Creative Constraints

The beat of the drum...

Apple recently revealed their commercial?for the latest iPad Pro. In it, a giant iPad screen flattens and pulverises a room full of musical instruments and artist tools. The commercial struck a chord but not the one Apple hoped for. Artists felt personally attacked by the Ad. Possibly, they were hyper-sensitive in an era of AI. These artists were appalled by the sight of musical instruments and?artists'?tools being obliterated by shiny new technology. Why did it strike such a nerve? Why do people still feel urged to pick a guitar or bang a drum when technology can accomplish almost anything? One of the reasons musicians and artists felt attacked was because they felt a passionate attachment to physical instruments and?artists'?tools.?

Why is that? The computer can do it all.?Yet,?people felt these primitive instruments and tools represented creative opportunity and authentic expression in a way computers?just?didn't.?

I caught a clip of the musician and producer Brian Eno that suggested an explanation. In the clip, Eno talked about the power of creative constraints. He provided an insight that clarified the raw reaction to the Apple commercial. Eno is no Luddite. He is famously evangelical about the possibilities of new technology; however, here, he articulates the enduring appeal and strength of the oldest technology like a drum, a guitar, or a paint-brush. Eno conveys how these essential and ancient tools retain their power because they are so rudimentary, not despite it.?It's?this limitation that makes them intelligible and human. Their potential is comprehensible. The user immediately understands these?instruments'?potential in a way that they never can with a computer whose possibilities are so vast as to become paralysing.?

Here’s the Brian Eno quote:

“Doesn't?it strike you as interesting that we are in the second decade of the 21st century?and?a lot of the most interesting music is still?being made?by people playing?very?primitive instruments like electric guitars and?drums.?[…]

Well, the reason is?because?it's?hopelessly limited.?The reason is that you?very quickly can understand?what you can do with an electric guitar?or?a violin or a set of drums and you stop looking for more options and?you?start grappling with?it.

The problem with software-based work is that…you can never exhaust what it does. So you can always cover the fact that you?haven't?got an?idea by trying another option. If you have?a lot of?options, you?don't?usually have a lot of rapport with the instrument. If you have a few options, your rapport keeps increasing because you understand the options better and better.?And this?is why people still make good music with crude?instruments?and simple instruments.?Because they?understand?them better than our software.”