ANNIE KLOPP | Paragraph on Tom Igoe Article

http://we-make-money-not-art.com/interview_of_to/

Tom Igoe, an NYU professor, is a very common name in the physical computing community. He is part engineer, part artist, yet regards himself as a humble "neither." His experience in theater has influenced his work today, which "centers on physical interaction related to live performance and public space." The structure of Igoe's classes is very "hands-on," asking students to get creative with creating their own projects and applying the skills that they learn.   He says that he follows his former students' careers in art as much as possible.  He gives quality advice to students in the article and then finishes off by talking about some projects that he is working on and some of his favorite contemporaries.

The most interesting part of this article was his advice to students entering the professional world, so I have chosen to outline these pieces of advice from Igoe here:

1.  Art is most successful when other people's ideas are involved besides your own.

"You learn so much from working for and with others that strengthens your artwork that you'd be a fool not to collaborate or work for others from time to time."

"The people who do best in this field figure out very quickly that they can't work alone, and that they need others to make a difference."

2.  Don't just be an artist; be an entrepreneur. 

"I think the most successful ITP alums take an entrepreneurial approach to their careers, whether its seeking new opportunities in large companies, starting their own businesses, seeking ways of getting their artwork shown, or a combination of all those things."

3.  Learning physical computing helps you learn to troubleshoot, not just necessarily how to make devices. 

"Even if you never touch hardware again after the intro class (and many don't), there is somethign for you to learn from spending a period thinking about how the body meets the bits." 

4.  Optimum art training gives artists visual sensitivities.  

"Art training at its best gives people a heightened sensitivity to sensual cues (audio, visual, tactile, etc) and in some cases a strong ability to analyze work from an aesthetic perspective."

5.  Visual ability alone isn't going to make you successful.

"You also need the creativity and attention to detail of a good engineer, the insight of a good social scientist, the pragmatism of a good business manager, and more."