Trial ideas

[MJDeeks]

Hi all!
I'm having trouble finding ideas for new potential directions. My theme is autism and the senses
My current ones are:
Brain
Textures
Sensory overload
Day to day life
Small details

If anyone could give me some ideas I would be most appreciative! Thanks

[Poet]

Hi all!
I'm having trouble finding ideas for new potential directions. My theme is autism and the senses
My current ones are:
Brain
Textures
Sensory overload
Day to day life
Small details

If anyone could give me some ideas I would be most appreciative! Thanks

Hey!
Maybe something on a more emotional level - you know, thinking as if you were the autistic person. Step into their shoes. How do they feel about it? You can pull a lot out of broader topics. I've brainstormed some you can probably pick a few PDs out of.
Like:
- Bias and judgement
- Loss of communication
- Isolation and misunderstanding
- Comfort

Hope this helps.

[literally lauren]

Hi all!
I'm having trouble finding ideas for new potential directions. My theme is autism and the senses
My current ones are:
Brain
Textures
Sensory overload
Day to day life
Small details

If anyone could give me some ideas I would be most appreciative! Thanks

I think it'd be cool to explore some kind of duality or comparison/contrast between people with autism and people without. For example, you could take any of those themes you've listed here and unpack how people might see or experience them in similar or different ways. On an idea-level, this could help you communicate that there are both similarities and differences between people's brains (i.e. it's not always as simple as autistic people 'seeing the whole world differently').

Alternatively, since autism is a spectrum disorder, maybe you could explore that concept. Using spectrums of colour, texture, line, tone etc. might make for a nice parallel too! I'm not sure what form/medium you want to work with, but maybe you could do a kind of 'many pieces in one' thing (e.g. a series of small drawings, photos, or paintings arranged together, a series of short 'vignette' films, or a set of different found/crafted objects, etc.) Again, this could enable you to explore what makes people with autism different from those without, but also how different people with autism can be from one another.

Beyond that, maybe just try and take your current sub-themes in different directions by asking questions:
- Brain: how do brains work? Which part(s) of the brain can be linked to autism? We know autism affects brains, but can brains (and the way we think about autism) affect autism? How are senses processed in the brain?
- Textures: what are textures like for someone with autism? Sight? Sound? Touch? Smell? Taste? (<-- might be cool to have a piece that explores all 5 senses somehow!)
- Sensory overload: what does this feel like? How could you communicate this in an artwork?
- Day-to-day life: what does this consist of? How is it unique? What commonalities are there among people with autism, or just people in general? What adjectives would you use to describe day to day life? Exhausting? Exhilarating? Challenging? Fulfilling? Think about how you could communicate that emotion/sensation through art.
- Small details: what does it feel like to be the only one who sees these things? What kinds of details would someone notice? This seems like it could pair nicely with the concept of 'sensory overload' (e.g. an artwork that is FULL of small details to the point where it's totally overwhelming for a viewer). What makes these small details special? Is there something that links them together, or something creative you could do with this idea (e.g. an insanely busy piece in black and white where specific things are in colour)?

Hope that helps you get started! If you're still struggling, maybe let us know what kind of message you want your piece to communicate, or if you've done any exploration into a desired form/medium already?

Good luck!