Embrace The Remix
“It’s not where you take things from - it’s where you take them to."
- Jean-Luc Godard
Pablo Picasso is widely quoted as having said that “good artists borrow, great artists steal.” Somewhat ironically however, Picasso probably stole that idea. A similar quote was attributed to T.S. Eliot years earlier: “Immature poets imitate. Mature poets steal”.
But then again, "nothing is original", says Kirby Ferguson, creator of the popular series 'Everything is a Remix'. From Bob Dylan to Steve Jobs, Kirby makes the point that our most celebrated creators borrow, steal and transform in order to create new works worthy of critical and public acclaim. In his 13-minute TED talk Kirby suggests that creative people everywhere should stop feeling shame about borrowing ideas and start exploring the creative bounty that comes when you “embrace the remix”.
A "remix" according to Kirby is “new media created from old media.” And this new media is made using three techniques: Copying, Transforming and Combining. You find something you like, copy it, chop it up and transform the pieces, and then combine the pieces back together again and you have a new creation.
But Kirby takes the idea one step further by suggesting that these aren’t just the components of remixing – but rather the basic elements of all creativity. He thinks everything is a remix and that we should reconsider our approach to coming up with creative ideas.
Indeed the most dramatic results happen when different ideas are combined. Or as Steve Jobs put it, "it comes down to trying to expose yourself to the best things that humans have done, and then to try to bring those things in to what you’re doing.”
When asked why artists frown upon the concept of the "remix", Kirby replies “Because it’s considered copying. But copying is only one part of remixing. It’s essential, but it’s also the least creative part. It’s how we transform and combine our sources that defines our work."
So remember this the next time you're staring at a blank page while deadlines loom: "Our creativity comes from 'without', not from within. We are not self made, we are dependent on one another. Admitting this to ourselves isn't an embrace of mediocrity and derivativeness – it's a liberation. An incentive to not expect so much from ourselves, and to simply begin."