One of the BEST things that has come out of setting up and running inkyGenius has been meeting and working with some truly inspired individuals. They are constantly striving to take their work to the next level, and try things differently. They do not compromise on quality. Theirs have been the projects that pose challenges, and require me, as a writer, to get caught up in the infectious enthusiasm they have for their product and vision.
THE TASK: I was lucky enough to be hired for a really fun project right as I decided to get serious about writing full-time. It was a project for Anjalee Granites, one of my first real clients. Our end-goal was to create an out-of-the-box display for all 35 colours featured in the 2015 Anjalee Collection. Their MD, a truly stellar gentleman by the name of Siddhartha, wanted to exhibit the colours through a theme that really let the granite shine. I had several long chats with Sid on how HE felt about the different pieces, and was quickly blown away by the level of detail and passion with which he spoke. We eventually decided on "Emotions in Stone" as the theme, with my task being to form an emotional connect between the viewer and each piece of granite before him or her.
Sounds easy enough, yes? I thought so too. "Nature is so amazing," I'd sigh to myself. "Describing these wonderful creations of Mother Earth will be so effortless, and yet so rewarding."
THE REALITY CHECK: 3 days and 7 samples in, I slammed into a roadblock. I had initially thought to simply describe in words how a certain colour made me feel, but that turned decidedly monotonous and vague in an alarmingly short period of time. As exciting and limitless as the possibilities seemed at the beginning, the fact is that I was trying to link a rather short list of distinct positive emotions directly to a host of different pieces of granite, all in less than 3 lines each.
source: Robinson, D. L. (2009). "Brain function, mental experience and personality". The Netherlands Journal of Psychology. pp. 152–167.
BREAKTHROUGH: Rather than directing someone towards a specific emotion, or asking viewers how Flash Blue made them feel, we tried to guide them towards a mental image more commonplace than the physical display before them. We wanted them to consider each piece on its own, and identify with it individually, rather than look at the display as a whole. The initial questions of 'What do you see?' and 'How do you feel?' were later used for teasers and advertising.
TO WRAP UP: All's well that ends well; I'm told that the entire display was very well received.
Receiving positive feedback - especially for work that was so much fun to do - is exhilarating. In a way, it cemented the decision to pursue what I love, and trust that the pieces would fall in place along the way.