copy the fixture's intricate design and next thing I knew, a mandala took shape. I haven't been able to stop creating mandalas since that day, almost sixteen years ago. On several occasions I've drawn mandalas for corporate and non-profit organizations as way to represent their conversations, but most of the time, the mandalas live in my sketch books. Feel free to leave me a comment about what you see in the images or tell me how they speak to you.

Tailor-Made Visual Recording Workshops

2008-10-18T19:24:00.000-07:00

A Google employee prepares a map for a World Cafe harvest.

Visual Recording workshops help you develop a new creative skill to use at work and home:

You can offer a Visual Recording workshop that is designed just for your organization:

I offer a one or two day workshop that teaches the basic skills of Visual Recording that can be directly applied to your work: everyone can learn to take notes in Visual Record form, and we can even teach you to Record the ideas and conversations of others.
A Visual Recording workshop will highlight the creativity and ingenuity of your co-workers as they learn to Visually Record your next meeting or conversation.
Bringing Visual Recording skills into your workplace supports the many different learning styles in your company; over %65 percent of people are visual learners, so make sure you're reaching your whole audience at work.
At the end of the day, each person will have created posters, Visual Records, and icons that can be used right away at work or home.
After a Visual Recording workshop, you'll think even better as a team, because now you can see your collective ideas all in the same place.

A Visual Record you created on your office wall is a great way to keep inspired and engaged.

Create a personalized Visual Record during a workshop that you can give as a individual gift or seasons greetings card.

Students at SCAD University in a Visual Recording workshop.

Employees at Google learning to Visually Record a live conversation.

Latino Roundtable, Chicago IL

2008-10-15T19:12:00.000-07:00

A poster I created for a presentation on "Forging the Tools for Unity: A Report on Metro Chicago’s Mayor’s Roundtables on Latino Integration."

Systems Challenge Mural: NCDD '08

2008-10-08T11:06:00.001-07:00

The first of many images to come from our work at the National Conference on Dialog and Deliberation in Austin Texas. This mural is a compilation of comments left by participants over the three day gathering. 5 challenge areas related to D&D were chosen as themes of the conference and I mapped the issue concerning integrating D&D into our systems.

2008-09-30T16:36:00.000-07:00

A recent Visual Record I created for a consumer products company
during a retreat facilitated by Dawna Markova and her team of
Professional Thinking Partners.

2008-09-26T13:47:00.000-07:00

A live Visual Record created from a key note speech by
Jack Zenger at SCAD University in Savannah Georgia.

2008-09-18T13:43:00.000-07:00

This beautiful picture is of the inter-generational group of designers who came together last weekend to create the Youth Dialogue Project Sessions that will take place at the National Coalition for Dialog and Deliberation conference in October. The 3 sessions (mentioned in an earlier post) will focus on trans-generational leadership in the Dialog and Deliberation community and beyond. There will be concurrent sessions held at the NCDD conference, one designed specifically for folks under 30 and another for a group of over 30 participants, respectively titled "Including Our Voices: Young Adult Leadership in the D&D community" and "Creating Room at the Head of Our Tables: Exploring New Mentoring Roles as Young Leaders Emerge. The third session is a trans-generational gathering welcoming all ages into
a World Cafe conversation and exploration. The designers and Woody the dog, spent two days in Berkeley getting to know one another, sharing stories, participating in a World Cafe conversations, and developing the content of the sessions. I am honored to be part of this group and want to express my gratitude for their welcoming of both my Visual Recording as well as my ideas and experiences.

Getting the mapping started for our first session.

The World Cafe format being used to support conversation
between Vergers and mentors in trans-generational dialog.

The whole group of amazing folks from left to right, front row to back row: Estuko, Abigail, Deborah, Jonna, Alissa, Nick, Mariah and in the back row Milton, Mitch and Ken. Damn, we look good.

Thought Leader Gathering: Harvest

2008-09-14T20:55:00.001-07:00

Thought Leader Gathering: Structure of Belonging

2008-09-14T19:32:00.000-07:00

The most recent Thought Leader Gathering hosted by Heartland Circle inspired these maps. The first map contains questions shared by participants at the opening circle, and the other maps came from conversations about community and leadership. This TLG focused on the work of Peter Block and his most recent book The Structure of Belonging. To see a larger version of any mpa, click on the image.

Visual Recording: Texas and beyond

2008-09-10T10:43:00.001-07:00

Here I am mapping a synopsis of what took place during the Youth Dialog Project Conversations for Change gatherings in 2007. Young leaders from 8 countries were studying and discussing conflict resolution as part of Facing Violence: Justice, Religion and Conflict Resolution World Forum 2007, sponsored by The Rockrose Institute. Click on Youth Dialog Project to see a nice documentary about the YDP gathering and hear the wonderful Deborah Goldblatt narrating along.

I'm happy and honored to be working once again with Deborah as part of another inter-generational community she has helped to create. This time, there's a team of mentors, dialog hosts, teachers and youth leaders from On The Move, called together host a series of 3 workshops at this years NCDD conference in Austin. The sessions will be designed this weekend and will explore the relationship between trans-generational leadership and the dialog and deliberation community. I'm elated to participate in the design of these sessions at NCDD and Visually Record them too.

I'll share here what Visuals emerge from the conversations in Austin, from the inter-generational perspective, as and well as from my work as part of the
Graphics Team for NCDD. I'm glad to have been asked to be part of the team that's recording this years conference; it's a privilege to work with such skilled mappers and have the chance to try some new ways of recording as the role of graphics at this year's NCDD event promises to be unique and very interactive.

2008-05-02T10:08:00.000-07:00

Here's a template I created for a teacher who wants to help her students find a creative way to express their acting skills. For the actor, each performance tells a story and to personalize that story they use their emotions, technique, and imagery to bring to their words to life. Templates are wonderful teaching tools as they make space for people to write in their own ideas and images as well add some more life and color to the content.

Since January

2008-05-02T09:50:00.000-07:00

Here's a quick update on my recent projects:
Mapping World 1: I've been working with several great companies making maps and templates for their clientele. The map above was created for Creative Health Care Management, a company that takes a very holistic look at all the roles required of people in their field. I've been truly enjoying creating these maps in black and white then coloring them in Photoshop.

Mapping World 2: Tipping Point: I'm co-hosting another dilogue among Visual Recording professionals with my friend and fellow mapper Julie Gieske. We're bringing people together to explore how Graphic Facilitation can become a house hold, school wide, every day phenomena. We have our 2nd gathering next month and I'll happily share the maps that are created from those conversations.

Mapping World 3: Heading out this week to work at a Climate Change Cafe for the people at Nike. Should be a good conversation and chance to listen to and support their commitment to sustainability.

Mapping World 4: Moving to San Francisco! Closer in to the action of city life and artistic opportunities in the Bay Area. I'll be curious how my Visual Recording career will shift as a result of this change in environment. More maps to come...

Tis the season for Visual Greetings!

2008-01-02T21:28:00.001-08:00

I created this image for the holidays in an small attempt to visually represent how we are all pulled together during this bizarre season. Ultimately, we are a menorah of humanity that directly experiences the social and filial frenzy that is whipped into a froth from Thanksgiving through to New Years Eve.

That being said:
Happy Hanukkah
Green Friendly Greetings
Generic Holiday Card Greetings
Merry Christmas
Agnostic?
Happy New Year
Itabari Gani
Eid Mubarak