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Fandom Meaningful Creativity

“Creativity is a necessity. If we join forces, the sum of the parts—the creative industry—should be able to address the complex issues of our time like no other domain, create alternative scenarios for the future, and generate societal meaning. Vocational education (mbo), the place where ideals are realized, forms the core of this 'creative consortium’,”I wrote on June 10, 2020, just after the end of the first ‘intelligent’ lockdown, in my application letter to SintLucas. Four years later, we look back on the contribution of the Professorship for Meaningful Creativity to the positioning of SintLucas as a driving (creative) force in the ‘Dijkgraaf fan’ and the role of design research within creative secondary vocational education in particular.

75 Years of applied creativity

In 1948, the Foundation of the Roman Catholic Painters’ School St. Lucas was established in Boxtel, initiated by the Dutch Catholic Union of Painters’ Patrons. The school started to offer vocational training such as ‘advertising painting’, building on earlier winter courses in the painting profession provided by local professional painters. In 1954, the Graphic School in Eindhoven was added, focusing on technical skills in the graphic industry, such as printing and bookbinding. A lot has changed since then... How does SintLucas futureproof the education they provide?

Practicum generale

° Workshop ‘making as didactic principle’
° Presentation ‘Harmonizing Worldviews’ @Impact of Applied Design Research (in collaboration with NADR)
° Critical Reflection Studio ‘Nieuw Zwanenburg’
° Exhibition of ‘The World’s Most Meaningful Hat’
° Post Cast: Meaningful Professorship
° Mini-Symposium ‘Visual Literacy’ (in collaboration with the Pictorial Research Lab of TU Delft/IDE and the Willem de Kooning Academy)
° Reading Club ‘Our/Their Vocabulary’
° Disciplinary Turn Tables
° Prarcade with Games of Equal Chance
° Presentation ‘Fandom Meaningful Creativity. Reflexive Thoughts of a Reflective Practor.’