What are all the grandmas up to?
Aunties going wild, mixed media madness, workplace paradoxes.
Hello there. All good? Here are this week’s hits in creativity and more.
The Auntieverse: Hello aunty, I see you like sushi.
Friday Find- Startafight: A wee wild animation.
Burnout & Paradox: Workplace research in AI & Productivity.
A Man Called Fredrik: Some wry humour around writing & creativity.
With: Thatcher & the Godman, Pink Floyd & AI, and Mini forests.
1. The Auntieverse
In any given week, I might use the term ‘aunty’ for a hawker stall owner, a lady who chats with my kid in the train, a supermarket cashier, someone who I help at the bus stop, a neighbour, and many more. Though I once did get chastened, it is true, “I am not your aunty, ah!”; this was both rare and uncharacteristic.
The term ‘aunty’ or ‘auntie’ in most of Asia is very different from the term in many other parts of the world. Usually meant for older ladies, it can be used very loosely, with very little need to actually be related (being an aunt). Also not exclusive to the ladies, ‘uncle’ lies in pretty much the same bucket. Maybe most simply explained as, “Aunt/uncle means people in age like mother/father.”
While usually endearing or respectful or just plain familiar, it also can be a bit of a stereotype, maybe even slightly mocking- cliched abound around age, fashion sense, inquisitive behaviour, propensity to feed.
In all this, we have an artist’s take- part celebratory, part commentary, many parts surreal- the Auntieverse is a world of ladies of, shall we say, somewhat advanced years.
Artist Niceaunties creates across themes of ageing, beauty, personal freedom, and everyday life, aspiring to imagine “a different kind of life and unbridled freedom” for this generation of women. ‘In this alternative reality the “Niceaunties” provide a visual narrative where our adventuring aunties party uninhibited, have fun with a freedom of expression that is a positive representation of their collective joie de vivre.’
There are lunar cooking classes, cows & cats, plastic trash cleanups, beach parties, Nasa (the Nice Aunties Sushi Academy), and a Tesla (Tofu-Engineered Sushi Luxury Auto). Its all a bit off and a bit curious, with both mundanity and oddity, wrapped in the bizarre.
My inspiration came from the Asian culture I grew up in and my family. My maternal grandmother had dementia and was bedridden for 20 years. Because of this, my mother made a resolution to stay active in her silver years. She regularly dances, practices qi-gong (similar to tai chi), and performs with her friends on stage at festivals. I realized that this is not the case for most aging women, as I have aunties who have held back from pursuing their dreams, perhaps restricted by self-imposed expectations.Through exploring this dichotomy of conflicting ways to deal with the loss of youth, I wanted to create a world where women feel free and empowered to be outrageous, joyful, have fun, and be free.
There certainly is a certain unbridled enthusiasm here, which adds an endearing touch to the ‘cute grandma’ look. That, and an overwhelming love for sushi!
Scroll through more of the Auntieverse.
Hold that sushi roll.
Now, these are all created/generated with AI tools. This is largely controversial; art of this kind is often deemed ‘art’. There are very valid issues to debate around this kind of generative AI, most significantly the ethical aspect of how all these models are trained on the work of creative professionals and- almost always- with no express permission taken, nor compensation given. The most common defence usually revolves around the notion that these tools are enablers, not cannibals. There is much to be said and considered on this, and is best left for another post. Suffice to say for now that for me, generative AI is both promising/exciting, and awash with ethical greys.
Be that as it may, here, in the very specific way of AI being a creative collaborator, these tools are definitely enabling Niceaunties to share their vision of an Auntieverse (they call Midjourney an ”art partner rather than just a tool”).
Read more on aunties in Singapore · India · China & India ·
2. Friday Find: Startafight
A brief, brilliant and wild little animation mixing 3D and 2D, done by two blokes as a side project.
Designers often put time into such endeavours, outside their day jobs, to explore styles and techniques and express an artistic vision they may not be able to otherwise. It makes it no less amazing to me though, after all these years of seeing it, because these need a lot of time, meticulous planning & execution, and experimentation. All done over a day job that likely demands a lot of time, meticulous planning & execution, and experimentation!
Here’s STARTAFIGHT (I call it that because thats the name of the song), from Nicolas Roth, an animator based in Switzerland and Boris, an artist in Helsinki.
I get some Spiderverse vibes as well as Love Death & Robots feels.
Here’s a peek at their workflow.
Boris on IG · Nic on IG ·
3. Burnout & Paradox
Came across an interesting piece of research around work models and how AI is helping build them (or not). The Workplace Intelligence Survey by the Upwork Research Insititute is shared in a piece tellingly titled, “From Burnout to Balance: AI-Enhanced Work Models”.
While this is across 2500 respondents- but only the US, UK, Canada & Australia- there are interesting aspects nonetheless.
71% of full-time employees are burned out.
81% of global C-suite leaders acknowledge they’ve increased demands on workers in the past year.
(I’m sure there is no correlation there!)
But, specifically around the flavour of the year- AI!- the expectation has been sky-high.
96% of C-suite leaders expect the use of AI tools to increase their company’s productivity levels. Already, 39% of companies are mandating the use of AI tools.
65% employees believe these technologies can increase productivity.
Yet, less than a third of these leaders (26%) have AI training programs in place for their workforce and only 13% report a well-implemented AI strategy
There seems to be more focus on keeping up with all the shiny toys than putting in place systems that can meaningfully (and sustainably) gain from them. So the results may not be quite matching the hype, showcasing the productivity paradox*.
Nearly half (47%) of employees using AI say they have no idea how to achieve the productivity gains their employers expect.
77% say these tools have actually decreased their productivity and added to their workload.
The productivity paradox illustrates that throughout modern work history, technological advancements have often outpaced workforce productivity gains. We are starting to see some slow down, amidst questions around the actual efficacy of tools that have been deployed.
Such studies, and the like-for like, in other parts of the world like Asia would be interesting. In widely diverse markets like Japan, India, Southeast Asia, one can likely expect different trends and definitely more diverging nuances. Socio-economic aspects, the definition of ‘aspirational’, individual and community ambitions, all have interesting impacts. Parameters like overwork, burnout, ability and inclination to learn and the always reliable “work-life balance” can (will) throw up significant differences, and some similarities.
· The Survey ·
4. A Man Called Fredrik
We could do well to end the week with this brief & amusing piece on procrastination, writing & creative anxiety, from author Fredrik Backman.
Have a look for some:
Self deprecating humour
A veneer of the dry & cold for a speech that contains warmth & generosity.
Anxiety? What anxiety?
I have not read any of Fredrik's books, but do know that his first success, ‘A Man Called Ove’, was adapted into the Tom Hank starrer ‘A Man Called Otto’, released last year.
5. Peanut Masala
(where I share stories or tidbits I find interesting)
The Iron Lady & the Mystic. Kunwar Natwar Singh was an Indian diplomat and politician who also served as the Minister of External Affairs in 2004-05. He passed away on August 10. A charming extract from his book is reproduced here, with the unlikely combination of Margaret Thatcher and the dodgy Indian mystic Chandraswamy, “Rao’s Rasputin”.
Sony Music has debuted a new artificial intelligence-powered project featuring music by Pink Floyd’s David Gilmour and The Orb.
Fascinating and heartening to read about these Miyawaki mini forests in London. Trees are beautiful and generous, and we could all do well to have more of them in our lives. I am fortunate to live in a highly urban environment that values greenery and maintains it despite significant constraints of space, so I know very well the joy, relief or calm that green can give. More about the Miyawaki method, and a bit of history with a counterpoint from India.
Off for my brew!
What a great Monday morning read!