It seems Wurman took quite a novel approach to teaching: “I always teach from my ignorance and what I want to learn about.” I often hear the best way to truly understand your subject is through teaching, so perhaps Wurman’s method reinforces his understanding and retention of new information. In some of my past courses I think professors forgot how difficult it was to grasp new concepts, especially after teaching a subject for many years.
Wurman says “Great architecture is sometimes referred to as frozen music. I would like to think of my books as being frozen conversations.” The latter statement is puzzling to me, because I think of conversations as filled with all sorts of confusing signals to misinterpret such as intonation, gestures and expressions, and meaningless formalities necessary to polite, politically correct dialogue. Contrarily, I would hope a successful information architect strives to communicate in as concise and clear a langauge as possible.
In his surprising criticism of AIGA, Wurman implies the organization is more concerned with aesthetics than content. This reminded me of 1964’s “First Things First, a Design Manifesto” and the struggle of reputable designers to improve their image and take responsiblility for what their design is communicating. While aesthetics are certainly important, the knowledge shared through design, even so subtle as a subliminal message of awareness sent to the unsuspecting audience, is a true sign a success.
Wurman truly validates my sentiments of high school. I am still asking myself just how much useful knowledge I gathered from the whole painful experience.
I agree that television and film are not all robbing us of brain cells. I have a few shows I am faithful to, I also cannot stand reality TV, and I agree that as with many domains, there are examples of terrible failures and beautiful, inspiring stories that should be celebrated.
At one point, VanPatter says that criticism of Wurman comes with the territory. Some say that criticism is a form of flattery, which I think is true because it’s a sign you’re proactive and people are taking notice of your work. You can never please everyone, and I think a lot of the more hateful critics are only seeking publicity than offering useful advice.
I don’t suppose Wurman will be offering a $4000+ (!!!) scholarship to his EG conference, so a visit to his simplfied site (FYI: http://www.eg2006.com/) will have to suffice as my vicarious experience…
