Abstract

Questioning what effective collaboration is, and how we might collaborate better, drove the research within this thesis. Through a range of research methods including an auto-ethnographic review of my creative practice, studio projects that explored designed interventions around collaboration at Emily Carr University, and Interviews with past collaborators that support a collective perspective around collaboration, this research accumulates a body of data surrounding collaborative experiences. When explored in relation to aspects of the broader literature, eight key themes emerged surrounding effective collaboration:

Self-awareness of context and practice

Confidence in ambiguity

A refined practice

Clear communication and comprehension

Understanding motivations towards collaborative work

A balanced exchange of resources or energy

Mutual and holistic respect

These eight themes are presented through a dual perspective of a “Personal” and “Interpersonal” lens. The “Personal” application involves collaborators gaining insights into their own cultural influences, creative practices, and motivations in order to approach collaboration more effectively. The “Interpersonal” application emphasizes understanding collaborators’ lived experiences, the ways in which they communicate, and tailoring our approach to productivity by meeting at our collaborators’ capacities. This initial outcome of the eight themes applied through these two perspectives all provide guidance on how we might collaborate more effectively. Although this research is focused largely on the very specific circumstances of my collaborative creative practice in Vancouver, Canada, it provides some initial insights into broader understandings around collaboration that set a foundation for future collaborative engagements elsewhere.

Keywords

Creative Collaboration

Practice-based research

CoDesign

Co-creation

Interdisciplinary Collaboration

Work reviewed

Industry projects, including work with dontdoze art collective, 5X Festival, Motor-way Studios, and independent musicians and artists around Vancouver, BC

In Studio explorations at Emily Carr University; including team-based excercises with Lego and toolkits for collaborative engagements

dontdoze Art Collective

Various Branding and Production work for Surrey Based Artists, Curators and Patrons; dontdoze. Dominantly working in the Lower Mainlands emerging Art and Music industries, the dontdoze team brought me in to handle design work across a variety of projects, while also supporting productions such as live shows, music videos and gallery exhibitions.

5X Festival

Taking control of Art Direction, my role at 5X saw me handling the concept, curation and production of the 2021, 2022 and 2023 Art Parties.

These events were pop-up exhibitions that featured interdisciplinary work from independent and emerging South-Asian creative practitioners, alongside audience-engaged work and live performances from South-Asian Musicians and DJs.

See the Curation & Exhibition Design page for more details

Art Direction, Design & Productions

These reviewed works in this section included Album release campaigns and musical productions involving branding, art-direction, and a variety of media including photography, videography, and analog processes.

See the Art Direction & Production and Branding & Campaign Design pages for more details.

Lego

LEGO 2022

During the Spring semester of 2022, I had the opportunity to run a workshop in my using Lego as a medium to understand and explore collaborative situations. The class was split into two groups: one building the piece and the other providing instructions without showing the booklet. The instructional team had to change the person giving directions every minute. This chaotic but fun activity explored shared hierarchy, where no single person dominated, and everyone had a chance to lead. It also highlighted the importance of a shared, common language for communication, especially in situations where language barriers exist.

LEGO 2023

In 2023, I continued to explore shared hierarchy, common language, and communication in collaborative settings. The Lego workshop provided insights into whether non-designers could work with design elements and instructions without prior knowledge. Testing this workshop with a diverse group of participants would reveal how different backgrounds and experiences affect the process. The evolving nature of this provocation is exciting, and I aim to integrate the use of Lego into my thesis research, focusing on shared hierarchy, common language, and testing beyond the design space.

Cards Against Lethargy

Overview:
Cards Against Lethargy is a project aimed at harnessing the serendipity of collaboration—the moments when everything clicks, leading to a "light-bulb" moment. The cards represent my approach to feedback, critique, ideation, and iterative work, exploring a fluid hierarchy akin to an exquisite corpse.

Card Design:
I created four “action” cards for collaborative engagement, inspired by role-playing game mechanics. Each card aligns with my process: additive actions, subtractive actions, alterations, or applying inspiration. The designs are simple and intuitive:

• Addition: Represented by a “+” symbol.

• Subtraction: Tools to cut, remove, or cover up.

• Alteration: Items with a bright gradient overlay.

• Inspiration: Visualizing a small treasure among tools.

Classmates used these cards with provided materials and examples, fostering dynamic and creative interactions.

Collaborative Personalities

Overview:

The intention here was to design a tool for collaborators to communicate preferences regarding communication, working methods, conflict resolution, and goal setting. Tailoring the process to individual preferences enhances both individual performance and overall collaboration.

The project was inspired by the concept of Love Languages and designing for introverts in collaboration. Understanding how collaborators give and receive communication and connection led to the development of this tool.

Research:

Love Languages and Personality/Skills tests like Myers Briggs provided initial frameworks, influencing the project's visual representation and codification. Exploration of "The Wisdom of Teams" by Jon Katzenbach and Douglas Smith, and the work of R. Meredith Belbin and Charles Margerison and Dick McCann highlighted factors contributing to effective team dynamics and composition. By examining and simplifying parameters from various tests, key preferences for collaborators were identified: communication style, work-style preference, approach to conflict resolution, and goal-setting intention.

Design:

Inspired by the complications of wrist-watches, each of the four parameters for collaborators to signify were associated with a different element such as the bezel, outline, face-dials and texture.

From & Beyond Design

A collection of design research explorations conducted by select members of the 2024 Emily Carr Master’s of Design cohort.

See the Editorial & Publication Design page for more details on this project.

Interviews

Interviews were conducted with past collaborators and creative professionals from a variety of industries across Vancouver.

Thank you to my Collaborators:

Murad Al-Mangi

Sara Behesti

Gino Coronado

Alina Jiwani

Sabine Kahwaji

Natasha Kianipour

Andrew Lo

Harpo Mander

Vidhurshan Manohara

Nafsi

Andrea Nazarian

Jeevan Sangha

Jamie Sekhon

Nick Scott

Ruby Singh

Ricky Sidhu