Unlearning 101

God Dome It! Unlearn!

The Saint Ignatius church in Rome was originally designed to include a cupola. For financial reasons, the feature was never built.

In moment, sparked by Divine intervention perhaps, Church officials hired Andrea Pozzo to paint a fake dome on the ceiling over the altar. Today, more than 300 years later, many visitors are shocked to find out the spectacular cupola above them is not real but an illusion.

Sometimes all it takes to unlearn a problem is the willingness to embrace a new perspective.

Interested in some other examples of turning problems into opportunities? Check out these older posts by self-described "Chief Unlearning Officer" Jack Uldrich:

Put One Foot in Back of the Other

The Opposite May Also Be True

A Playground for Kids 2 to 102

I recently came across a sign similar to the one to the right. You know what I'd like to see? A sign encouraging people to keep playing as they continue to age. Instead of thinking -- and acting -- like an adult, I believe we need to think more like children. To do this it might sometimes help to have a reminder that it is still OK to play. 

Related Posts

Teach Unlearning in Kindergarten

Activate Your Imagination

Listen and Unlearn

If you had the chance to listen to one of the world's best violinists for free, would you? Probably not if he or she were playing in a subway station. A few years ago Joshua Bell, one of the world's top violinists, played for over three hours in a subway station in Washington, D.C. He collectedly only $32.17.

Why? Because most people weren't listening with their ears, they were listening to their minds and their minds told them that anyone playing in a subway station couldn't possibly be that good. I encourage you to watch the 3-minute video below. Afterwards, you might want to ask yourself, what else aren't you hearing?

Make an Impression: Leave Something to the Imagination

Of all the types of painting, I most enjoy the impressionist artists. According to this fascinating article, I'm not alone. Many other people, ages 13 to 90, also enjoy impressionist paintings. The reason? The blurry images leave something to our imagination. In essence, we can create our own interpretation. It's a wonderful metaphor for the idea that "less is more" or, alternatively, that sometimes imperfection trumps perfection.

Draw Outside the Lines

Read the following three quotes from Pablo Picasso:

"To blossom forth, a work of art must ignore or rather forget all the rules." 

"Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist once he grows up." 

"It took me four years to paint like Raphael, but a lifetime to paint like a child."

Now take a look at his picture "Mother and Child" to the right. Do you notice anything? 

Picasso doesn't stay inside the lines! Notice how the blue color of the child's shirt is outside of the lines and how the color of the child's face also blurs outside the lines.

I imagine that Picasso "learned" the rules of not "drawing outside the lines" during his youth. Luckily, however, he unlearned this habit (and many others) later in his life.

Are there "draw inside the lines" habits in your life that you should now unlearn?

Unlearning isn't a Black and White Issue

The future won’t be either black or white—it will be black and white. In the field of architecture and design, people are often use to choosing between form or function. In the future, as a result of advances in nanotechnology, this age-old debate will become less relevant. As proof, I submit this article discussing a new technological advance that will allow the roof of the future to be both black or white—depending upon the temperature outside. (On cold days it will be black to absorb sunlight and on hot days it will turn white to reflect sunlight and keep the building cooler.) Depending upon your perspective that might either be a cool idea or a hot new area of interest.

Entertain All Your Far Out Ideas

This past fall I had the opportunity to give a presentation on unlearning at the Theatre Communication Group's annual Fall Forum in New York City. Before my presentation I had the pleasure of listening to Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Suzan Lori Parks speak. I especially appreciated her final statement to the audience: "Entertain all your far out ideas."

It was great advice but often once a person or an organization has achieved some success it becomes increasingly difficult to embrace this advice. The reason is not so much that people are afraid of the unknown but, rather, because they are afraid of letting go of the known. This is true even if the person or organization's original success was based on a "far out" idea.

The theatre is no different. For an industry in the business of changing peoples' lives many within the field are surprisingly resistant to change. Without re-hashing my entire presentation here are a few "far-out" ideas the industry should consider:

#1: Forget "Big" money; corporate sponsors and large endowments. Instead, try tapping into "slow money" or "local money" movements such as the 3/50 project. A growing number of people recognize the value of theatre to their communities and are willing to invest in them.

#2: Judge screen-plays on a "blind" basis. New research suggests that the screenplays of female playwrights are rejected at a higher rate than their male counterparts. This is in spite of the fact that female-written screenplays are more commercially successful.

#3: Try freeing your organization from the chains that bind you. A number of Holiday shows are financial successes and have become annual traditions (and they often help underwrite other shows throughout the year) but how can new traditions be established unless something new is tried?

#4: Got a problem? Try turning it on its head. For example, instead of bemoaning the idea that more and more Americans are becoming couch-potatoes who watch only reality TV, turn this into an opportunity. For example, much as Guinness turned it's biggest problem into an asset, theatre could do the same thing by creating counter-intuitive campaigns along the lines of: "Theatre: Couch potatoes need not apply" or "Theatre: The original reality TV."

#5: Appeal to non-customers. Just as Nintendo become the best-selling video-game console provider by creating the Wii -- which appealed to senior citizens and non-gamers -- theatre could do the same. One way to do this is by not listening to your best customers and critics. That's right: Ignore your best customers and critics. Why? Because you already know what they like and, usually, they aren't afraid to tell you if they don't. If you want to appeal to new audiences try listening to them. Their ideas may be "far out" but if you entertain them the result may be continued -- albeit unconventional -- success.