Lower East

Teaching & talking

We love to teach and talk about how to communicate! Last week the lower east core team went to the Danish island Bornholm to work with the students from the ceramics and glass programme at The Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts. We met a group of dedicated students eager to learn – and exited to take new steps with their projects.

Our focus was to dress the students up to go out there and tell the world how great they are in what they are doing. We worked on how to on one side trusting your gut feeling and your intuition, and on the other side how to be disciplined, operate within systems and learn the needed communication tools. Also looking at how to find and develop your story and tell it – at the same time you still are developing your project and your art.

We were looking at different communication ‘platforms’; websites, facebook, blogs, instagram, postcards, business cards, handouts and all that jazz’. The students worked alone and in groups. We believe in working in teams, believe that what you don’t know some in your network may wan’t to help you with – we opened a lot of doors, talked about  a lot of opportunities – and left the island again… Now the students keep up the good work… Keep your ears and eyes open for that!

We’ll be back!

 

 

How to communicate your unfinished business

Working with the students

Last week the Lower East teaching task force went to Bern, Switzerland to teach, talk – and work with the students from KaosPilots Switzerland Team SUI2. They are now on their 3rd, and last year at the school, and will be working mainly at their final project until next summer.

A part of my task was to help each student to have clarity of:
– how the student can communicate his or her research and learning journey.
– how the student can communicate his or her unfinished final project.
– a strategy of how the student can reach out into his or her various communities with the leading questions and the vision of their dream projects, so people can respond to their projects.
– how to use their communication strategy to earn money and/or to get to potential sponsors and partners.
– how to be honest with where they are at with their project development right now – and be able to speak about the dream and the high ambitions that are linked to their projects, inviting other people to join them as partners or supporters at this early stage.

We were discussing and looking at pro and cons with the known tools/media/platforms like websites, blogs, facebook, twitter, email, newsletters, the good old printed stuff like business cards, business stripes, postcards, flyers – and trying to get nearer what can move and communicate my project, what can be that special ‘thing’ that creates special awareness and interest of my (still) unfinished business?

We were putting focus on how to at the same time, develop your new project (and future business) and start the process of reaching out, of communicating, of getting the first clients and partners in sight. Most likely with a very small budget…

All that stuff in only three days, including 15 minutes speed coaching with each student. The days were intense, funny, cosy and challenging in the best way. The students did a very, very fine ‘job’! Now on better track with their new businesses, with power and a good portion of energy.
Keep an eye on them – you will meet them out there in the future!

You can follow the school at the schools website and at their blog – and of course on facebook.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Careful Steps

Lower East are in Copenhagen these weeks, teaching at Borups Højskole (folk high school). The students at the Next Step, are working on application tasks for the design & architecht schools, for the Mediehøjskole in Copenhagen and for several other creative schools in Oslo, Bergen, Stockholm. Tough and demanding times for the ambitious students, some of them are even applying for two or three schools at the same time.

What a thrill working with them. We are having fun, long hours, break throughs (and some smaller break downs). Fantastic ideas and concepts, cool design & funky posters are popping up in a impressing speed. Crossing our fingers, that all of you will pass the eye of the needle.

It’s never to late to go to ’højskole’. Check out www.borups.dk

Working with students

At the wonderful Borups Højskole, a folk high school in Copenhagen, Lower East teaches regularly. This spring at the ‘Next Step’, a pre-qualification class where the students can prepare for and maybe apply to educations such as design schools and architecture schools. In a late February week Jørgen worked with the students in the classic graphic design disciplin “Visual Identity“. 20 students, 7 groups, 7 cases, 5 days and on the last day each group made a quite fantastic presentation. Every group was during the week pushed hard by the strict teacher, each group should come up with a name for their project, a logo, a visual identity, and furthermore they should invent solutions on unfolding the identity in ways that would surprise the rest of the class and the, let’s just say, experienced teacher.

What a fantastic week, big applause to the students, both for the results achieved and for their enthusiasm and their work discipline.
Looking forward to return in April for another period at the school.