polyartists & multiplicity
Should we become specialists or polymaths? Is there a balance we should pursue? There is no single answer. Whether we’re conscious of this or not, it’s also a decision we have to make and re-make over and over again. Every day, we have to decide where to invest our time — do we become better at what we do or learn something new?
Shane Parrish • The Generalized Specialist: How Shakespeare, Da Vinci, and Kepler Excelled
Multi-perspectivism Polymaths thus seek to become more objective – that is, to expand their umwelt. They engage in a method of intellectual enquiry that consists of discovering, pursuing, experiencing and knowing multiple perspectives and then synthesising (fusing and contextualising) them in a way that allows for a more complete, fairer picture of
... See moreWaqas Ahmed • The Polymath: Unlocking the Power of Human Versatility
nothing sparks creativity and innovation like not being constrained by artificial categories. statistics. data science. genomics. science. art. photography. cinema. essay writing. having a chat with a drunk stranger at the bus stop.
when does multidisciplinarity/multiplicity of perspectives enrich the pursuit of a goal, or just life itself and when is it diluting?
Miranda July is a filmmaker, artist, writer, performance artist and in my mind, full on polyartist.
How does she do everything all at once? Can one be great at multiple things?
David Lynch. painter, film maker, sometimes poet I guess
Ness Labs • Liminal Creativity
Focusing on a single specialization sharpens expertise more than mixing many ideas, so diversity might just dilute deep mastery.