ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Christoph Niemann - Illustrator, artist, author
With charm and incisive wit, Christoph Niemann sketches the moments of our shared experience.

Why you should listen

Christoph Niemann is the master of the deceptively simple. His work -- which often combines line drawing or brushwork with physical objects, or eschews drawing altogether in favor of LEGO -- has appeared on the covers of the New Yorker, WIRED and the New York Times Magazine and has won many awards. He has drawn live from the Venice Art Biennale and the Olympic Games in London, and he has sketched the New York City Marathon -- while running it. He created the New Yorker's first augmented reality cover as well as a hand-drawn 360-degree VR animation for the magazine's US Open issue.

Niemann is the author of many books, including the monograph Sunday Sketching, WORDS and Souvenir. With Nicholas Blechman, he published the book Conversations. With Jon Huang, he created the kids' apps Petting Zoo and Chomp. His work is subject of an episode of Abstract, a new original Netflix series.

More profile about the speaker
Christoph Niemann | Speaker | TED.com
TED2018

Christoph Niemann: You are fluent in this language (and don't even know it)

克里斯托夫 · 尼曼: 你能流利地使用这种语言(甚至不知道它的存在)

Filmed:
2,685,775 views

插图画家克里斯托夫 · 尼曼说,我们没有意识到自己能流利地使用图像语言。在这场令人兴致盎然的谈话中,尼曼利用一幅幅诙谐的、异想天开的图画,带领我们体验了一次有趣的视觉旅程,展示了艺术家们如何挖掘我们的情感和思想——一切都是无言的。
- Illustrator, artist, author
With charm and incisive wit, Christoph Niemann sketches the moments of our shared experience. Full bio

Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.

00:12
I'm an artist艺术家.
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我是一位艺术家。
00:15
Being存在 an artist艺术家
is the greatest最大 job工作 there is.
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成为一名艺术家,是最好的工作。
00:18
And I really pity可怜
each and every一切 one of you
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我很同情你们每一个人,
得花时间去发现新的星系,
00:21
who has to spend your days
discovering发现 new galaxies星系
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或者拯救人类免受全变暖的影响,
00:23
or saving保存 humanity人性 from global全球 warming变暖.
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(笑声)
00:26
(Laughter笑声)
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但作为一名艺术家,
也是一项艰巨的工作。
00:28
But being存在 an artist艺术家
is also a daunting艰巨 job工作.
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00:32
I spend every一切 day,
from nine to six, doing this.
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我每天从9点到6点都是这样的状态。
00:37
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
00:39
I even started开始 a side career事业
that consists entirely完全
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我甚至开始了一个副业,
00:43
of complaining抱怨的 about the difficulty困难
of the creative创作的 process处理.
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完全为了抱怨创作过程的艰辛。
(笑声)
00:45
(Laughter笑声)
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00:47
But today今天, I don't want to talk
about what makes品牌 my life difficult.
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但是我今天并不想谈论这些困难,
00:51
I want to talk about what makes品牌 it easy简单.
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而想谈谈如何让事情变得简单。
00:54
And that is you
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那就是你们,
00:55
and the fact事实 that
you are fluent流利 in a language语言
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和你们能理解的流利语言,
00:58
that you're probably大概 not even aware知道的 of.
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而你们可能都没有意识到这一点。
01:01
You're fluent流利 in the language语言
of reading images图片.
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你能流利地阅读图像语言。
01:06
Deciphering解读 an image图片 like that
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解读这些图像
01:08
takes quite相当 a bit
of an intellectual知识分子 effort功夫.
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需要运用相当多的智力。
01:10
But nobody没有人 ever taught you how this works作品,
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但没有人教过你怎样做,
01:12
you just know it.
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你天生就知道。
01:15
College学院, shopping购物, music音乐.
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大学、购物和音乐。
01:17
What makes品牌 a language语言 powerful强大
is that you can take a very complex复杂 idea理念
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使语言变得强大的是,
你从中能领略复杂的想法,
并以一种简单而有效的
方式进行沟通。
01:21
and communicate通信 it
in a very simple简单, efficient高效 form形成.
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01:25
These images图片 represent代表
exactly究竟 the same相同 ideas思路.
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这些图像代表着完全相同的想法。
01:30
But when you look, for example,
at the college学院 hat帽子,
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但是,当你看到,例如毕业帽,
这并不只是代表在你被授予毕业证书时
01:33
you know that this doesn't represent代表
the accessory附件 you wear穿 on your head
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戴在你头上的配件,
01:36
when you're being存在 handed your diploma文凭,
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而是象征着大学教育这个整体概念。
01:38
but rather the whole整个 idea理念 of college学院.
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01:42
Now, what drawings图纸 can do
is they cannot不能 only communicate通信 images图片,
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图画可以做的,是它们
不仅可以传达图像,
甚至可以激发情感。
01:46
they can even evoke唤起 emotions情绪.
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假设你在一个陌生地方看到这个图像,
01:49
Let's say you get to
an unfamiliar陌生 place地点 and you see this.
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01:52
You feel happiness幸福 and relief浮雕.
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就会感到快乐和宽慰。
01:53
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
01:55
Or a slight轻微 sense of unease不安
or maybe downright彻头彻尾 panic恐慌.
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或是有点不安,甚至全然的恐慌。
02:01
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
又或是幸福和宁静。
02:03
Or blissful幸福 peace和平 and quiet安静.
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02:07
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
02:08
But visuals视觉效果, they're of course课程
more than just graphic图像 icons图标.
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但在视觉方面,它们又
不仅仅是图像符号。
02:13
You know, if I want to tell the story故事
of modern-day现代 struggle斗争,
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如果我想讲述现代斗争的故事,
02:16
I would start开始 with the armrest扶手
between之间 two airplane飞机 seats
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我会从飞机座椅之间的扶手开始,
还有两个互不相让的胳膊肘。
02:20
and two sets of elbows肘部 fighting战斗.
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02:22
What I love there is this universal普遍 law
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我喜欢一个通则,
02:25
that, you know, you have
30 seconds to fight斗争 it out
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在30秒内,谁占有了扶手,
02:27
and once一旦 it's yours你的, you get to keep it
for the rest休息 of the flight飞行.
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谁就可以在其余的
飞行时间里拥有这个扶手。
(笑声)
02:30
(Laughter笑声)
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02:32
Now, commercial广告 flight飞行
is full充分 of these images图片.
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在商业航班里充满了这些图像。
02:36
If I want to illustrate说明
the idea理念 of discomfort不舒服,
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如果我想说明不舒服的想法,
没有比这些颈枕更好的了。
02:40
nothing better than these neck颈部 pillows枕头.
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02:42
They're designed设计
to make you more comfortable自在 --
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它们旨在让你更舒适——
(笑声)
02:45
(Laughter笑声)
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02:47
except they don't.
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但常常事与愿违。
02:48
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
02:52
So I never sleep睡觉 on airplanes飞机.
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所以我从不在飞机上睡觉。
02:54
What I do occasionally偶尔
is I fall秋季 into a sort分类 of painful痛苦 coma昏迷.
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偶尔我会陷入一种痛苦的昏迷状态。
02:59
And when I wake唤醒 up from that,
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当我醒来时,
03:02
I have the most terrible可怕
taste味道 in my mouth.
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我口中会有一种最可怕的味道。
03:05
It's a taste味道 that's so bad,
it cannot不能 be described描述 with words,
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这是一种很糟糕的味道,
难以用文字来形容,
但可以把它画出来。
03:08
but it can be drawn.
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03:09
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
03:15
The thing is, you know, I love sleeping睡眠.
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问题在于,我喜欢睡觉。
03:19
And when I sleep睡觉, I really
prefer比较喜欢 to do it while spooning勺子.
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当我睡觉时,更喜欢揽着太太。
03:22
I've been spooning勺子 on almost几乎 a pro level水平
for close to 20 years年份,
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近20年来,我几乎一直
保持着专业的姿势,
03:26
but in all this time,
I've never figured想通 out
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但我从未想过
03:29
what to do with that bottom底部 arm.
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在下面的手臂怎么办。
03:31
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
(掌声)
03:34
(Applause掌声)
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03:36
And the only thing --
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唯一的事情——
03:39
the only thing that makes品牌 sleeping睡眠
even more complicated复杂
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唯一让睡眠变得比在飞机上睡着
03:42
than trying to do it on an airplane飞机
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还要困难的,
03:44
is when you have small children孩子.
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是当你有了小孩。
他们会在凌晨4点走到你的床边,
03:47
They show显示 up at your bed at around 4am
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编造一些借口,比如
“我做了一个恶梦。”
03:50
with some bogus虚假 excuse借口 of,
"I had a bad dream梦想."
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03:53
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
03:55
And then, of course课程 you feel
sorry for them, they're your kids孩子,
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你当然会为此感到难过,
毕竟是亲生的孩子,
就让他们上床吧。
03:58
so you let them into your bed.
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开始时他们表现得很乖,
令你温暖又舒适。
03:59
And I have to admit承认, at the beginning开始,
they're really cute可爱 and warm and snugly紧贴.
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04:03
The minute分钟 you fall秋季 back asleep睡着,
they inexplicably莫名 --
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但当你再睡着的那一刻,不知怎的,
(笑声)
04:06
(Laughter笑声)
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04:08
start开始 rotating旋转.
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他们就开始摆出横七竖八的姿势。
(笑声)
04:09
(Laughter笑声)
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我们喜欢称之为直升机模式。
04:12
We like to call this the helicopter直升机 mode模式.
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04:14
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
另外,有一些更深入的东西
被刻进了你的意识中,
04:16
Now, the deeper更深 something is etched蚀刻
into your consciousness意识,
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04:21
the fewer details细节 we need
to have an emotional情绪化 reaction反应.
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只需要比较少的细节,
就能触动情绪的反应。
04:25
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
为什么像这样的图像能引起共鸣呢?
04:28
So why does an image图片 like this work?
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04:31
It works作品, because we as readers读者
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因为我们做为阅读者,
擅长于填补缺失的部分。
04:33
are incredibly令人难以置信 good
at filling填充 in the blanks空白.
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04:37
Now, when you draw,
there's this concept概念 of negative space空间.
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当你画画时,有一种负空间的概念。
04:41
And the idea理念 is, that instead代替
of drawing画画 the actual实际 object目的,
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其核心做法不是绘制实际的物体,
04:43
you draw the space空间 around it.
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只是画出它周围的空间。
所以图中的碗是空的。
04:46
So the bowls in this drawing画画 are empty.
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04:49
But the black黑色 ink墨水 prompts提示 your brain
to project项目 food餐饮 into a void空虚.
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但黑色的墨水会促使
你将食物投射到空间中。
04:56
What we see here is not a owl猫头鹰 flying飞行.
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这里看到的并不是飞行的猫头鹰。
05:00
What we actually其实 see
is a pair of AAAA batteries电池
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实际上是一对 AA 电池
05:02
standing常设 on a nonsensical无厘头 drawing画画,
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放在一张荒诞的画上,
05:04
and I animate活跃 the scene现场
by moving移动 my desk lamp up and down.
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我通过上下移动台灯的光线,
让场景动起来了。
05:08
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
05:10
The image图片 really only exists存在 in your mind心神.
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图像只存在于你的脑海中。
那么,需要多少信息
才能触发这样的一个图像?
05:13
So, how much information信息 do we need
to trigger触发 such这样 an image图片?
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05:18
My goal目标 as an artist艺术家
is to use the smallest最少 amount possible可能.
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艺术家的目标是用尽可能少的信息。
05:23
I try to achieve实现 a level水平 of simplicity简单
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我想要达到的极简程度,
05:25
where, if you were to take away
one more element元件,
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就是只需要拿走一个元素,
05:28
the whole整个 concept概念 would just collapse坍方.
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整个概念都会崩塌。
05:31
And that's why my personal个人 favorite喜爱 tool工具
as an artist艺术家 is abstraction抽象化.
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我作为艺术家,
最喜欢用抽象做工具。
05:36
I've come up with this system系统
which哪一个 I call the abstract-o-meter抽象-o 型表,
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我想出一个称之为抽像仪表的系统,
这是它的工作原理。
05:39
and this is how it works作品.
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05:40
So you take a symbol符号, any symbol符号,
for example the heart and the arrow箭头,
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你拿其中一个符号,
例如心脏和箭头,
人们都会视之为爱情的象征,
05:44
which哪一个 most of us would read
as the symbol符号 for love,
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05:47
and I'm an artist艺术家, so I can draw this
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我是艺术家,可以把它画出来,
并以任何现实或抽象的程度来呈现。
05:49
in any given特定 degree
of realism现实主义 or abstraction抽象化.
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05:53
Now, if I go too realistic实际 on it,
it just grosses大维斯 everybody每个人 out.
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如果它过于现实,
就会让所有人难以接受。
05:57
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
05:59
If I go too far on the other side
and do very abstract抽象,
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如果我做得太抽象,
就没人能看懂了。
06:03
nobody没有人 has any idea理念
what they're looking at.
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06:06
So I have to find
the perfect完善 place地点 on that scale规模,
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所以我必须找到平衡点,
06:08
in this case案件 it's somewhere某处 in the middle中间.
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位于仪表标尺上接近中间的某处。
06:11
Now, once一旦 we have reduced减少 an image图片
to a more simple简单 form形成,
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一旦将图像变得更简单,
06:16
all sorts排序 of new connections连接
become成为 possible可能.
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就会增加各种新联系的可能性,
06:20
And that allows允许 for totally完全
new angles in storytelling评书.
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出现不同的,讲故事的新角度。
(笑声)
06:24
(Laughter笑声)
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因此我喜欢做的是,
06:27
And so, what I like to do is,
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06:29
I like to take images图片 from really remote远程
cultural文化 areas and bring带来 them together一起.
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从很偏远的文化区域拍摄图像,
并将它们整合在一起。
06:36
Now, with more daring大胆 references引用 --
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更大胆的参考资料——
06:38
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
使我可以获得更多的乐趣。
06:41
I can have more fun开玩笑.
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06:43
But of course课程, I know that eventually终于
things become成为 so obscure朦胧
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但最终事情变得太模糊,
就会让你们中的一些人失去兴趣。
06:46
that I start开始 losing失去 some of you.
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06:48
So as a designer设计师, it's absolutely绝对 key
to have a good understanding理解
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因此,作为设计师,关键是要
对关于观众视觉和文化的词汇
06:53
of the visual视觉 and cultural文化
vocabulary词汇 of your audience听众.
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有着很好的理解。
06:58
With this image图片 here,
a comment评论 on the Olympics奥运会 in Athens雅典,
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这张图片评论了雅典奥运会,
07:03
I assumed假定 that the reader读者
of the "New Yorker纽约客"
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我默认《纽约客》的读者
对希腊艺术有些基本的了解。
07:05
would have some rudimentary初步
idea理念 of Greek希腊语 art艺术.
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否则,图像就不起作用了。
07:08
If you don't, the image图片 doesn't work.
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如果你有一定的理解,
甚至会欣赏那些细节,
07:10
But if you do, you might威力
even appreciate欣赏 the small detail详情,
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07:13
like the beer-can啤酒罐 pattern模式 here
on the bottom底部 of the vase花瓶.
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就像花瓶底部的啤酒罐图案。
07:16
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
07:19
A recurring经常性 discussion讨论 I have
with magazine杂志 editors编者,
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我与杂志编辑们一起反复讨论过——
07:23
who are usually平时 word people,
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他们是文字方面的行家——
07:25
is that their audience听众, you,
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他们的观众,也就是在座的各位,
07:29
are much better at making制造
radical激进 leaps飞跃 with images图片
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能够赋予图像比其原本所要表现的意图
07:32
than they're being存在 given特定 credit信用 for.
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更加跳跃式的含义。
07:35
And the only thing I find frustrating泄气
is that they often经常 seem似乎 to push me
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而唯一让我感到沮丧的
一件事是,他们经常
07:39
towards a small set
of really tired visual视觉 clich老生常谈és
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迫使我设计一小部分
老套的视觉图像,
07:43
that are considered考虑 safe安全.
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认为这样做很保险。
07:44
You know, it's the businessman商人
climbing攀登 up a ladder阶梯,
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比如商人爬上梯子,
07:47
and then the ladder阶梯 moves移动,
morphs变种 into a stock股票 market市场 graph图形,
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然后梯子移动,变成股票市场图,
07:50
and anything with dollar美元 signs迹象;
that's always good.
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任何有美元符号的东西;
这些总是好的。
07:53
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
07:55
If there are editorial社论 decision决定 makers制造商
here in the audience听众,
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如果观众中有编辑决策者,
07:58
I want to give you a piece of advice忠告.
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我想给你们一些建议。
08:00
Every一切 time a drawing画画
like this is published发表,
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每次发布这样的图片时,
08:03
a baby宝宝 panda熊猫 will die.
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就会有一只熊猫宝宝死掉。
08:05
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
说真的。
08:06
Literally按照字面.
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(笑声)
08:07
(Laughter笑声)
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08:09
(Applause掌声)
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(掌声)
怎么判定视觉上的陈词滥调是好是坏?
08:13
When is a visual视觉 clich老生常谈é good or bad?
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08:17
It's a fine line线.
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有一个准则。
这取决于故事背景。
08:18
And it really depends依靠 on the story故事.
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2011 年,在日本的地震和海啸期间,
08:21
In 2011, during the earthquake地震
and the tsunami海啸 in Japan日本,
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08:25
I was thinking思维 of a cover.
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我正在构想一个封面。
08:27
And I went through通过 the classic经典 symbols符号:
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审视经典的符号:
08:29
the Japanese日本 flag,
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日本国旗,
08:31
"The Great Wave" by Hokusai北斋,
one of the greatest最大 drawings图纸 ever.
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北斋的 “大浪”,是有史以来
最伟大的绘画之一。
08:35
And then the story故事 changed
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然后故事变了,
08:38
when the situation情况 at the power功率 plant
in Fukushima福岛 got out of hand.
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福岛电厂的情况失控。
08:42
And I remember记得 these TV电视 images图片
of the workers工人 in hazmat危险品 suits西装,
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我记得这些穿着
防护服工人的电视画面,
08:46
just walking步行 through通过 the site现场,
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仅仅是走过那地方,
那种宁静和安祥的感觉
却令我印象深刻。
08:48
and what struck来袭 me
was how quiet安静 and serene安详 it was.
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所以我想创造一个静默的灾难图象。
08:52
And so I wanted to create创建 an image图片
of a silent无声 catastrophe灾难.
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08:56
And that's the image图片 I came来了 up with.
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这就是我设计的画面。
08:59
(Applause掌声)
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(掌声)
谢谢。
09:00
Thank you.
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09:02
(Applause掌声)
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(掌声)
09:05
What I want to do is create创建
an aha moment时刻, for you, for the reader读者.
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我想为各位,为读者们
创造一个顿悟时刻。
09:10
And unfortunately不幸, that does not mean
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不幸的是,这并不意味着
09:12
that I have an aha moment时刻
when I create创建 these images图片.
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当我创造这些图像时,
正处于灵光乍现的时刻。
我坐在办公桌前的时候,
09:15
I never sit at my desk
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09:16
with the proverbial谚语 light bulb灯泡
going off in my head.
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脑海中象征灵感的灯泡从不会熄灭。
09:21
What it takes is actually其实 a very slow,
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它需要经历一个缓慢的,难熬的过程,
09:24
unsexyunsexy process处理 of minimal最小 design设计 decisions决定
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为最细微的设计决策而绞尽脑汁,
如果我的运气还不错,
就会得到一个好主意。
09:27
that then, when I'm lucky幸运,
lead to a good idea理念.
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09:31
So one day, I'm on a train培养,
and I'm trying to decode解码
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有一天在火车上,我正在尝试解读
09:34
the graphic图像 rules规则 for drops滴剂 on a window窗口.
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窗玻璃上水滴的图形规则。
最后意识到,
09:37
And eventually终于 I realize实现,
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09:38
"Oh, it's the background背景
blurry模糊 upside-down上下翻转,
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“哦,模糊不清,上下颠倒的背景,
包含在了一幅清晰的图像中。 “
09:42
contained in a sharp尖锐 image图片."
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09:43
And I thought, wow, that's really cool,
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我想,哇,真的很酷,
但却不知道如何应用这种场景。
09:45
and I have absolutely绝对 no idea理念
what to do with that.
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不久之后,我回到了纽约,
09:48
A while later后来, I'm back in New York纽约,
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09:50
and I draw this image图片 of being存在 stuck卡住
on the Brooklyn布鲁克林 bridge in a traffic交通 jam果酱.
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在交通拥堵中画出了这张
在布鲁克林大桥上被困的图片。
09:55
It's really annoying恼人的,
but also kind of poetic诗意.
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这个场景让人感到
心烦意乱,但也蕴含着诗意。
后来我才意识到,
09:58
And only later后来 I realized实现,
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我可以融合那两个想法,
来得到一个新想法。
10:00
I can take both of these ideas思路
and put them together一起 in this idea理念.
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10:04
And what I want to do
is not show显示 a realistic实际 scene现场.
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而我的目的并不是展现真实的场景。
10:09
But, maybe like poetry诗歌,
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也许就像诗歌那样,
10:11
make you aware知道的 that you
already已经 had this image图片 with you,
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让你意识到你已经拥有这个图象,
10:15
but only now I've unearthed出土 it
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但直到现在我才发掘出來,
10:17
and made制作 you realize实现 that you
were carrying携带 it with you all along沿.
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让你意识到它一直伴随着你。
10:21
But like poetry诗歌,
this is a very delicate精巧 process处理
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但也就像诗歌一样,
这是一个非常微妙的过程,
既不高效,也不能随意
应用到其他场景中。
10:25
that is neither也不 efficient高效
nor也不 scalable可扩展性, I think.
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10:30
And maybe the most
important重要 skill技能 for an artist艺术家
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艺术家最重要的技能
10:34
is really empathy同情.
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也许真的是同理心。
10:36
You need craft手艺 and you need --
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你需要草图,你需要——
10:39
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
你需要创造力——
10:41
you need creativity创造力 --
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10:42
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
10:44
thank you --
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谢谢——
来构思出这样的图像。
10:45
to come up with an image图片 like that.
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但是你还需要退后一步,
10:47
But then you need to step back
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10:49
and look at what you've doneDONE
from the perspective透视 of the reader读者.
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从读者的角度去看你做了些什么。
10:53
I've tried试着 to become成为 a better artist艺术家
by becoming变得 a better observer观察者 of images图片.
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我试着通过成为一个更好的观察者,
去成为更好的艺术家。
10:59
And for that, I started开始
an exercise行使 for myself
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为此,我开始锻炼自己,
11:01
which哪一个 I call Sunday星期日 sketching素描,
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我称这个过程为周日草图,
11:03
which哪一个 meant意味着, on a Sunday星期日, I would take
a random随机 object目的 I found发现 around the house
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在星期天,我会利用一个
在房子周围随机找到的物品,
并尝试查看该对像
是否可以触发一个
11:09
and try to see if that object目的
could trigger触发 an idea理念
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11:13
that had nothing to do
with the original原版的 purpose目的 of that item项目.
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这与该物品的设计初衷无关的想法。
通常,很长一段时间里,
我的大脑都是一片空白。
11:17
And it usually平时 just means手段
I'm blank空白 for a long while.
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11:21
And the only trick that eventually终于 works作品
is if I open打开 my mind心神
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最终唯一有效的技巧,
就是我能敞开心扉,
并浏览存储在脑海里的每张图片,
11:24
and run through通过 every一切 image图片
I have stored存储 up there,
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11:28
and see if something clicks点击.
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试图从中得到灵感。
11:30
And if it does, just add
a few少数 lines线 of ink墨水 to connect --
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如果有,只需添加
几行墨水即可建立连接——
11:35
to preserve保留 this very short
moment时刻 of inspiration灵感.
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紧握住这个电光石火间的灵感。
11:40
And the great lesson there
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我最大的收获就是,
真正的魔法不会发生在纸上。
11:42
was that the real真实 magic魔法
doesn't happen发生 on paper.
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11:45
It happens发生 in the mind心神 of the viewer观众.
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它只发生在观众的脑海中。
11:48
When your expectations期望 and your knowledge知识
clash冲突 with my artistic艺术的 intentions意图.
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也就是,当你的期望和知识
与我的艺术意图发生碰撞时。
11:55
Your interaction相互作用 with an image图片,
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你与图像的互动,
你的阅读、提问、烦恼、厌烦
或受图像启发的
11:58
your ability能力 to read, question,
be bothered困扰 or bored无聊 or inspired启发
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12:03
by an image图片
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能力,
和我的艺术贡献一样重要。
12:04
is as important重要
as my artistic艺术的 contribution贡献.
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12:07
Because that's what turns
an artistic艺术的 statement声明
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因为正是这一点让一种艺术陈述
真正变成了创意对话。
12:13
really, into a creative创作的 dialogue对话.
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12:17
And so, your skill技能 at reading images图片
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所以,你理解图像的能力
12:19
is not only amazing惊人,
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不仅令人惊叹,
也是让我的艺术成为可能的原因。
12:21
it is what makes品牌 my art艺术 possible可能.
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12:24
And for that, I thank you very much.
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为此,我非常感谢各位。
12:27
(Applause掌声)
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(掌声)
12:30
(Cheers干杯)
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(掌声,站立)
12:36
Thank you.
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谢谢。
(掌声)
12:37
(Applause掌声)
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Translated by Thomas Tam
Reviewed by Homer Li

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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Christoph Niemann - Illustrator, artist, author
With charm and incisive wit, Christoph Niemann sketches the moments of our shared experience.

Why you should listen

Christoph Niemann is the master of the deceptively simple. His work -- which often combines line drawing or brushwork with physical objects, or eschews drawing altogether in favor of LEGO -- has appeared on the covers of the New Yorker, WIRED and the New York Times Magazine and has won many awards. He has drawn live from the Venice Art Biennale and the Olympic Games in London, and he has sketched the New York City Marathon -- while running it. He created the New Yorker's first augmented reality cover as well as a hand-drawn 360-degree VR animation for the magazine's US Open issue.

Niemann is the author of many books, including the monograph Sunday Sketching, WORDS and Souvenir. With Nicholas Blechman, he published the book Conversations. With Jon Huang, he created the kids' apps Petting Zoo and Chomp. His work is subject of an episode of Abstract, a new original Netflix series.

More profile about the speaker
Christoph Niemann | Speaker | TED.com