Full STEAM ahead: Intersections between creativity and engineering and IT

27 July 2024

A group of women playing drums on campus

WiEIT team building drumming session

It is assumed that more technical people are often less creative and vice versa. In reality, the marriage between the arts and STEM has been studied and practised since the dawn of humanity.

It is assumed that more technical people are often less creative and vice versa. In reality, the marriage between the arts and STEM has been studied and practised since the dawn of humanity. From stone age tools that can easily double as decorative pieces, to the collaboration between audio engineers and musicians to produce high-quality music, to even the colourful graphs a data engineer may choose to add to their client presentation slides - the intersection between the arts and sciences is everywhere. Recognising this enables innovation, problem-solving and art-making (which, you could argue, is solving the problem of being unable to communicate the inner workings of our minds properly) to be pursued holistically and effectively.

We don’t need to look far to find examples of creative technologists and engineers - our very own team of passionate Gender Equity Ambassadors shared their experiences of creativity.

Snigdha Nagpal, a Masters of Interaction Design student, finds that to enhance the user experiences of products, there must be a continuous commitment to ideating creative and innovative design solutions. Snigdha develops interactive prototypes that are user-friendly and visually appealing to blend aesthetics and functionality in class and as a hobby.

Drawing, painting, and sculpture can not only provide an outlet for artistic expression and storytelling, it can also act as an effective tool for visualisation and teaching. For example, CAD (computer-aided design) models, architectural schemas, and scientific drawings can facilitate solution ideation, communication between stakeholders, and the maintenance of documentation. Sunjun Kwak, who is also studying for a Master of Interaction Design, enjoys spending time drawing. Eshya Liyanagamage is a third-year Mechanical Engineering student who loves painting as well as writing fictional novels, and vlogging.

Creativity can elevate technical thinking by broadening the scope of design thinking through imagination and innovation and enable effective communication between disciplines that may be disparate in experience but alike in motivation (VVCET, 2023). Engineering and IT have always been broad and complex fields - but this is especially apparent with the increased interconnectivity between communities that the Internet provides as well as the emergence of creative technologies such as virtual/augmented reality, artificial intelligence, and design software. By combining creative and technical thinking purposefully, opportunities for exciting and meaningful careers can open, old ideas can be transformed into relevant ideas, and designs can increase sustainability, accessibility, and user experience (James, 2022).

Decorated cookies — Even a simple activity like decorating cookies can spark creativity and boost your mood, showing how small joys can have a big impact on our creative well-being.

Michelle Sagredo is currently studying IT(Cybersecurity/Data) but has previously graduated with a Bachelor of Media Production. Michelle loves using audiovisual technologies to tell stories through video editing and cinematography (as well as some self-taught classical piano on the side). Yanling Qi is a postgraduate student, majoring in IT, who loves designing customised nail art. She believes everyone should be able to be comfortable with coding whilst expressing their own styles (with beautiful nails being the key accessory, of course).

Liya Nagawkar, studying a Bachelor of Engineering (Hons) in Biomedical Engineering and a Bachelor of Medical Science, loves to express creativity through baking and moving her body whilst playing sports. In fact, moderate exercise (which includes simply moving within our daily lives) has been correlated with an increase in creativity as well as a generally more positive mood (Reynolds, 2021).

Some of the steps we can take to blend creativity and our engineering/technology practice include (Gaines, 2020; LinkedIn, 2024; River Software, 2024):

Love to learn

Reading from a range of diverse media, pursuing feedback from our teams, trying new things, and speaking with mentors are great opportunities to identify areas in our practice that can benefit from creative thinking.

Collaborate confidently

If a creative lens is needed, sometimes the best approach is to reach out to passionate creatives for their input and expertise. Community, dialogue, and teamwork can ensure that creative solutions are supported and improved over time.

Fail fast, fail often

Otherwise known as “experimenting fearlessly”, creativity is all about embracing the unknown and allowing our imaginations to run wild. Experiment with different solutions and ideas at all points of the design thinking process.

Reflect regularly

Creativity and embracing a growth mindset are two increasingly in-demand interpersonal skills within technical industries (Career Foresight Training, 2020). These skills take time and energy to develop, and making sure we reflect critically on our progress and on our environments can help us celebrate wins, learn from mistakes, and commit to continuous improvement. Reflection is also linked with mental clarity and confidence, a stronger sense of identity, and an increase in decision-making skills, so there are lots of reasons to sit down and take some time to ask ourselves “what, why, how” (Rebecca, 2019):

What did you do or experience?
Why did you do or experience it?
How did you feel or think about it?

Painting of the face of a woman — "Cloud" by WiEIT Outreach Project Officer, Maryam Kausar

From creative uses of technology in video production, to the use of chemistry and composition in painting, drawing, and nail art, our community highlights engineers and IT professionals as practitioners of creativity in their personal and professional lives - the only barriers of entry are open-mindedness and a willingness to observe the universe from multiple angles.

Go out in nature, breathe deeply, and reflect on our community’s stories and how you can use the above steps to intertwine science, technology and art in your own life. Using whatever medium you choose, whether it be paint, pens, sculpture, digital drawing software, photography, or even dance, document this process. Post your work in the Women in Engineering and IT Teams channel or simply keep it somewhere that you regularly see to remind us of the beauty of life and learning.