Creative Stuff: An Activity Book for Visual Thinkers
by Chris Elkerton and Dave Gouveia HOW Books 2012


Reviewed by José Cardoso, graphic design student and student member of RGD Ontario

Every designer has episodes where they can't think of an idea to save their life. It's times like these where a reserve of inspirational reads and magazine cut-outs can be a blessing in disguise. Promising that it will "jumpstart creativity," you may want to consider adding Creative Stuff to your collection.





Through imagination-focused exercises, this unconventional workbook habitually encourages readers to get out of their comfort zone. Everything is laid out colourfully with categories devoted to typography, clients, and more. Even within the sectioned-off areas, there are quite a few surprises to keep things fresh. One page can act like a test on key production terms, while the next will have you recreating an iconic Space Invaders character. At other points, you'll be asked to employ a cave drawing style, or even create your own ASCII art. Creative Stuff can be seen as a sort of vehicle for creatives and design enthusiasts alike to arrive at needed changes and elusive ideas.

In keeping with the not-so-dry material, there's a welcome sense of humour in a lot of the textual comments strewn throughout. When serious, Creative Stuff offers nice reminders about textures, the rule of thirds, and other topics the average designer would likely be aware of. Mixed in amongst these are handy resources, quotes, as well as additional opportunities to let loose. There's this unstated hope that by engaging in these wide-ranging activities, core concepts and ideas will sink in somewhere along the way. However, whenever it regresses back to word searches and fill-in-the-blanks activities, you can't help but wonder how these will prove beneficial.



Creative Stuff offers a broad spectrum of content, with a mix of conceptual and informational activities, as well as some time wasters like Pantone Sudoku. I can recall two instances where the book helped spurn an idea, which can be seen as a small testament to the book's effectiveness. That said, whipping it out when your brain is fried might not lead to the results you may be expecting. Instead of acquiring a strong level of accessibility where you can find value in just about everything, you may find yourself spending time just searching for something relevant and truly inspirational. Minor flaws aside, Creative Stuff accomplishes what it sets out to do and can thus be seen as a good buy.




Currently studying at a post-secondary institution, José Cardoso is an aspiring designer with a developing knack for idea generation. He takes an interest in the world of marketing, and is passionate about writing and gaming.